Chucky

**Charles Lee Ray**, better known by his nickname of **Chucky**, is a character that has been featured at numerous attractions of the annual Halloween Horror Nights event at Universal Studios Florida. He is the main antagonist of the *Child's Play*/*Chucky* film franchise. Chucky is a former serial killer believed to have been killed after being shot by police during a chase. Mortally wounded at a toy factory that manufactured Good Guy Dolls, he used a voodoo spell to transfer his soul into one of the dolls, named Chucky. Although he has attempted numerous times to return to human form, usually by transferring his soul to a human child that happens to claim him as an owner, he eventually decided to remain as a doll, believing that as a living doll, he has an advantage at becoming a unique serial killer.

At Halloween Horror Nights, Chucky has appeared numerous times in mazes, scare zones, and shows, mainly due to the combined factors of him being a horror icon, and being a character owned by Universal, and therefore not requiring a license.

## History

### Background

#### Origins

Charles Lee Ray was a serial killer best known as The Lakeshore Strangler. He was fatally shot by police during a robbery, and left for dead by his partner. Fortunately for him, he ended up in a toy factory, and using his knowledge of voodoo rituals, transferred his soul to a Good Guy Doll, taking the nickname of Chucky.

#### Child's Play

Chucky would later be purchased by a woman named Karen Barclay for her son, Andy. A strange number of deaths began to occur at the Barclay residence, including a babysitter that had supposedly jumped to her death. Andy was suspected, but insisted that Chucky was to blame, despite the obvious concept that the doll was not alive. Chucky had been planning to transfer his soul into Andy so he could be human again and continue killing. Karen and a police officer would later discover Chucky's secret, and along with Andy, the two eventually managed to defeat him by firing several fatal shots.

However, Chucky has returned numerous times due to his soul still inhabiting the doll, the parts of which have been recycled. This has given Chucky a new body, and he has continued to attack numerous victims, which frequently include his former owner, Andy. Since their initial encounter, Chucky also had run-ins with Andy during his teenage years in military school, and as a grown-man. However, he has since abandoned his goals of returning to human form, having realized that being a killer doll allows him to be a unique killer.

#### Bride of Chucky

Chucky has also been in a relationship with a woman named Tiffany, who he later transferred into a doll body of her own, and the two have had a child named Glen. However, he seems to have left them, due to them not sharing his enjoyment of serial killing.

#### Twenty Years of Fear

In 2010, the paranormal investigation group *Legendary Truth: The Collective* accidentally released the God of Fear onto Universal Studios Florida. Chucky was one of the monsters summoned by Fear's lantern to assist him in terrorizing the park and trying to gain power.

#### Revenge of Chucky

At one point, Chucky took over a toy fair where he turned the toys into murderous monsters.

#### Ultimate Kill Count

Due to the popularity of Chucky, Universal Studios created a Chucky themed Haunted House in the 2020s. Chucky however used this haunted house as a grounds to murder staff of Universal as well as guests of the park, while accompanied by Tiffany and Glen.

## Park Appearances

### Halloween Horror Nights

Chucky does not appear in the park during year-round operations, but is frequently featured during Halloween Horror Nights, primarily held at Universal Studios Florida. He is a frequent character in the event due to the combined facts that he is not only a popular character in horror films, but also because he is owned by Universal, and does not need to be licensed to the parks in order to appear in the event. Chucky has also been identified as a member of the *Morphans* Legion of Horror.

#### Halloween Horror Nights: Ripped from the Silver Screen (HHN 19)

The "Insane" story of the Universal Palace Theater's backstory hinted that Chucky could have had a presence in the Theater's history. The story detailed how after the showing of a film presumably in the first five films of the *Child's Play/Chucky* series, mutilated and augmented toys and dolls were mysteriously left around the theater in large quantities causing the theatre's lost & found to become full. The toys stopped appearing once the film stopped being shown in the cinema. A pull-string belonging to Chucky which staff could not connect to the other toys was however, left behind in the theater.

Commercials for HHN 19 showed Chucky stalking guests in the theater along with a werewolf, and Jigsaw.

##### Chucky: Friends til the End

In 2009, Chucky was central to the *Chucky: Friends til the End* haunted house.

#### Halloween Horror Nights 28

##### Revenge of Chucky

Chucky appeared in the *Revenge of Chucky* scare zone during 2018's Halloween Horror Nights 28. It is located in the Hollywood section of the park, specifically in the area of the former *Terminator 2 3D: Battle Across Time*. In this scarezone, Chucky is featured on numerous props and scenery, but also appears as a puppet that interacts with guests from within a Good Guy Doll box. This puppet performance is a similar concept previously used for the former *Chucky's Insult Emporium* that was a former staple attraction of the event at sister park Universal Studios Hollywood.

#### Halloween Horror Nights 32

##### Chucky: Ultimate Kill Count

In 2023, he was central character and antagonist of Chucky: Ultimate Kill Count which followed a meta-narrative of him being present in a Universal HHN haunted house based around him where he's begun killing crew-members and visitors.

## Trivia

* Like many talking characters at Universal Orlando Resort, Chucky is portrayed by a hidden actor mimicking the voice of the character's original actor. In the case of Chucky, the actor is mimicking the voice of Brad Dourif.
* Chucky's appearance at Halloween Horror Nights varies. Sometimes he is portrayed by an actor suffering from dwarfism. This effect was also used for the character in certain parts of the original film where he is not clearly seen, but an animatronic could convincingly perform.
	+ Other times, including his most recent appearance in 2018's *Revenge of Chucky* scare zone of Halloween Horror Nights 28, Chucky has appeared as a puppet. The actor is positioned behind the puppet and hidden by a black background between the two. The actor can control Chucky's arm and mouth movement, while also providing its voice.
* Chucky's real name, Charles Lee Ray, is an amalgamation of multiple people who have committed murder crimes in real life.
	+ Charles comes from serial killer Charles Manson
	+ Lee comes from Lee Harvey Oswald, who assassinated US President John F. Kennedy.
	+ Ray comes from James Earl Ray, who assassinated civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

## External links

* *For additional and more detailed information about the character of Chucky from the Child's Play/Chucky film franchise, please refer to the Child's Play Wiki article.*