The Chucky TV series, created by Don Mancini, premiered on Syfy and the USA Network on October 12 – just in time for Halloween. There have been four episodes released thus far, which thoroughly gripped its audience from the get-go. Its premise differs from the Child’s Play franchise from which it was adapted. Jake Wheeler, a student living in the idyllic town of Hackensack, finds a Good Guy doll at a local yard sale and a murderous rampage ensues. Characters are more fleshed-out in the Chucky TV series than its Child’s Play origins; some characters are likable, while others are not. Here are the main characters ranked by likability.
For the Chucky main characters to be ranked by likability, some exceptions need to be made. Murderous dolls are generally considered unlikeable, but Chucky – with all his wit and humor -is extremely hard to hate.
6. Lexy Cross
Lexy Cross, played by Alyvia Alyn Lind, consistently bullies Jake Wheeler. She can be bossy, ignorant, and overbearing at best. It can be assumed that Lexy’s main purpose within the Chucky TV series is to be as unlikable as possible. She fits the “popular girl” trope; spoilt, arrogant, and self-absorbed, just like her wealthy, dim-witted parents. While Lexy represents a trope that is often overplayed in the horror genre, it has become so heavily associated with the teen horror niche that it would feel unnatural to not include it.
At any given opportunity, Lexy makes it her life-long mission to humiliate and undermine Jake Wheeler, even though she is dating his cousin, Junior Wheeler. Lexy believes that the world revolves around her and anyone else that steals her spotlight – for whatever reason – is undeserving of the attention. All eyes need to be on her, always.
An act of cruelty in particular that harmed Lexy’s chances of ranking higher in likability came during the third episode, I Like To Be Hugged, in which Lexy hosts a Halloween party and dresses in a humorless costume as Jake Wheeler’s dead father. Even though the hurtful gag received an uproar from her classmates, Lexy overstepped a boundary that even pushed Jake to plot her murder.
As with most initially intolerable characters, an overarching narrative of character development exists alongside the central story; Lexy will more than likely redeem herself as the series progresses. That is if Chucky – or Jake for that matter – hasn’t disposed of her before then.
5. Junior Wheeler
Junior Wheeler, played by Teo Briones, is a privileged, overachieving jock and the opposite – in every way – to Jake Wheeler, his cousin. Under the influence of Lexy, his girlfriend, Junior often conspires against Jake, despite the saying, “blood is thicker than water.” Lexy and Junior are bad seeds – in every sense of the phrase. One without the other is rarely seen, but when they separate, their personalities become less overwhelming and tamer.
Like Lexy’s “popular girl” trope, Junior is the embodiment of the “jerk jock” trope. Out of all the main characters in the Chucky TV series, Junior is the biggest mystery; it can be difficult to determine where his allegiance lies. At times, he will show compassion towards Jake, such as in I Like To Be Hugged when he forced Lexy to apologize to Jake for the offensive and insensitive Halloween costume. Other times, he can be massively oblivious to the fact that Lexy subconsciously controls his actions with her popularity status, her connections, and her reputation. Junior will overlook most incidents if it means keeping Lexy on his arm.
4. Caroline Cross
Caroline Cross, played by Carina Battrick, is the younger sister to Lexy Cross and the current owner of Chucky. After Caroline has a meltdown that upsets her parents, Lexy decides to confront Jake with an apology (for the dead dad joke) and a business proposal. In Lexy’s warped mind, she believes that an apology for her wrongdoings deserves a reward; as per her request, she asks that Jake give Chucky to her sibling, Caroline. Jake has an ulterior motive for agreeing, but he gives Chucky to Caroline with no strings attached, much to her delight.
Most children, especially those as insistent as Caroline, can be pure headaches. As Lexy knows, Caroline is the favorite child. Whatever she wants, she gets, which is not so dissimilar to Lexy – even if she views it differently. Caroline can be a handful, but overall, she is sweet and innocent with an overactive imagination and creativity and intelligence beyond her years. When she becomes the temporary owner of Chucky, she treats him with care and respect, insisting that they are “best friends”, adhering to Chucky’s catchphrase – “I’m your friend til the end.”
It goes without saying that Caroline is exceptionally bright, but she is also an odd, confusing child. Still, even though she has flaws, unlike some other main characters in the Chucky TV series, she has good intentions, mostly.
3. Chucky
Chucky, voiced by Brad Dourif, makes third place, which might seem counterproductive, given his murderous tendencies and offhanded remarks towards both friends and foes alike. Regardless, Chucky is likable for many reasons. Firstly, Chucky is the titular character of the Chucky TV series, and as with many main characters, they tend to be some of the most likable personalities. He may be ruthless, selfish and a terrible influence on modern youth, but Chucky is thoroughly entertaining. Something about a killer doll cursing and stabbing ankles is just wildly amusing.
Disregarding his homicidal streak, Chucky provides comedy relief in times of crisis with his perfectly-timed quips and one-liners. Another likable quality that compensates for the murder sprees is Chucky’s small doses of humanity. In Jake’s precarious situation, struggling with his sexuality, Chucky offers some guidance and relatability. Chucky plays video games with Caroline at the Halloween party, essentially babysitting her. Obviously, Chucky loses likability points for every dead body that shows up – as well as his harsh remarks at times – but that can only be expected from a notoriously emotionless serial killer.
2. Jake Wheeler
Jake Wheeler, played by Zachary Arthur, is the main protagonist of the Chucky TV series. He is a lonely outcast who has tragically lost both of his parents and subsequently lives with his Junior’s parents, Bree and Logan Wheeler. For the most part, Jake is harmless. He has good intentions – most of the time – even if his actions seem a little questionable. After befriending Chucky, he becomes easily influenced by the prospect of murder, especially for its efficiency to rid him of his bullies, Lexy and Junior.
Oftentimes, any teen-based narrative will include a misunderstood character – and Jake is exactly that. Some of his decisions – such as allowing Chucky to commit attempted murder on Lexy – are downright unacceptable, even if there is some justification behind them. Other times, especially around those he cares for, Jake is protective, valiant, and pleasant.
Devon Evans, Jake’s crush, receives most of his admiration and goodwill. Even though hurt and anger have overwhelmed him at times, Jake has been known to amend his mistakes. In Just Let Go, the fourth episode, Lexy is dangling from a ledge below Chucky, who intends to kill her. Jake, who attempts to hoist Lexy’s to safety, briefly considers (under Chucky’s encouragement) dropping Lexy to her death, but his steady morality decides against it, and he ultimately saves her.
1. Devon Evans
Devon Evans, played by Bjorgvin Arnarson, is Jake Wheeler’s classmate and crush. He is a true-crime podcaster and a committed follower of any crime-related happenings within Hackensack. So far, Devon – besides being impressionable and associating with Lexy and Junior to follow the crowd – has never provided a reason that would protest against his likability. He is sweet, caring, and protective over Jake, who he believes to be a genuinely misled individual.
His mother, a passionate detective, tries to trace the murders back to Jake, who plays a minor role in instigating the deaths, but never directly commits the crimes. Devon, disapproving of the ill-founded accusations, takes it upon himself to defend Jake at every turn.
As the Chucky TV series leads us to believe, Jake and Devon are more alike than they might think, which attests to their apparent fascination – bordering on romantic attraction – with one another. Still, out of all the main characters, Devon is the least guilty of harmful intent, which makes him deserving of the top spot.
Chucky airs Tuesdays at 10 pm ET/PT on SyFy.
