The Omen (franchise)
| The Omen | |
|---|---|
 Logo of the first film | |
| Created by | David Seltzer |
| Original work | The Omen (1976) |
| Owner | 20th Century Studios |
| Years | 1976–present |
| Print publications | |
| Novel(s) |
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| Films and television | |
| Film(s) |
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| Television series |
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The Omen is a media franchise, centering on a series of supernatural horror films, which began in 1976. The series centers on Damien Thorn, a child born of Satan and given to Robert and Katherine Thorn as a child. It is revealed among families that Damien is in fact meant to be the Antichrist, and as an adult is attempting to gain control of the Thorn business and reach for the presidency.
Films
[edit]| Year | Title | Directors | Writers | Producers | Runtime |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Original series | |||||
| 1976 | The Omen | Richard Donner | David Seltzer | Harvey Bernhard | 111 min |
| 1978 | Damien - Omen II | Don Taylor | Stanley Mann and Mike Hodges | 107 min | |
| 1981 | The Final Conflict | Graham Baker | Andrew Birkin | Harvey Bernhard and Richard Donner | 108 min |
| 1991 | Omen IV: The Awakening | Jorge Montesi and Dominique Othenin-Girard | Harvey Bernhard | Harvey Bernhard and Mace Neufeld | 97 min |
| 2024 | The First Omen | Arkasha Stevenson | Tim Smith Arkasha Stevenson Keith Thomas |
David S. Goyer and Keith Levine | 119 min |
| Remake | |||||
| 2006 | The Omen | John Moore | David Seltzer | Glen Williamsonn and John Moore | 107 min |
The Omen is the original film in the series, directed by Richard Donner and written by David Seltzer. The story introduces Robert Thorn, the American Ambassador in Italy who adopts the newborn Damien to replace the newborn that he has been told was stillborn. When Damien reaches the age of five as Robert is transferred to Britain, strange events unfold, beginning with the boy's nanny committing suicide during his birthday party. Soon afterward Robert encounters Father Brennan, a Catholic priest who was present at Damien's birth, who attempts to warn him that the child would eventually kill him and his wife; Brennan soon dies, impaled by a falling church spire. Only after Robert's wife Katherine ends up hospitalized with a miscarriage does he come to believe Brennan; Robert and a photographer named Jennings then travel to Rome, where they learn that Damien is the Antichrist, and that the death of Robert's child was arranged so the Antichrist child could be raised by a politician. In the meantime, Katherine Thorn is murdered by Mrs. Baylock, Damien's second nanny, who in reality is a member of the Satanists who arranged Damien's upbringing, and will kill in order to suppress any threat to him. Arriving in Megiddo to find Bugenhagen, an exorcist and archaeologist, Robert is presented with the only means to kill Damien: the Seven Daggers of Megiddo. Though he initially refuses, it takes both the death of Jennings and discovering the Mark of the Beast on Damien's head to convince Robert to go through with it. Despite killing Mrs. Baylock after a struggle, Robert is killed by the authorities before he can kill Damien.
The second film, Damien - Omen II, starts with Bugenhagen attempting to send Richard[who?] a package, but he and his friend Morris end up being buried alive in Megiddo.[1] The audience is then introduced to Richard's son Mark and his second wife Ann. Now a teenager, Damien attends military school alongside Mark, while his subconscious, manifesting in the form of a raven, kills Richard's aunt Marion, Jennings's friend Joan Hart, and Thorn Industries manager Bill Atherton. Atherton's death is beneficial for senior manager Paul Buher, another member of the Satanist group Baylock was part of. Another member, Sgt. Neff, guides Damien to learn his true nature by advising him to read the Book of Revelation. Though fearful of it at first, unconsciously killing Dr. David Pasarian and a medical physician who tested his blood, Damien comes to accept his fate as he begins to consciously kill anyone who stands in his way, including his cousin Mark and Dr. Charles Warren. Though Richard accepted the truth upon receiving the Daggers of Megiddo from Bugenhagen's package, he is murdered by Ann; Damien then kills her, despite her being one of his disciples.[2]
The third film, The Final Conflict, follows the adult Damien, now head of his uncle's company and arranging his position as American Ambassador in Britain to prevent the Second Coming—which would gradually weaken his powers—by having his followers slaughter every male British child born on March 24. Though he managed to kill six of the seven monks who each brandish a Dagger of Megiddo, their leader Father DeCarlo lives. Damien unknowingly causes his own downfall by his association with a journalist named Kate Reynolds who kills him at his moment of weakness. As Damien's death did not occur in the manner that Bugenhagen learned, the Antichrist only suffered a temporary demise.[3]
In the fourth film of the original series, Omen IV: The Awakening, it is revealed that Damien's followers arranged for his biological daughter Delia to be adopted by two attorneys, Gene and Karen York. While nothing seems wrong at first, compared to her father, Delia is fully aware of her powers as she terrorizes her mother Karen. Karen finds herself pregnant and hires a private detective to find out about Delia's lineage. Along the way, she believes Delia is the Antichrist. A string of bizarre accidental deaths follows, before Karen gives birth to her son Alexander while falling into a paranoia as she tries to reveal her daughter's true identity. With the help of the private detective, Karen learns that Delia is the daughter of Damien Thorn while holding her family doctor, Dr. Hastings, at gunpoint. Upon learning Dr. Hastings is a Satanist, Karen learns that the reborn Antichrist is actually Alexander: Delia's twin brother whose embryo was inside Delia the entire time and implanted into Karen by Hastings. Though Karen adamantly wished to kill Alexander and tries to do so, the baby's powers cause her to commit suicide, leaving Alexander and Delia still alive to continue their birth father's work.[4]
The 2006 remake of the first film, also titled The Omen, was directed and produced by John Moore. Starring Liev Schreiber and Julia Stiles, the film was met with mixed reviews but general box office success. With a budget of $25 million, the film grossed $54 million domestic and $64 million in other territories, totalling $119 million.
A prequel to the first film, titled The First Omen, was directed by Arkasha Stevenson and released in 2024. The film stars Nell Tiger Free as an American woman who is sent to work at a church in Rome but quickly uncovers a conspiracy to bring about the birth of the Antichrist.[5] The film was met with positive reviews from critics and has grossed over $53 million internationally.
Cast
[edit]This section includes characters who will appear or have appeared in more than two films in the series.
- An empty grey cell indicates the character was not in the film, or that the character's official presence has not yet been confirmed.
- A indicates an appearance through archival footage or audio.
- C indicates a cameo role.
- O indicates an older version of the character.
- P indicates an appearance in onscreen photographs.
- U indicates an uncredited appearance.
- V indicates a voice-only role.
- Y indicates a younger version of the character.
| Character | Films | Television series | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Original series | Remake | ||||||
| The Omen | Damien Omen II |
Omen III The Final Conflict |
Omen IV The Awakening |
The First Omen | The Omen | Damien | |
| 1976 | 1978 | 1981 | 1991 | 2024 | 2006 | 2016 | |
| Damien Thorn | Harvey Spencer Stephens Noel O'ConnellY Uncredited infantY |
Jonathan Scott-Taylor | Sam Neill | Harvey Spencer StephensA | Uncredited appearance | Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick Tomas WollerY |
Bradley James Harvey Spencer StephensYA |
| Robert Thorn | Gregory Peck | Uncredited actorPY | Gregory PeckP | Liev Schreiber | Gregory PeckA | ||
| Katherine "Kathy" Thorn | Lee Remick | Mentioned | Rachel Hurd-Wood | Julia Stiles | Lee RemickA | ||
| Carl Bugenhagen | Leo McKern | Leo McKernU | Michael Gambon | Leo McKernA | |||
| Mrs. Willa Baylock | Billie Whitelaw | Mia Farrow | Billie WhitelawA | ||||
| Keith Jennings | David Warner | David Thewlis | David WarnerA | ||||
| Father Brennan | Patrick Troughton | Ralph Ineson | Pete Postlethwaite | Patrick TroughtonA | |||
| Father Spiletto | Martin Benson | Anton Alexander | Giovanni Lombardo Radice | Martin BensonA | |||
| Brother Matteus | Tommy Duggan | Tommy Duggan | |||||
| Nanny | Holly Palance | Holly PalanceV | Amy Huck | Holly PalanceA | |||
| U.S. President | Gerald FordA | Mason Adams | |||||
| Ann Thorn (née Rutledge) | Lee Grant | Barbara Hershey | |||||
Reception
[edit]Box office performance
[edit]| Film | Release date | Box office revenue | Budget | References | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | International | Worldwide | ||||||
| The Omen (1976) | June 6, 1976 | $60,922,980 | $17,800,000R | $78,722,980 | $2.8 million | [6][7][8] | ||
| Damien - Omen II | June 9, 1978 | $26,518,355 | $8,500,000R | $35,018,355 | $6.8 million | [6][9][8] | ||
| The Final Conflict | March 20, 1981 | $20,471,382 | — | $20,471,382 | $5 million | [6][10] | ||
| The Omen (2006) | June 6, 2006 | $54,607,383 | $64,889,140 | $119,496,523 | $25 million | [11] | ||
| The First Omen | April 5, 2024 | $20,054,832 | $33,320,788 | $53,375,620 | $30 million | [12] | ||
| Total | $182,574,932 | $124,509,928 | $307,084,860 | $69.6 million | ||||
List indicator(s)
R Distributor rentals.[a] In the US/Canada, The Omen had rentals of $28.5 million and Damien – Omen II $12.1 million. If the ratio of gross to rental applied to the international rental, the films grossed approximately $99 million and $45 million worldwide respectively.
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Critical response
[edit]| Film | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic |
|---|---|---|
| The Omen (1976) | 84% (51 reviews)[13] | 62 (11 reviews)[14] |
| Damien - Omen II | 48% (27 reviews)[15] | 45 (9 reviews)[16] |
| The Final Conflict | 29% (21 reviews)[17] | 34 (9 reviews)[18] |
| Omen IV: The Awakening | 17% (6 reviews)[19] | — |
| The Omen (2006) | 26% (168 reviews)[20] | 43 (34 reviews)[21] |
| The First Omen | 81% (151 reviews)[22] | 65 (33 reviews)[23] |
Television
[edit]The Omen (1995)
[edit]A television pilot titled The Omen aired on NBC in September 8, 1995. Directed by Jack Sholder and written by John Leekley, the hour-long episode was intended as an attempt to develop The Omen film series into a television series. Although Donner was attached to the project as an executive producer, the pilot failed and the series never moved forward.[24] Unrelated to the previous films, The Omen follows a group of people who are tracking down an entity to which they are all independently linked.[25]
Damien (2016)
[edit]A television series called Damien was in development at the network Lifetime before it was moved to A&E with Bradley James starring in the title role.[26][27][28] The series aired from March 7 to May 9, 2016. The series, acting as a direct sequel to the original film, follows 30 year old Damien, who has forgotten his demonic past, facing his true identity. Ann Rutledge (Barbara Hershey), who has protected Damien all his life, helps him embrace his Antichrist side.
Storyline continuity
[edit]| The Omen story chronology | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Original continuity | |||
| Alternate continuity | |||
| Remake continuity | |||
| |||
Novels
[edit]There are five novels in The Omen series, the first three being novelizations of their film counterparts:
- The Omen, released in 1976 and written by David Seltzer
- Damien – Omen II, released in 1978 and written by Joseph Howard
- The Final Conflict, released in 1980 and written by Gordon McGill
- Omen IV: Armageddon 2000, released in 1982 and written by Gordon McGill
- Omen V: The Abomination, released in 1985 and written by Gordon McGill
Other media
[edit]Three documentaries regarding the series have been made: 666: The Omen - Revealed (2000), The Omen: Legacy (2001), and The Curse of The Omen (2005).
The 1976 film was also remade in Tamil as Jenma Natchathram (1991).
Notes
[edit]- ^ The gross rental is the distributor's share of the box-office gross and was more commonly reported than the exhibition gross up to the 1970s.
References
[edit]- ^ Donner, Richard (Director) (1976). The Omen (DVD). Beverly Hills, CA: Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. OCLC 70171384.
- ^ Taylor, Don and Hodges, Mike (Directors) (1978). Damien – Omen II (DVD). Beverly Hills, CA: Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. OCLC 45111331.
- ^ Baker, Graham (Director) (1981). The Final Conflict (DVD). Beverly Hills, CA: Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. OCLC 45273673.
- ^ Montesi, Jorge and Othenin-Girard, Dominique (Directors) (1991). Omen IV: The Awakening (DVD). Beverly Hills, CA: Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. OCLC 76878002.
- ^ Grobar, Matt (January 3, 2024). "'The First Omen' Trailer: Nell Tiger Free Encounters Evil In Rome In 20th Century Studios Prequel". Deadline. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
- ^ a b c Aubrey Solomon, Twentieth Century Fox: A Corporate and Financial History, Scarecrow Press, 1989 p259
- ^ "The Omen (1976)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved May 27, 2015.
- ^ a b "Satan Back Again; Fox Sets Omen III". Variety. November 21, 1979. p. 34.
- ^ "Damien: The Omen Part II". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved May 27, 2015.
- ^ "The Final Conflict: Omen III (1981)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved May 27, 2015.
- ^ "The Omen (2006)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved May 27, 2015.
- ^ "The First Omen". the numbers. Retrieved April 28, 2024.
- ^ "The Omen (1976)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved January 7, 2024.
- ^ "The Omen" – via www.metacritic.com.
- ^ "Damien – Omen II (1978)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved January 29, 2024.
- ^ "Damien – Omen II" – via www.metacritic.com.
- ^ "The Final Conflict (1981)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved January 29, 2024.
- ^ "The Final Conflict" – via www.metacritic.com.
- ^ "Omen IV: The Awakening (1991)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
- ^ "The Omen (2006)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
- ^ "The Omen Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved May 27, 2015.
- ^ "The First Omen". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
- ^ "The First Omen". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
- ^ Goldberg, Lesley (August 25, 2014). "Glen Mazzara's 'Omen' Follow-Up 'Damien' Ordered Straight to Series at Lifetime". The Hollywood Reporter. Prometheus Global Media. Archived from the original on April 14, 2015. Retrieved May 27, 2015.
- ^ "The Omen". Brett Cullen Official Web Site. Archived from the original on January 30, 2014. Retrieved May 27, 2015.
- ^ Andreeva, Nellie (December 3, 2014). "Bradley James To Play Lead In Lifetime's 'The Omen' Sequel Series 'Damien'; Shekhar Kapur To Direct". Deadline Hollywood. Penske Media Corporation. Archived from the original on May 22, 2015. Retrieved May 27, 2015.
- ^ Barkan, Jonathan (April 29, 2015). ""Damien" Moves From Lifetime To A&E: Gets Four More Episodes". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
- ^ Maas, Jennifer. "Lifetime's The Omen-inspired series Damien moves to A&E". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. Archived from the original on May 27, 2015. Retrieved May 27, 2015.
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