- M3GAN 2.0 trailer introduces Amelia
- New AI bot is portrayed by former Star Wars series star
- The actress also broke a contract with Netflix
The long-anticipated M3GAN 2.0 trailer has been released, and there’s a new doll in town.
Set two years after the viral success of the 2022 film, we learn that the core technology that Allison Williams’s Gemma used to create M3GAN has been stolen.
Read more: Everything we know about M3GAN 2.0
M3GAN’s design has been repurposed to create a new military-grade AI robot called Amelia, which stands for “Autonomous Military Engagement Logistics and Infiltration Android.”
Read more: Why is M3GAN a gay icon?
Amelia has gone rogue and is on a rampage. “Nothing in our arsenal can stop her,” a panicked agent tells Gemma. So, it’s up to Gemma to rebuild M3GAN to help stop the out-of-control robot.
“Stronger. Faster,” M3GAN demands. “And while you’re at it, make me taller.” Watch the trailer below:
With Amie Donald and Jenna Davis reprising their roles as M3GAN’s body movements and voice, respectively, the question remains: who plays the doll’s new nemesis?
Who plays Amelia in M3GAN 2.0?
The rampaging Amelia bot, first glimpsed in the trailer as she eerily contorts her body to escape handcuffs, is played by Ivanna Sakhno, a Hollywood actress of Ukrainian descent.
Sakhno is best known for her role as Shin Hati in the 2023 Star Wars spin-off series Ahsoka. Since appearing in the new M3GAN trailer, fans have been quick to point out the connection.
It’s clear that the role holds fond memories for her, as she posted a poignant image of herself in character on Instagram with the words, “Thank you for everything. It means a lot. @starwars @ahsokaofficial.
The 27 year old actress also played Cadet Viktoriya in the science fiction monster film Pacific Rim Uprising (2018) and hitwoman Nadedja in the comedy action The Spy Who Dumped Me (2018).
In Ukraine, Sakno has already achieved star status. In 2005 she appeared in the first ever Ukrainian-language sitcom, Lesia + Roma, and the 2013 biopic Ivan the Powerful.
Activism
At the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, Sakhno expressed her support for Ukrainian political prisoners held by Russian authorities. “I can’t help but follow what’s happening in Ukraine now. This is my pain, and sometimes it doesn’t let me concentrate on other important issues” she said. “I can’t accept the fact that many patriots are convicted for their love of their country and are serving sentences for it.”
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Sakhno publicly condemned Russia’s actions. She avoids playing Russian characters, and even broke off a contract with Netflix, because it would have required her to portray a person with a Soviet Russia background.
“It was the role of an American woman, but she had a background in the Soviet Union. I was already attached to this project, and at that time it was one of my first major roles in a major Netflix series. But we didn’t start filming, we immediately closed because of the COVID. And I realized that I simply could not play a person even from the Soviet Union. I canceled my contract with Netflix, and I had some problems [because of this],” Sakhno admitted.
She added, “The next job I do with Netflix, I owe them 50% of my salary. Because I broke that contract”.
