Kyle (Child's Play)

Kyle is a fictional character in the Child's Play franchise, created by Don Mancini and portrayed by actress Christine Elise. She first appeared in John Lafia's Child's Play 2 (1990) and has a cameo appearance in Don Mancini's Cult of Chucky (2017). Kyle is a main character in the Child's Play novels and comic book adaptions.

Kyle
Child's Play character
Christine Elise as Kyle in the 1990 film Child's Play 2.
First appearanceChild's Play 2 (1990)
Last appearanceCult of Chucky (2017)
Created byDon Mancini
Portrayed byChristine Elise
In-universe information
RelativesPhil Simpson (deceased foster father)
Joanne Simpson (deceased foster mother)
Andy Barclay (foster brother)

Appearances

In film

Kyle first appears in Child's Play 2 (1990). She is first seen smoking a cigarette in her bedroom when Andy Barclay is looking around his new house. Her foster mother, Joanne Simpson, enters her room telling her to put it out, to put her luggage away, and also tells her that she needs to have dinner with the family instead of going to work. Kyle tells her that she will be on her own next year and that she needs the money. In the morning, one of Joanne's antiques is found shattered, and both her and Andy are sent to do the laundry. Kyle is told that she is grounded and cannot go out on a date that night. Kyle sneaks out that night and when she returns home by climbing through Andy's bedroom window, she finds him tied to the bed with a Good Guy doll next to him. When she goes to untie him, Joanne and Phil enter the room and believe that she is in the process of tying him up. Phil is later murdered by Chucky, and Andy is sent back to the orphanage. Kyle throws Chucky in the garbage and goes outside on the swing set to smoke. While swinging, she feels something under the dirt and digs it up. She discovers a damaged Good Guy doll, named Tommy. She then goes to look in the garbage can and realizes that Chucky is gone. Now knowing that Chucky is alive, she goes to warn Joanne but finds her corpse tied to a chair. Chucky then attacks Kyle and forces her to drive him to the orphanage. At the orphanage, Chucky escapes with Andy. Kyle follows them to the Play Pals factory. She subdues Chucky, and flees with Andy. After successfully evading Chucky, Andy and Kyle come face to face with him and force an air tube into his mouth, causing him to explode. The two then leave the factory.

Kyle makes a returning cameo appearance in the 2017 film Cult of Chucky, with Christine Elise reprising her role. In the post-credits scene, Kyle arrives at Andy's house to torture his decapitated Chucky head. Chucky instantly recognizes and is shocked at Kyle’s arrival, at which point she tells Chucky, pliers in hand, "Andy sent me. We're gonna have some fun."

In literature

Kyle appears in the novelization of Child's Play 2.[1] In 1992, Kyle appeared in the three-issue comic book adaptation of Child's Play 2 released by Innovation Publishing.[2]

Development
Christine Elise's performance as Kyle received positive reviews.

Conception

In Cinefantastique, Frederick S. Clarke described Kyle as a "street-smart teenager".[3] In The Film Journal, Kyle is referred to as a "rebellious teenager".[4] Christine Elise was cast in the role and in a retrospective interview she described her experience on set saying:

"It was my first big job & I was insanely excited. I would hang around on set on my days off & after I was wrapped. I just loved every second of it. The hard part was that Alex was a minor and child labour laws applied to him so they had to shoot him first in every scene to get him out in time. Chucky took 7 or 9 puppeteers to work & they all were union guys so – Chucky was expensive to have on set – so they would shoot him after Alex & send those guys home. The result was – if you don't see those guys actually in frame with me – it means they probably were not there. I did a lot of acting looking at coloured pieces of tape in the spots where Alex or Chucky were supposed to be. It was challenging and, of course, I felt ridiculous doing it but I still loved every second."[5]

Reception

In Hearths of Darkness: The Family in the American Horror Film, Updated Edition, Tony Williams stated, "She teaches Andy about the hostile world, warning him of future peer group school treatment as the 'new kid on the block'. Lacking the family that abandoned her at the age of three, Kyle resourcefully decides to survive within successive foster families until she can gain independence. She tells Andy what to expect."[6] Michele Eggen praised the character saying:

"She is fond of wearing cool leather hats and sneaking out of the house at night, so we know that she's a bit of a rebel–or at least wants others to think she is. But Kyle's personality contradicts the image she projects. As a girl who grew up in foster care, one would expect her to have a lot of attitude and anger about her situation but she doesn't. She's not antagonistic toward her foster parents–she smartly recognizes that they are good people. She also becomes a sort of mentor to Andy, a child new to the foster system, by comforting him and giving him advice. Kyle is helpful around the house, she plays with her foster brother, and is a responsible almost-adult who knows how to take care of herself. Basically, she's a good person."[7]

In a review, Tim Brayton described the character as a "textbook Final Girl" and said that she contributed to making the film transition into "slasher territory" saying: "Child's Play 2 solidifies its transition into slasher territory by anointing Kyle as a textbook Final Girl (too textbook, even: the Final Girl tradition of androgynous names does not usually require giving the girl an name that would only ever in any situation be given to a boy), of the sub-breed that must also protect a child in addition to herself."[8] David Nusair praised Elise's performance.[9] Dustin Putman praised Elise's and Alex Vincent's performances stating that they are "possibly the best thing about the film".[10]

References
  1. Costello, Matthew (1990). Child's Play 2. Jove Books. ISBN 0515104345.
  2. "Child's Play 2 & 3 movie adaptions". Icons of Fright. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
  3. Clarke, Frederick (1990). Cinefantastique. the University of California.
  4. The Film Journal. Pubsun Corporation. 1990.
  5. "Horror Month: Interview with Christine Elise McCarthy (Childs Play 2)". indiemacuser.com.
  6. Williams, Tony (2014). Hearths of Darkness: The Family in the American Horror Film, Updated Edition. Univ. Press of Mississippi. ISBN 1626743517.
  7. Eggen, Michelle (December 30, 2014). "Noteworthy Heroines of Horror: Kyle from Child's Play 2". Wicked Horror. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
  8. Brayton, Tim (July 9, 2011). "SUMMER OF BLOOD: PLASTIC RECYCLING". Antagony & Ecstasy. Retrieved January 6, 2016.
  9. Nusair, David. "The Child's Play Series". Reel Film Reviews. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
  10. Putman, Dustin. "Child's Play 2 (1990)". Child's Play 2 (1990). Retrieved January 6, 2017.
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