Sinners is all over the Oscars shortlist, Weapons launched a thousand Aunt Gladys Halloween costumes, and 28 Years Later revitalized a decades-old film franchise. Horror is thriving, but M3GAN, the wide-eyed, murderous android, hasn’t been sharing in the success.
When M3GAN hit theaters in 2022, it was an unexpected success that seemed to signal the start of something big. But after M3GAN 2.0 badly underperformed, this new cinematic universe suddenly found itself struggling. Now, its first spinoff is in big trouble, and it might be taking the entire franchise down with it.
SOULM8TE was supposed to be the next M3GAN-verse movie.
SOULM8TE was supposed to launch a series of tech-based horror movies set in the M3GAN-verse. The erotic thriller follows a man as he buys an android to help him cope with the loss of his wife, much like the “Be Right Back” episode of Black Mirror. It was set for a January 9, 2026, release date, but according to Deadline, SOULM8TE has been removed from Universal’s release schedule just weeks before it was supposed to hit theaters.
The movie will be shopped to other distributors, but this is a drastic step. A delay seemed inevitable, as rival horror movie Primate was set for the same weekend, but taking the movie off the schedule altogether is a big surprise that speaks to a serious lack of faith in its viability. At this point, it’s possible the movie will never see the light of day.
SOULM8TE has a similar plot to the Black Mirror episode “Be Right Back.”
It’s unlikely we’ll see another M3GAN movie anytime soon, and it’s possible this SOULM8TE will be rebranded as a standalone story. Its ‘90s-style erotic thriller tone was always a risky shift from M3GAN’s camp horror, and it could maybe find a better footing on its own merits. We might hear from it again — and its title might be spelled differently when we do.
