Is Annabelle the ultimate creepy toy? Sequel Annabelle: Creation looks set to make a killing at the box office this summer
Creepy-toy movies have been scaring the bejesus out of film-goers for decades, and Annabelle the porcelain doll – back on screens this summer in origin story that has critics raving – may be the creepiest yet
Take away a vampire’s teeth and he’s just a goth that can’t handle garlic. Wait for some decent cloud cover and your average werewolf is about as scary as Lassie.
But there is one enduring horror trope that can have grown men and women gnawing at their fingernails when things go bump in the night: the creepy, haunted child’s toy.
From malevolent teddy bears and possessed clowns, to murderous porcelain dolls rocking menacingly in their chairs, these evil characters have become a multimillion-dollar staple adored by fans and studio executives alike.
‘Poltergeist scarred me for life’: James Wan on Saw’s torture-porn label and The Conjuring 2
The killer toy resonates so profoundly because of the cognitive dissonance involved in the idea of a child’s cuddly toy going rogue.
“There’s something very primal about absurdist fears, which is something I posit that most of us never completely grow out of,” said Shawn Robbins, chief analyst at film industry number cruncher Boxoffice.com. “In a twisted way, that just makes it more fun for adults when it comes to these types of movies.”
Annabelle: Creation, which has blown away critics and earned a 100 per cent rating on review website Rotten Tomatoes ahead of its summer release, is the latest example of a genre spanning more than 100 movies.