Bill Skarsgård wanted to make sure that his performance as Pennywise was convincing for audiences. He states, “In order for this movie to be as effective as the book and the series, I have to scare a whole generation. My take was that Pennywise functions very simply. Nothing much is going on in terms of what he’s thinking – he’s animalistic and instinctive.”
I never made the connection between Annabelle and Rosemary’s Baby, but, once it was laid out before me, I cannot believe I missed it. Might explain why I enjoyed Annabelle so much.
ScreenRant explains Annabelle‘s homage to Rosemary’s Baby:
“Several references to the classic horror film Rosemary’s Baby are alluded to in Annabelle. For instance, the protagonists are named John and Mia after John Cassavettes and Mia Farrow, the stars of the horror classic. John and Mia also name their daughter Leah, the same name as one of the neighbors in the 1968 film.
“In addition, the plot closely resembles Rosemary’s Baby. Both films center on a couple living in an upscale apartment while expecting a baby, as a host of satanic neighbors plotting to overtake the mother and her child. Moreover, the sound cues of the neighboring apartment are directly taken from Rosemary’s Baby.”
Find more facts about the Annabelle series at The Annabelle Series: 10 Creepy Facts About The Conjuring Spin-Off.
In Wes Craven’s 1994 New Nightmare, Freddy Krueger is depicted much closer to what Craven had originally intended for the character, much more menacing, much less comical, with an updated attire and appearance.
However in 2015, before his death, Craven would admit he regretted changing Krueger’s appearance and said: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” which was why he kept Ghostface’s mask the same in every Scream movie.
More behind-the-scenes facts at IMDb Trivia: New Nightmare (1994).
According to Piper Laurie, she honestly thought her character in Carrie (1976) was too over the top fanatical to be taken seriously. Director Brian De Palma had to take her to the side and personally tell her it was a horror film and not a “black comedy” as she thought it was. Even so, she would constantly burst out into laughter between takes because not only was her characterization and wardrobe laughable in her eyes, but the dialogue itself was humorous for her. To this day, she still refers to and maintains the movie as a black comedy.
More behind-the-scenes facts at IMDb Trivia: Carrie (1976).
The effect of Sadako coming out of the well was accomplished with only one simple special effect. The actress who played Sadako, Rie Ino’o—who was a student of the Kabuki theatre, which uses exaggerated motion and jerking movements to emphasize emotion—was heavily involved in the development of the Sadako character. Ino’o was filmed walking backward and the film was run in reverse. The end result is Sadako walking forward with unnatural motions.
Did you know that Wrong Turn 4: Bloody Beginnings is the first movie in the series in which nobody survives the cannibals?
My favourite of the series! More facts about this prequel at IMDb Trivia: Wrong Turn 4.
Did you know that Danny Lloyd, who played the character Danny Torrance in Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, made a cameo in Doctor Sleep at the baseball game and is listed in the credits as “Spectator”?
More behind-the-scene facts can be found at IMDb Trivia: Doctor Sleep (2019).
Among the living creatures seen in Dracula’s castle in Transylvania are opossums, armadillos, and an insect known as a Jerusalem cricket (Stenopalmatus Fuscus).
The Jerusalem cricket was common in Southern California, which may explain its cameo in the film.
The inclusion of armadillos was due to the fact that armadillos had occasionally been seen digging in graveyards, which led to the mistaken belief that they would dig their way into coffins and eat the cadavers.
Learn more about 1931’s Dracula at IMDb Trivia: Dracula (1931).
The concept in popular culture that sunlight is lethal to vampires is based on 1922’s Nosferatu, which depicted such a death for the very first time in film history.
Find out more at IMDb Trivia: Nosferatu (1922).
Elvira: Mistress of the Dark was produced by NBC, which set up a distribution deal with New World Pictures. Just as the film was slated to hit theaters, New World filed for bankruptcy. The marketing campaign was abruptly halted and the release was scaled back from thousands of theaters to just a few hundred. Critics were brutal and, without promotion to entice potential viewers, the film bombed at the box office, though it later became a best-seller on video and one of the highest-rated programs of the year when NBC aired it in 1990.
As today is National Coming Out Day, I thought it would be appropriate to feature Elvira.
A kid of the 80s, I adored Elvira and this movie. Learn more behind-the-scenes facts at IMDb Trivia: Elvira—Mistress of the Dark (1988).
The Devil's Muse 