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Previously on Chucky: Chucky (voiced by Brad Dourif) has killed the U.S. President. Chucky is currently dead, but the only way to destroy him forever is for him to sacrifice himself.
This seems hugely unlikely, but Jake (Zackary Arthur) believes that if he can get to the spirit realm, he can appeal to Good Chucky (from Season 2), and also find out where Chucky took Lexy’s (Alyvia Alyn Lind) little sister Caroline (Carina London Battrick).
However, for Jake to get to the spirit realm, he has to die. CIA fixer Pryce (Gil Bellows) has a drug that will stop Jake’s heart for five minutes, after which the antidote will be administered by Jake’s boyfriend Devon (Björgvin Arnarson). Watched by Devon, Lexy, Lexy’s boyfriend (and late President’s son) Grant (Jackson Kelly), and spiritual medium Timothy (Kaleb Horn), Pryce gives Jake the heartstopping drug.
At the same time, Tiffany Valentine (Jennifer Tilly), in Jennifer Tilly’s body, is getting a lethal injection in a Texas prison.
Which brings us to the season finale, “Final Destination.” Just as the needle touches Tiffany’s skin, she is rescued by one of the many prison guards she has bespelled into becoming her devoted servant. The guard begins shooting everyone not on Tiffany’s side. Another ensorcelled guard opens all the inmates’ cell doors, creating chaos.
In the spirit realm, Jake encounters his father, Logan Wheeler (Devon Sawa), whom Chuck electrocuted in Season 1.
The opening titles show a Mt. Rushmore of Chucky faces.
Logan, wielding a baseball bat, blames Jake for his death. Jake didn’t do it, though he admits to thinking about it when Logan started beating Jake for being gay.
Logan was proud of how smart Jake was. But then Jake’s mom died, and Logan became an alcoholic. Logan is about to swing at Jake with his bat, but Jake says, “I forgive you.” Logan is dumbfounded. Jake knows Logan loved him, and he loves his dad. Father and son hug, but Logan still thinks Jake will fail in his quest to defeat Chucky.
Jake finds Charles Lee Ray (Brad Dourif), the serial killer who inhabited Chucky (for clarity, while Charles and Chucky are the same entity, this recap refers to the human ghost as Charles). Charles says that Jake has guts, living his life the way he wants, “just like me.” (Ah, the classic villain-to-hero line.)
Charles takes Jake to a theatre playing excerpts from Chucky’s greatest hits. Charles’ younger selves and multiple Chucky dolls are in the audience. Everyone is laughing, except Good Chucky, who covers his eyes. Charles has a tactical argument with the eldest of his younger selves (Fiona Dourif). They are shushed by the dolls. United, the Charleses yell back, “Fuck you!”
Jake follows Good Chucky out to an all-white bedroom, Good Chucky is happy to see Jake and tells him Caroline is alive and well, with “Grandfather” Wilkins. But Good Chucky is appalled that Jake would ask him to sacrifice himself. Jake is his godfather, who is supposed to protect him –
Whereupon four different Charleses (two played by the Dourifs plus two younger ones), and several different Chuckys appear. Then the oldest Charles is gone – the next oldest Charles says that this is because he’s gone to possess Jake’s unattended body. This “Good Chucky” was never Good Chucky, just regular Chucky buying time.
In the living world, Devon gives Jake the antidote shot. Jake/Chucky wakes up and says triumphantly, “We did it,” but won’t give details. The others don’t know it’s not really Jake.
Pryce has his men set off bombs throughout the White House, hoping to erase all evidence of his mistakes. Grant tries to herd the others to safety through the smoke and flames. Jake/Chucky and Timothy become separated from the others. With no witnesses, Jake/Chucky beats Timothy up so badly that Timothy can’t escape the blaze.
Grant finds his protector, Secret Service agent Hicks (Franco Lo Presti), bleeding to death from Pryce’s assault. Hicks insists that Grant save himself. Pryce attacks Grant, but Grant overpowers him. Pryce becomes trapped by a posse of irate eighteenth-century ghosts and burns to death.
Exiting the burning White House, Grant sees the ghosts of his father and baby brother Joseph together in an upper window. Fire engines and Grant’s relieved mother Charlotte (Lara Jean Chorostecki) converge on the scene. Jake/Chucky comes out smiling, but makes sure to look serious for Devon and Lexy. Jake/Chucky says Timothy didn’t make it, but Chucky told him where to find Caroline.
Jake/Chucky takes Devon and Lexy to the estate of Wendell Wilkins (John Waters). He commiserates with the trio being orphans – his eight-year-old son was murdered in 1983. The house is filled with dolls that Wilkins created, including the Good Guy (aka Chucky).
When the murders started in 1988, the Good Guy dolls ruined Wilkins professionally, financially, and psychologically, but, he says, a new child has come into his life. Caroline enters, looking angelic. Wilkins says that she helped him see the beauty of what Chucky has wrought. Caroline has a knife, and Wilkins now has a gun.
Caroline immediately recognizes Chucky in Jake’s body, and Devon and Lexy finally comprehend what’s happened. But Chucky wants his old doll body back, especially since human possession is so unreliable. Wilkins and Caroline both enthusiastically hail Damballa, to Lexy’s horror.
Caroline tells Lexy she’s found her purpose: she’s Chucky’s true friend to the end. Caroline does the familiar Damballa spell. Chucky’s spirit goes into the prototype Chucky doll Wilkins has kept, and Jake’s spirit goes back to his own body.
Wilkins is happy to finally meet Chucky, gushing that no father could be prouder. Chucky snaps that he’s sixty-five years old and doesn’t need a father figure. Caroline relates that she, Chucky, and Wilkins were going to kill sister Lexy, Jake, and Devon, but Wilkins had a better idea. Wilkins opens a curtain, and the others stare at what it’s been hiding.
Having escaped the prison riot, Tiffany arrives. She sees what’s behind the curtain and comments on how cute “they” are. Wilkins says they’re his children now. With everybody searching for Jennifer Tilly, it’s a good thing Wilkins still has the prototype for Tiffany’s doll, too. Tiffany joyfully accepts Chucky’s marriage proposal.
In her wheelchair, Tiffany’s victim/sometimes Chucky host Nica (Fiona Dourif) propels herself into Wilkins’ home. She sees what’s behind the curtain: Jake, Devon and Lexy have been transformed into marionette puppets, who yell, “Watch out!” Wilkins approaches; we hear Nica scream.
Caroline drives Tiffany’s car away. Via the rearview mirror, she sees the Chucky and Tiffany dolls making out with each other in the back seat. Caroline declares, “I am too young for this shit.”
Chucky sits in the burning Oval Office, addressing the American people. We see his third-term (i.e., Chucky Season 3) kills as he announces that he’s running for a fourth term. Donations can be made to 1-666-BAD-DOLL.
It’s beyond delightful to see Brad and Fiona Dourif playing Charles opposite each other and a gaggle of Chucky dolls. Zackary does a commendable job of embodying Chucky, and sometimes speaking for him (when Jake/Chucky gets extremely Chucky-ish, Dourif provides the voice).
“Final Destination” handily wraps up the Season 3 White House storyline while leaving whopping cliffhangers open for Season 4. Are our heroes doomed to stay marionettes? What’s happened to their human bodies? What happens to Nica? Are Chucky and Tiffany going to kill each other again? The possibilities are limited only by Don Mancini’s imagination.
If you’re not ready to let go of Chucky just yet, read more in our interview with Brad and Fiona Dourif on working together in season 3.
