'M3GAN 2.0': Double the sass, double the stakes

When “M3GAN” was released three years ago, the Blumhouse horror wasn’t best remembered for its scares but for its campy tone. Its titular artificial intelligence villain became a fun character to watch, delivering quippy one-liners and literal killer moves.

- By JANUAR JUNIOR AGUJA

It feels inevitable that the sequel, “M3GAN 2.0,” would shift its programming from horror to sci-fi action-comedy, in a Terminator-style flick where M3GAN is now a hero helping the very people she tried to kill in the first film.

Set two years later, the sequel follows Gemma (Allison Williams), now an advocate for AI regulation, still treating her now-teenage niece Cady (Violet McGraw) like a child, discouraging her from pursuing computer science in favor of sports. Although they have grown close, the trauma from M3GAN turning rogue still lingers between them.

Unbeknownst to Gemma, the blueprints for M3GAN were stolen during the events of the first film and have now reached the Pentagon, which used her programming to develop AMELIA, a robot designed for espionage, including assassination, while minimizing diplomatic risk.

To the surprise of no one, AMELIA goes rogue, deciding to work for no one but herself. Her emergence puts everyone involved in her creation, including the unwilling accomplice Gemma, in danger.

Upon discovering AMELIA’s existence, Gemma and her loyal but frustrated colleagues, Cole and Tess (Brian Jordan Alvarez and Jen Van Epps), are forced to work with their once-deadly enemy, M3GAN. As it turns out, M3GAN had secretly backed up her consciousness into Gemma’s smart home system and infiltrated their household. She has plans on how to destroy AMELIA at all costs, who is a greater threat to humanity.