Is Golden Freddy Vanessa Or Mike's Little Brother In The Five Nights At Freddy's Movie?
Did you know that the "Five Nights at Freddy's" trailer features more than one version of Freddy Fazbear? That's right. The Freddy that is shown on stage ready to sing with Bonnie, Foxy, and Chica is not the same Freddy shown in the back seat with Abby Schmidt (Piper Rubio). That Freddy is known as Golden Freddy and is a completely different character with different motivations. I know, unless you've dedicated years of your life to making sense of the lore, this might not be the easiest thing to follow. The best way I can explain it is that Golden Freddy is like ... a limited edition version of Freddy Fazbear.
He looks similar to the original character, but he's not the original character, nor is he controlled by the same child's soul. Yeah, those animatronics are controlled by the ghosts of dead kids, in case you didn't know. The games haven't definitively established who is in control of Golden Freddy, with many theorizing that it's Cassidy or Kelsey from the games (or dual possessed between Cassidy and the Crying Child), while the non-canonical books imply that it's a boy named Michael Brooks. This means the movie could write Golden Freddy's lore however they choose.
Golden Freddy is shown in the trailer hanging out with Abby, even holding her hand and standing outside of the Pizzeria. This has led many to believe that Golden Freddy will be taking on an ally role in the film, which would echo his role in the games where he's shown as more benevolent, if not downright heroic. He's often a guide to the other players, and arguably the most durable suit in the game. Springtrap and Nightmare Freddy have proven to be stronger, but Golden Freddy can withstand a hell of a beating.
But who is Golden Freddy going to be in the film?
The Vanessa's brother theory
At one point in the trailer, we see Mike Schmidt in a field surrounded by small children, and it's pretty likely that the children are the souls of the victims who inhabit the animatronics wreaking havoc at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza (look at their accessories for more evidence). While there's no guarantee that any of the children present are supposed to be Golden Freddy, the blocking formation of the children has one kid on his own. Not only is he the only one not in line, a sign that he's not part of the original group of four, but he's also donning bright blonde hair, the biggest visual difference from Freddy Fazbear to the Golden Freddy suit.
Not to get tin foil hat about it, but that child is played by Grant Feely, the only kid on the film's IMDb casting without a character name. Perhaps Universal and Blumhouse elected not to reveal his character online, knowing full well that weirdos like me would glom onto that little detail and run wild with speculation. This also allows the film to build a connection to the other characters in the film, like perhaps a little brother of Vanessa.
Vanessa is shown to be a police officer and knows quite a bit about the tragedies. It's also implied that she knows the secret of the animatronics, as well as where to find the lights to turn them all on for a performance. If I had to guess, she knows all of this because her little brother was killed by Afton in the 1980s, and her only way to visit him is by hanging out with him in the Golden Freddy suit. It would also explain why he's shown to be such a kind presence to Abby Schmidt, as she's also still just a child.
The Mike's brother theory
There are also those theorizing that the child in the suit is actually the Crying Child of "FNaF" lore, aka Mike and Abby's brother. This would make sense for the story and connect all of the characters in a deeply depressing albeit weirdly charming way, but the blonde hair of the lone kid in the forest feels too obvious to ignore (and I also think their brother is gonna be the kid in the back of the car from the first trailer). Hair, costume, and style choices are done with intent, and there's no way a blonde kid could be a sibling of Mike and Abby.
In the games, Crying Child reaches out to Mike with the screen text flashing of "It's Me," which is also shown to be written on the wall in the security office of the trailer when the power surges. This implies, at least to me, that the Crying Child (sometimes called Evan) will be present in the film. If the Crying Child maintains the theorized connection of being Mike's brother, the idea of him working as a partner in crime with Abby, who likely would have been born after his death, is incredibly sweet ... and deeply messed up.
Maybe we're even working with the "dual possession" theory here, and it's both Vanessa AND Mike's siblings inside Golden Freddy, giving even more to William Afton (I'm sorry, *checks notes* Career Counselor Steve Raglan) the motivation to bring these characters together. Obviously, at this point, anything I say is purely speculation and fan theorizing, but that's part of the fun of being in the "Five Nights at Freddy's" fandom.
We'll all just have to wait and see who is really behind Golden Freddy when the film hits theaters and arrives on Peacock on October 27, 2023.