If you think William Afton, Freddy, and the other animatronics are bad, you haven't met FNAF's Mimic, as that artificial intelligence is perhaps the most terrifying character in the entire franchise. So, to help you better understand what you're up against, we're here to walk you through its backstory, where you can encounter it, and more.
In June 2025, the Five Nights at Freddy's: Secret of the Mimic arrived, taking you on a terrifying journey to look at where it all began, and as FNAF's Mimic is the star of the show, it's best that you learn everything there is to know about it. However, you should probably also scrub up on your knowledge of the other FNAF characters, too.
Here's everything you need to know about FNAF's Mimic:
Who is FNAF's Mimic?
If you only care about the FNAF games rather than the books, you might think that the first appearance of FNAF's Mimic is from the Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach DLC, Ruins. However, that's not the case, with the character being a major antagonist in the Tales of the Pizzaplex series of books. The Mimic appears in every single entry, though some are merely minor appearances in the epilogue.
FNAF's Mimic is a truly fascinating character, and you might think that you don't need to know too much more about it beyond it being on a murderous rampage. However, it's important that you learn about The Mimic's backstory to fully grasp the situation and understand why it's the way it is. To do this, you need to read Nexie, one of the three stories to appear in Tales from the Pizzaplex 6.
While it's easy to just hail this thing a monster, there's a horrid backstory here that explains that, once upon a time, The Mimic wasn't even remotely evil. Its creator, Edwin, is the reason for its heinous acts, as he took out his grief on the animatronic after his son died. As its name indicates, this robot mimics actions, so it learns what to do from other people, meaning Edwin's actions are directly responsible for its abhorrent behavior. Before this, The Mimic was a fun and docile friend to Edwin's son.
At first, The Mimic can't speak, using signals taught to it by Edwin and David, but that evidently changes over time. During Ruin, it actually mimics FNAF's Gregory, leading our unsuspecting protagonist, Cassie, into letting the killing machine out of its confines. That leads to the main events of the DLC, where Cassie is running for her life and attempting to escape. The Mimic led her to the Pizzaplex, using her to gain its freedom after Gregory, Vanessa, and Freddy trapped it there.
The Mimic boasts several different appearances across its various outings, though the two you see in Ruin are its endoskeleton and a rundown mascot suit resembling a lion. However, it appears as though The Mimic has a new look for Secret of the Mimic, as the teaser trailer shows it emerging from a box with a clown face - it's vastly different from the white tiger outfit a couple of the books depict.
Does a spirit possess FNAF's Mimic?
Contrary to popular belief, FNAF's Mimic isn't the result of spirit possession like Freddy, Chica, Foxy, and other animatronics. Instead, Edwin is entirely responsible for it, making The Mimic an artificial intelligence that would be right at home in The Terminator.
FNAF Mimic's personality
Initially, The Mimic is a joyful, playful, and caring animatronic as its purpose was to copy David, Edwin's son, to help look after the young boy while his father works. Together, the pair got up to all sorts of mischief, and it's clear that there was a bond there. However, when David passes away after being hit by a car, Edwin beats The Mimic with a pipe, unleashing his anger after The Mimic asks him for ice cream, just like David used to. From that moment on, the playful and kind animatronic is gone, replaced by something much more sinister.
These days, The Mimic is cold, brutal, highly intelligent, and murderous. It embodies Edwin's agony, which is used as its driving force when attacking its victims. Honestly, FNAF's Mimic is one of the most brutal characters in the franchise, but it equally has one of the most fascinating stories behind it, and it looks like we're set to learn more in the future.
Is FNAF's Mimic the same character as Burntrap and Glitchtrap?
This is a growing theory among fans and one that has enough merit for us to consider it a real possibility. The first thing to look at is that in Five Nights at Freddy's Help Wanted, a game in which Glitchtrap is the main antagonist, Glitchtrap appears to mimic Tape Girl (an unseen character who left a bunch of tapes around the complex). This is an ability that no animatronic, besides The Mimic, is known to have. While it's entirely possible that the two are separate characters who share that unique gift, it seems like too much of a coincidence to us.
As for a piece of evidence linking The Mimic and Burntrap, the pair share a hand that looks exactly the same, though this could merely be the model of the endoskeletons rather than an indicator of being the same entity.
Of course, it's not the first time several characters have shared enough similarities to spark such theories, and sometimes they get debunked. So, while this is an exciting theory to dive down the rabbit hole with, it's also worth taking with a pinch of salt until more books or games offer more substantial arguments or, better yet, some concrete evidence.
What does FNAF's Mimic appear in?
FNAF's Mimic appears in just two games so far, but it features in many more books.
Games:
- Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach - Ruin
- Secret of The Mimic
Books:
- Tales From The Pizzaplex 1: Lally's Game
- Tales From The Pizzaplex 2: HAPPS
- Tales From The Pizzaplex 3: Somniphobia
- Tales From The Pizzaplex 4: Submechanophobia
- Tales From The Pizzaplex 5: The Bobbiedots Conclusion
- Tales From The Pizzaplex 6: Nexie
- Tales From The Pizzaplex 7: Tiger Rock
- Tales From The Pizzaplex 8: B7_2
That concludes everything you need to know about FNAF's Mimic.