In 2022, the horror-sci-fi feature M3GAN delivered what appeared to be a promising piece of IP. Produced by Blumhouse and Atomic Monster, and directed by Gerard Johnstone, the film followed Gemma (Allison Williams), a brilliant engineer who designed M3GAN, an ultra-realistic kids' doll with an advanced AI. The robot quickly became homicidal, forcing Gemma to defend herself and her niece Cady (Violet McGraw) from her own creation.
Its peculiar mix of horror, comedic elements and family drama endeared the movie to audiences, ultimately making it a big commercial hit, grossing $181 million worldwide against a reported $12 million budget. Following that success, Blumhouse and Atomic Monster greelit a sequel, M3GAN 2.0 and a spinoff, SOULM8TE, starring Lily Sullivan and The Boys' Claudia Doumit. Unfortunately, the second installment failed to land in the same way its predecessor had nearly three years prior, flopping with a global intake of $39 million against a reported budget of $25 million.
Following the movie's disappointment, its spin-off has faced an unfortunate development. Deadline has revealed that SOULM8TE—initially scheduled for release on January 9, 2026—has been taken off Universal's release calendar. Per the trade, the writing had been on the wall when Paramount's upcoming horror feature, Primate, was given a January 9 release date (studios do not typically put out two horror films on the same day). As noted by The Hollywood Reporter, the film had also not been given a public trailer (one was shown at 2025's CinemaCon), despite being less than a month away from release.
Described by Variety as "an erotic thriller with a technological twist," the spin-off was set to focus on a grieving husband (David Rysdahl), who hires an AI-powered companion (Lily Sullivan). Of course, this being a horror movie, things could not remain peaceful for long. Wanting to have more human-like companionship, the husband modifies his new friend, leading to her developing murderous tendencies. The movie was written and directed by Kate Dolan (2021's You Are Not My Mother). Thankfully, it's not all bad news for the project, as it will be shopped to other studios.
It's important to mention this development isn't necessarily due to the movie's quality. In July 2025, THR published a report that stated the flopping of M3GAN 2.0 had led to Blumhouse doing some "soul-searching" regarding its future slate. As the trade explained: "[Blumhouse] is absorbing lessons from this tough year, and is reevaluating its slate through the lens of whether a horror film qualifies as a cinematic event in an era where the market for such fare is oversaturated."
Per the trade, one of the films being looked at through this new lens was SOULM8TE, which insiders cautioned had tested "incredibly well" at the time. This, as mentioned, seems to imply the movie being taken off Universal's release schedule was due to shifting audience interest, as opposed to a quality issue.
While made relatively cheaply, M3GAN 2.0's failure appears to have been impactful for Blumhouse given this latest news. During an appearance on Matthew Belloni's The Town podcast, Blumhouse CEO Jason Blum said that M3GAN had been mistakenly treated like "Superman." The producer explained the character had been erroneously perceived to be a malleable commodity, able to be reshaped into whatever genre they deemed fit:
"We all thought Megan was like Superman. We could do anything to her. We could change genres, we could put her in the summer, we could make her look different, we could turn her from a bad guy into a good guy. And we kind of classically over-thought how powerful people's engagement was, really, with her."
SOULM8TE has a lot of potential. Its premise is interesting, and it features a great cast. Though M3GAN 2.0 flopped, there is arguably still potential in the murdeous-AI franchise to recapture audience interest. As such, let's hope Kate Dolan's directorial effort is given the opportunity to see the light of day.