The robot doll at the center of the film “M3GAN” starts out stiff-limbed and jerky, prone to sharp, birdlike tilts of the head — C3PO, if he were styled by the toymaker Madame Alexander.

Love it or hate it, there’s no denying M3GAN can break it down, even if she is a fictional psychotic robot. M3GAN will be released in theatres on Jan. 13, 2023.

I think what's interesting about M3GAN is that it's a very humanoid robot. The robots I work with do not look human at all, and I'm not interested in trying to make them look human.

True, M3GAN is an immaculately coiffed humanoid doll with killer instinct and distinct fashion sense. A robot that advanced and, frankly, insolent seems unlikely to take over the world anytime soon.

In M3GAN 2.0 (2025), the consciousness of the titular robot appears to have survived the 2022 film and, in a move that borrows from The Terminator 2, M3GAN shifts from villain to protector.