UPDATED: We are pleased to announce that Linda Vee Sado (@LindaVeeSado on Twitter) is the winner of the Annabelle doll contest, and will soon be welcoming the haunted doll to her house. You’re very brave, Linda, and congratulations!
ORIGINAL STORY BELOW
Normally, I would have posted all of the interviews we had for “The Conjuring” before the film opened last Friday, but a couple of things prevented that from happening.
First, we ended up with a whoooooole lot of James Wan in one seven-day period thanks to a press day they had for “Insidious: Chapter Two” in LA, and we decided to space the interviews out a little bit so as not to overload you guys. Second, Comic-Con. It might seem like there’s no verb in that sentence, but trust me… “Comic-Con” encompasses whatever else I might say on the matter.
I am thrilled to see how well “The Conjuring” is doing, and not because I really care about numbers, but because I think this is an uncommonly good version of what a studio horror film can be, and I want to see them rewarded for not only making a very good movie, but also for selling it right. They have been carefully laying the groundwork for that opening weekend for most of this year, and it really paid off.
If you’ve seen the movie, then I’m sure you remember the early sequence where we see Ed and Lorraine discussing another case they investigated involving a doll named Anabelle. In real life, the doll was a Raggedy Anne doll, but unsurprisingly, the owners of that trademark thought it might not be a great idea for it to appear in a movie where it is possessed by a malevolent demon spirit. They designed their own version of the doll and then sent that doll out to a number of media outlets.
Mine has already been responsible for several nightmares in my house, even though Allen and Toshi haven’t seen the film. Greg Ellwood has decided that he doesn’t even want his in his house, and I’m sure the mysterious lights and the cold spots in the house and the midnight spectral apparitions have nothing to do with that. It’s a complete coincidence.
The thing is, you can’t just throw an Annabelle doll in the trash. It doesn’t work like that. You have to find someone who becomes a willing owner of it, and that means we need to run a contest to see who’s getting haunted ne… I mean, who wants this lovely collectible toy?
It’s easy. All you have to do is re-tweet the tweet you see embedded below, and follow @HitFix. Both steps can be done from the embed.
Win this fun/creepy Annabelle doll from ‘The Conjuring’ https://t.co/cfzHQ9jZdX RT & follow @HitFix to enter. #bravery pic.twitter.com/k7IVhPQR5k
– HitFix (@HitFix) July 26, 2013
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
On Monday, we’ll announce the winner right here when we update this story. We will then rush to transfer ownership of the Annabelle doll to you, and Greg will have his apartment blessed. Repeatedly.
We are not responsible for any supernatural mayhem that may occur in your home or your life after we send you the doll, and under no circumstances are you allowed to send her back. Seriously. Greg’s moving, so don’t even try.
Have you seen her? Check this out:
See what I mean? That thing is like a hard plastic nightmare.
In the meantime, check out the interview I embedded at the top of this story. I sat down with director James Wan and with the real Lorraine Warren at a recent press day for the film. I suspect New Line is going to get at least two or three films out of this series, and Lorraine’s got plenty more material to share with them. I look forward to seeing Vera Farmiga back in those high collars sometime in 2015.
“The Conjuring” is playing in theaters now.