“Five Nights at Freddy’s” in its current form is a massive multimedia franchise featuring 13 games as well as 32 books and graphic novels, but it all started when the first game was released independently on Desura and Steam. “FNAF” could have gone the way of most indie games, developing a dedicated fan base without ever entering the mainstream conversation, but that’s not what happened. Instead, “FNAF” ended up on the radar of popular Let’s Players on YouTube who posted playthroughs and reaction videos. With built-in fanbases of millions of subscribers, these YouTubers have become the best marketing campaign imaginable. And it’s this integral part of “FNAF’s” success that clearly drove the decision to feature YouTubers on the “Employee of the Month” chart featured in the trailer.
Confirmed appearances include FusionZGamer, Dawko, and 8-Bit Ryan, with an extended appearance from CoryxKenshin as a taxi driver. Based on the trailer recap video from FusionZGamer, it looks like game creator Scott Cawthon was the one who contacted prominent YouTubers to have these little Easter egg appearances. After all, the guy owes it to local Let’s Players efforts that helped skyrocket the popularity of the games and bring them to a global audience. Without exaggeration, without these players, the movie “Five Nights at Freddy’s” would certainly not exist.
That said, if Markiplier ends up in this movie, the internet could actually implode. But don’t get your hopes too high — he was probably working on the “Iron Lung” adaptation at the same time, which may have made an appearance quite difficult.