There's a bone-chilling new Omen movie on release at Cineworld this week, and it acts as a prequel to one of the most famous horror movies of all time. The First Omen takes place in 1971 and anticipates the birth of Damien the Antichrist, the seemingly innocent little boy who caused havoc in the original Omen movie (released in 1976) and its sequels.
Did you know that The Omen has a reputation as one of the most cursed movies of all time? The production's litany of bizarre, terrifying and tragic accidents has even yielded a documentary called The Curse of The Omen. We've rounded up some eerie and spine-tingling facts about the making of the film to get you ready for The First Omen's release this April.
- Gregory Peck's son committed suicide two months before the start of filming; however, the act vowed to channel his grief into his performance as Robert Thorn.
- In October 1975, Peck was on his way to London when his aircraft was struck by lightning.
- A few weeks later, producer Mace Neufeld was on his way to the shoot when his airplane was also stuck by lightning while crossing the Atlantic.
- Screenwriter David Seltzer took a plane journey that was also struck by lightning.
- Producer Harvey Bernard narrowly missed being lightning while filming was underway in Rome.
- A charter plane that Peck was scheduled to take crashed and killed everyone on board.
- As it crashed, the plane struck a car on the road below, killing both occupants who happened to be the wife and two children of the plane's pilot.
- Special effects supervisor John Richardson's girlfriend was decapitated in a car accident, mirroring the famous death of Jennings (David Warner) in The Omen.
- Richardson claimed he saw a road sign off to one side of the accident that pointed out the town of Ommen: 66.6 kilometers away.
- One of the Rottweilers used for the filming went berserk and attacked stuntman Terry Walsh, biting through his protective gear, although the man emerged unharmed.
- A hotel that had been vacated the day before by director Richard Donner was bombed by the IRA.
- The day after filming the baboon scene with Lee Remick and Harvey Stephens, a Windsor Zoo worker was killed by a big cat (claims vary as to whether it was a lion or a tiger).
Having read these facts, are you brave enough to watch The First Omen at Cineworld? If so, click on the link below and book your tickets. It's released on April 5th.
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