A new “Omen” will be born soon.
“The First Omen,” a prequel to the original 1976 Richard Donner-directed masterpiece, is headed to theaters this spring. And you can watch the brand-new trailer for the film, complete with an excellent Fever Ray needle drop, above.
While plot specifics are not front-and-center with the trailer, instead emphasizing the mood and tone of the movie via a series of brief moments, played backwards, what is glimpsed is pretty unsettling – nuns laying on the ground, the unholy numbers “666” inside someone’s mouth and a young girl (Nell Tiger Free) seemingly at the center of a vast conspiracy to bring about the birth of the antichrist. As Bill Nighy gravely intones at the end of the trailer: “You don’t have to be afraid. This child is his way.” Eep!
Of course, the first film, which memorably starred Gregory Peck, Lee Remick and David Warner, followed an American politician (Peck), living in London, who starts to believe that his young son Damien (Harvey Stephens) is actually the antichrist. Notable for its creative death sequences and Oscar-winning Jerry Goldsmith score (unbelievably his only Oscar win), “The Omen” spawned a franchise, beginning with “Damien: Omen II” in 1978 and “Omen III: The Final Conflict” in 1981. These favored those inventive death sequences over the mood and atmosphere of Donner’s original, serving as a clear precursor to the “Final Destination” franchise.
A fourth film, “Omen IV: The Awakening,” debuted as a TV movie on Fox in 1991. And a remake, which basically reused the original screenplay, starring Live Schreiber and Julia Stiles, was released in 2006 (6/6/2006 of course).
“The First Omen” was directed by Arkasha Stevenson, making her big screen debut after helming episodes of “Legion,” “Briarpatch” and “Channel Zero.” (She replaced Antonio Campos, who was initially on board to direct.) The screenplay was written by Stevenson, Tim Smith and Keith Thomas (who recently directed a new “Firestarter” for Blumhouse). It was produced by David S. Goyer, who also produced the terrific new “Hellraiser,” and Keith Levine.
“The First Omen” opens April 5.
