Since the release of The Omen in 1976, there have been four more films in the franchise, with Damien: Omen II and Omen III: The Final Conflict continuing the story of Damien Thorn and his journey towards becoming the Antichrist, Omen IV: The Awakening focusing on Delia York, a young girl adopted by a family and could be the successor to Damien, and the 2006 remake of the original film. Barring the release of the first film, the subsequent Omen sequels were not quite as well received, with each subsequent entry scoring lower with both critics and audiences. Meanwhile, the franchise also spawned a sequel TV series, Damien, which retconned the sequels and established that story as canon. That series received mixed reviews and was also canceled after one season.
The First Omen, a prequel to the 1976 movie that was released last week, statistically would seem an unsuccessful effort, based on the pre-established track record. Leading up to the start of the first film, The First Omen revolves around Margaret (Nell Tiger Free), a young woman who has arrived in Rome in order to become a nun and devote herself to the church. As the days progress, however, she begins to notice strange things that make her doubt her faith, from unsettling behavior exhibited by other sisters in the church, eerie visions that plague her and stories about a group who wish to usher in the birth of the Antichrist.
Upon release, The First Omen received mostly positive reviews upon release, including from this reviewer, for its direction, performances—particularly Nell Tiger Free—and genuine scares that elevated the viewing experience, and coming, as of this article’s writing, only second to The Omen (1976) as the franchise’s highest rated entry. Most importantly, the film also led to a revitalization and renewed interest in the series, with many wanting to see more of this quality from any future entries. Ending exactly where the 1976 movie began, it answers some questions that were left open after the events of the original.
Interestingly, The First Omen is not the first case of a horror franchise’s revitalization. Most recently in 2023, Saw X, the tenth movie in the Saw franchise, acted as both a sequel and a prequel to the first movie and subsequent sequels, respectively. Dealing with terminal cancer and looking for a potential cure, John Kramer (Tobin Bell) travels to Mexico after hearing of an experimental new process that could help him. The procedure takes place, only to later discover that the entire operation is a scam and former patients are still suffering because of them. In response, he kidnaps the members of the procedure’s team, and decides to make them all suffer before killing them in horrific ways.
Much like the Omen franchise, the Saw franchise was also unable to match the quality of its very first entry in its subsequent sequels, despite the two installments preceding it, Jigsaw (2017) and Spiral: From the Book of Saw (2021), attempting to take the franchise in a new direction. Many audiences had written it off as well, and were not sure if it would ever reach the heights of the first movie ever again. However, with Saw X, the franchise witnessed a revival in interest, receiving mostly positive reviews and being regarded as the best entry since the first, with particular praise given to Tobin Bell returning to play Kramer, the quality of the traps and horror presented, as well as an effective story which gave Kramer an emotional core previously unseen.
A common discussion point between The First Omen and Saw X was that with both entries, the franchises had returned to their roots, and embraced what made the franchise starters so special and built upon those legacies. Both entries were successful in enhancing the stories presented before, and why characters present in them make the decisions they do or how external decision making among characters leads to the events that transpire. These films were also effective in understanding the tone of their first entries, while balancing their tonal shifts between frightening horror sequences and their scenes which are over-the-top and embracing that nature effectively. Most importantly, by choosing to go back and build upon them, these installments gave the stories a stronger background and basis for existing, leading to revisiting the films that preceded them and giving them another chance. These films also have the benefit of taking into account the current wave of popularity surrounding horror, and how much more the genre has expanded with audiences of all demographics.
With interests evolving and viewers asking for changes in the delivery of scares and embracing the tonal variations it offers, filmmakers have been experimenting more with compelling narratives and characters in order to make their scares feel more real and more personal in nature. They act upon the nature of the storylines given and manage to create a more well-rounded experience in the process. With both The First Omen and Saw X giving its protagonists something to fear and ground them in a reality that feels more relatable—Margaret fearing the church and her faith, Kramer fearing succumbing to a life-ending disease—the scares feel more effective and give the storytelling a chance to flourish even more. In the case of the former, it helps add an extra level of fear to the rise of the Antichrist, and even giving more basis as to why certain members of the faith even want such an event to happen, taking into account the socio-political events in Rome at the time and a lack of belief in both church and state from citizens.
While these are aspects of the story audiences would not agree with, even with Kramer in Saw X brutally murdering the doctors who scammed him and making them feel excruciating pain in their final moments, they are justifications that help the movies work on a storytelling basis. Time will tell whether or not this trend will continue and how else it will be improved upon, both movies are good examples of the system working in the franchise’s favors, with audiences even being excited for the next Saw movie as a result. It is another testament to what more horror is capable of, and giving these franchises another chance to shine.
Watch my review of The First Omen here.
still courtesy of 20th Century Studios
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