The First Omen is now in theaters, and while the disturbing occult horror movie does serve as a direct prequel to the original '70s film, it also retcons certain elements in order to lay the groundwork for potential sequels.
If you haven't seen The First Omen yet, beware of major spoilers from this point on.
The movie follows a young American woman, Margaret (Nell Tiger Free), who is sent to Rome to begin a life of service to the church. There, she encounters a darkness that causes her to question her own faith and uncovers a terrifying conspiracy that hopes to bring about the birth of evil incarnate.
It soon comes to light that this conspiracy involves high-ranking members of the Catholic Church attempting to bring the Antichrist into the world in order to terrify the populace to the point that they turn to the church for protection/salvation. Margaret and Father Brennan (Ralph Ineson) initially believe that one of the girls at the convent, Carlita (Nicole Sorace), has been chosen to birth the son of Satan, but Margaret later realizes that she, herself, is the child of the devil!
To add an extra layer of creepiness to the proceedings, it's revealed that Satan must procreate with his own daughter in order to conceive the Antichrist. After (presumably) being raped by the jackal-like demon she sees in her visions, Margaret ultimately gives birth to twins in the film's most horrifying and graphic sequence.
A fire consumes the building, but a badly wounded Margaret and Carlita survive, and are seen one year later, raising the girl as their own. Brennan tracks them down, and warns them that the church is aware of the child's existence.
The boy, as you'll no doubt have guessed, will go on to be raised as Damien Thorn when he is adopted by Ambassador Robert Thorn after his own son is murdered by the conspirators. The addition of a twin sister, however, allows the story to branch off and follow either a second Antichrist or, perhaps, some kind of opposition to the boy's evil nature.
As for the original film's big reveal that Damien's mother was a jackal, the shot of the demonic creature perishing in the flames at the end may go some way towards explaining this, but it's still a pretty significant change.
Have you been to see The First Omen yet? If not, do you plan on checking it out? Drop us a comment down below.
The First Omen also stars Tawfeek Barhom (Mary Magdalene), Sonia Braga (Kiss of the Spider Woman), and Bill Nighy (Living).
The film is directed by Arkasha Stevenson based on characters created by David Seltzer (The Omen), with a story by Ben Jacoby (Bleed) and a screenplay by Tim Smith & Arkasha Stevenson and Keith Thomas (Firestarter). The producers are David S. Goyer (Hellraiser) and Keith Levine (The Night House) and the executive producers are Tim Smith, Whitney Brown (Rosaline), and Gracie Wheelan.
The original movie, which still retains its power to chill, told the story of an American ambassador (Gregory Peck) and his wife (Lee Remick), who slowly come to the realization that their adopted child, Damien, is the son of Satan. The movie spawned a pair of inferior sequels and a 2006 remake which, while technically well-made, completely failed to recapture the dread of the '70s film.