M3GAN Spinoff SOULM8TE Pulled From Universal’s Schedule as Studio Shops Film Elsewhere
Universal is stepping away from the M3GAN cinematic universe. The planned spinoff Soulm8te has been removed from the studio’s release calendar and will now be taken to other studios in hopes of finding a new home.
The move comes after a rough year for the franchise and raises real questions about whether there’s any future left for this killer AI universe.
Soulm8te was originally set to hit theaters on January 9, but that date is now gone. The film was designed as a companion piece to M3GAN, leaning more into erotic thriller territory while still playing in the same tech-horror sandbox.
The story centers on a man who purchases an android to help him cope with the death of his wife, a premise that twists grief, desire, and artificial intelligence into something far darker.
That concept made sense when M3GAN was riding high. The original film surprised everyone by becoming a sleeper hit, pulling in $181 million worldwide and instantly turning its killer doll into a pop culture icon. Universal and Blumhouse clearly saw franchise potential. Unfortunately, that momentum didn’t last long.
This year’s sequel, M3GAN 2.0, struggled to connect with audiences and wrapped its theatrical run with just $39 million. While that number isn’t disastrous against a $25 million production budget, it signals a steep drop in interest from the original film. More importantly, it isn’t the kind of performance that encourages studios to gamble on spinoffs and side stories.
Soulm8te was written and directed by Kate Dolan and stars Lily Sullivan, David Rysdahl, and Claudia Doumit. On the production side, the project brought together Jason Blum of Blumhouse and James Wan of Atomic Monster, the same team that helped turn M3GAN into a phenomenon in the first place.
The timing also reflects a tougher stretch for Blumhouse overall. After years of dominating the horror box office with films like Paranormal Activity, The Purge, Get Out, and Halloween, the studio has hit a rare patch of inconsistency.
The past year delivered several underperformers, including Wolf Man with $34 million on a $25 million budget, The Woman in the Yard with $23 million against $12 million, and Drop which earned $28 million on an $8 million budget.
There has been some recent course correction. Black Phone 2 brought in $131 million worldwide on a $30 million budget, and Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 has already earned $175 million against a $36 million budget, giving Blumhouse a much-needed boost heading into 2025. Still, the stumble of M3GAN 2.0 has cooled enthusiasm for expanding that particular universe.
For now, Soulm8te isn’t dead. Another studio could see potential in its darker, more adult take on AI horror. But without the box office heat that once surrounded M3GAN, the project faces an uphill climb.
Whether this spinoff survives may determine if the M3GAN cinematic universe was a short-lived experiment or just a franchise that picked the wrong moment to expand.
Source: Variety