It is without a doubt–Annabelle is one creepy doll to venture on to the big screen.
Originally based on the real demon possessed doll alleged by Ed and Lorraine Warren, Annabelle: Creation will be the prequel that tells the fictional origin story from 2014ās Annabelle movies.
Warner Brothers recruited Lights Out director David F. Sandberg to the helm after his very successful and scary feature film debut. The origin story looks at a dollmaker and his wife, who created a large doll to be a vessel for a spirit after the tragic death of their daughter. To make amends, they invited a nun and several orphans to live in their home years later. Unbeknownst to everyone, Annabelle soon targeted the invited guests in the terrifying movie Annabelle: Creation.
The film stars Miranda Otto (The Lord of the Rings), Stephanie Sigman (Spectre), Lulu Wilson (Ouija: Origin of Evil), Talitha Bateman (The 5th Wave) and Anthony LaPaglia (Without A Trace).
LRM was present with a few reporters for a roundtable interview with director David F. Sandberg, and actress Stephanie Sigman. We discussed a few topics, including the backdrop of the film, the cast, the production and the scares. As a bonus, Sandberg reflected a little on his upcoming project for Shazam.
Annabelle: Creation will be playing in theaters nationwide next Friday, August 11.
Read the round table interview transcript below.
One thing I like to know–the movie starts like in 1920 or something–with these old rickety carsā¦
David F. Sandberg: 1945.
All of the sudden, it said itās twelve years later, weāre in the 50s with the television set. I was thinking it might be 42?
David F. Sandberg: Ā 1945, and then 1957.
How did you decide on the years? And where was it taking place? We have two Australians taking the lead in this deserted landscape. It could be Australia.
David F. Sandberg: No, itās California. The time period was counting backwards from the first Annabelle. It took place in 1970, so we calculated and went back to 1957 and then twelve years earlier with 1945.
Stephanie Sigman: I always thought it was 1956. [Laughs] I just got it wrong the whole time.
David F. Sandberg: [Laughs] You wouldāve looked completely different since itās a year later. [Laughs]
Yeah. I always think itās 2016, but itās really 2017 right now. [Laughs]
When you got this job and Lights Out had its success, when did you say, āIāll sign onā and come up with an Annabelle prequel?
David F. Sandberg: Well, it was actually during the post-production of Lights Out. Lights Out wasnāt even out yet. The studio was hot on it. They really liked on how it turned out. Then they asked me if I wanted to do Annabelle 2.
At first, I was like, āWhere are you going to take that?ā Is this going to be the same movie one more time? Then I read the script, it turned out to be a prequel. Itās a very different story with different characters. Alright, this is something that I could make it more of my own. Itās different enough.
Did you think of classic horror stories? Itās such a beautiful movie how you shot with the closeup with the girlsā¦
David F. Sandberg: Yeah, that was the inspiration. Already like The Conjuring, it had that classic horror feel to it. That movie inspired me to shoot it in a more classic way. It is more fun to me than to do a standard coverage with a hundred setups. Itās more fun to do these shots with longer takes, staging it and more interesting ways.
And casting you as a nun?
Stephanie Sigman: [Laughs] I said at the beginning, āAre you really casting me as a nun?ā I love the challenge.
How did you see that? So often, people get typecast. She is a beautiful, sexy actor.
Stephanie Sigman: Thank you. [Laughs]
David F. Sandberg: She auditioned.
Did you reached out towards your inner nun?
Stephanie Sigman: I wasnāt really thinking that I was going to play a nun. I feel that if your mindset was playing a religious person, the clichĆ© on what we think she is, it would be really rigid. I was just trying to make my priority with the girls. It should all be about them. I should worry about them. I should guide them. Itās about trying to get them to trust me. The quality is to be like the mother or a mom figure.
A guardian.
Stephanie Sigman: Yeah, a guardian. Thatās what I tried to do at the audition. I think thatās on what they liked. I was also told by Peter [Safran] that I was just human. I wasnāt just playing the idea of it. I was just playing the human or the woman of it. I wasnāt trying to be sexy though. [Laughs]
David F. Sandberg: That was the thing. We did several auditions. I saw a lot on what other people do is that they turned all holy in their eyesā¦to become a nun. [Turns to Stephanie Sigman] And you didnāt do that.
Stephanie Sigman: A bit creepy, right? [Laughs]
David F. Sandberg: Yeah. You werenāt a creepy nun.
Stephanie Sigman: I was trying to be warm.
David F. Sandberg: That definitely worked.
You had the one character in the film that went toe-to-toe with the demon and be able to survive. What do you think is about this character that she was able to do that?
Stephanie Sigman: I feel that she is a warrior. She is fighting evil in her own way. In a spiritual way. She isnāt doing those Wonder Woman fights, but sheās really tough in that spiritual level. Yeah, thatās really awesome. To me, I believe in God. I believe in evil and good. To me, itās very important to have a spiritual side to it.
I feel like she is a badass. Sheās a badass nun.
The children cast are awesome. They could hold their own with anyone it seems. In filming a horror film, what kind of restraints do you have? How does this work? Are they there through all the horrific scenes? Are there any restrictions?
David F. Sandberg: They were so into it. Even the youngest, Samara [Lee], who plays Bee. She is the biggest horror fan ever. Sheās only eight-years-old. She seen all of these horror movies. She was named after the character from The Ring.
She was so into it. She wanted to do all these freaky things. She was asking meā¦we were thinking about not having her to do the vomiting thing at one point. She was begging me, āPlease let me do the vomiting.ā [Laughs] I said, āAlright.ā
Stephanie Sigman: She also wanted people to see the dead body.
David F. Sandberg: Oh, yeah. She got hit by a car. She was very disappointed that we didnāt show that. [Chuckles]
How did her parents react to that?
Stephanie Sigman: I think they were used to that. [Laughs]
David F. Sandberg: They were the ones who named her Samara. I think they are horror fans. [Laughs]
Stephanie Sigman: Theyāre really smart. Theyāre into it. Theyāre more brave than me. I was kind of scared on set sometimes.
When this ended, the inevitable question will be is, āWill you do another one?ā [To David F. Sandberg] Will you do another Annabelle movie? [To Stephanie Sigman] Will you come back as this warrior nun?
David F. Sandberg: For me, it feels like Iāve done my entry into this universe. There will be other movies like Corin Hardy is doing The Nun. Iām pretty happy with that. You never know? For now, Iām pretty satisfied.
Stephanie Sigman: I canāt see how my character could come back. I think she is done on whatever she is supposed to be doing. You never know. I guess I would have to read a script on the idea with my character again.
She was in the picture with The Nun.
Stephanie Sigman: Yes, there is a connection there.
So thereās a possibility of it?
Stephanie Sigman: Yes.
What do you want from your career right now with Hollywood at your feet? [To David F. Sandberg]
David F. Sandberg: I want to keep making movies as long as they let me. [Chuckles]
Do you know on what your next project is?
David F. Sandberg: The next one is not a horror movie. Itās Shazam. Itās a DC Comics superhero.
Is that a remake of a movie called Shazam?
David F. Sanberg: There hasnāt been a movie about Shazam except in animation. There was a TV show in the 70s. There were serials in the 40s. He has been around for as long as Superman. Thatās next. I still like horror though.
This will be primarily a family film then.
David F. Sanberg: Yeah, a total switch.
Is Dwayne Johnson still attached?
David F. Sanberg: No. The plan is to not have him in Shazam. He is Black Atom. The two are going to meet.
Could you talk a little bit about casting Anthony Lapaglia?
David F. Sanberg: Thereās all these wonderful actors here like Miranda Otto and the girls. Itās such a dream to work with. Theyāre all such professionals. They get into their characters so easily. They are so easy to work with that all you have to deal with is the technical issues on set. You donāt have to pull a performance out of them.
They show up and they are so prepared. Thatās the way I like to direct as well. Itās not to try to give them too much direction. I wanted to see what they can do. If itās not right or itās too far off–weāll talk about why that is and to see on what we can come up with that works.
When youāre directing horror and thought you did so effectively was with the terror was built in our own minds and on what we donāt see. How do you make decisions on what you want to show people? Or to show more on what they build up in their minds? Itās with the doors or even with the noises down the hall.
David F. Sandberg: It is a balance. Oftentimes, the creak down a dark hallway can be scarier than what we see. It could be anything. Itās all made up in your mind.
At the same time, you have to show a little bit, but then itās a balance. Thereās a shot of the demon in the mirror. At first, I thought we see it too clearly on what it is. We added dirt to the mirror. We made it warped. We tried to make it a little bit more creepy.
You have to kind of keep it in the shadows. You want to give people a little glimpse.
Do you depend on sneak peeks to get a feeling on what the audience like and doesnāt like? And then do you go back and finish the film?
David F. Sandberg: You do test screenings, yeah. On Lights Out, it was very clear there was a problem with the ending. We ended the movie a little bit earlier than originally. She came back again and they didnāt like that.
On this one, we were fortunate enough that people liked it coming out of the gate. Instead of having them tell us, āOh, we donāt like this and we need to change that.ā The studio was more like, āThey liked it. Was there anything you want to improve on?ā That allowed me to go back and tweaked some things.
For example, thereās a scarecrow in the barn. It was a later addition.
You mean with the stuff coming out of him.
David F. Sandberg: Yeah. Originally, when [the girl] was stuck inside the barn–the evil Mrs. Mullins was in there. You could see a little bit about that in the trailer out there actually. This isnāt happening and you can see hands come out to grab her.
I felt like it needed something extra. The scene worked and people didnāt complain about it. I felt like I wanted more so we put the scarecrow into it.
Whatās with the ending to it? Are we going to end up with the Manson Family with this?
David F. Sandberg: It ties straight into the first Annabelle. We even used the footage from the first Annabelle. Itās with the neighbors waking to everything. You could put this [Annabelle: Creation] first and end up with a really long movie.
They do tie in straight into each other, in which I thought it was a lot of fun. We need about that when we were shooting and the audience will be, āOh, I see!ā
The horror aficionados will know all of this, right?
David F. Sandberg: We were worried about people who hadnāt seen the first one would end up being too confused.
I hadnāt seen the first one. I felt like it was the Manson Family coming up. I thought they were coming up to slaughter a family. Who knew?
David F. Sandberg: I knew Annabelle was Manson Family inspired anyways.
Do you think this brings a new twist towards life after death? Or possibly a new perspective on life after death?
David F. Sandberg: I donāt know.
Stephanie Sigman: I would have to think about that.
Arenāt you Catholic? [To Stephanie Sigman]
Stephanie Sigman: No, Iām Christian.
The whole idea of saying confession to you to me made me think, āSheās not a priest. Why would she say that to you?ā
David F. Sandberg: Well, we donāt have a priest around. Theyāre improvising.
Stephanie Sigman: Itās not that traditional, I think. Sheās not that traditional nun.
I saw the film for the first time at San Diego Comic-Con International. People were freaking out. There was one scene that drew a lot of laughter. I donāt know if it was on purpose or a throwback to films in the 1980s. There was a scene in the house when the nun tells the girlsā¦
David F. Sanberg: Go back to bed. [Laughs]
Stephanie Sigman: What scene?
David F. Sanberg: It was after Mullies died and you go back to the girls to say, āGo back to bed.ā [Laughs] People are laughing, because there are terrible things happening and you should go tuck in.
Thatās one of those things that the studio got a little scared at the test screening and people laughed at that. āWeāre not sure if that was a good laugh.ā Well, thatās the way on how I shot it. I couldnāt really cut around it. A laugh is a laugh.
Stephanie, you came from Mexico where you are born. How do you see your career? Do you see it based here in Los Angeles? Or with international films?
Stephanie Sigman: Iām going to answer [previous topic] and then Iāll go to yours.
I feel like I had a lot of questions like that when I was in the film. Why am I saying that? Why am I doing that? He was tell me, āYou have nowhere else to go with six children.ā [Laughs] Thatāll be the answer. To be honest, thatās what youāll do. You have to do on what you can. Itāll happen with kids in situations like that. Where are you going to run? Nowhere? To the wild? I love it that people are laughing.
As for my career, Iāve been here for four years now. Iāve been working here and Iāve been doing good. Iāll stay for a while and see on what happens. I do want to go back to Mexico and do an independent movie. I miss that too, but I havenāt found a script that I wanted to do.
What do you look for when you say āyesā to a movie?
Stephanie Sigman: I donāt know if itās something that I could easily explain to you. I must be something that I can connect to, but not in a very conscience level and more emotional. I connect with it or I donāt. It has to be with the story and the character.
Sometimes I donāt know on what Iām looking for next. I do like that, because it brings me projects like Annabelle. I didnāt really know back then that I was going to do a horror movie, or play a nun, and here I am.
Or even with a Bond movie, I wasnāt specifically looking for that. So Iām opened.
So how close are you casting Shazam?
David F. Sandberg: I canāt really talk about that. Thatās something that I noticed about that whole world. As soon as you say anything, people will start speculating and thereāll be blog posts about it. [Laughs] I donāt dare to say anything.
Until something is signed, right? Can you say if the production will start by the end of year?
David F. Sandberg: Am I allowed to say anything on that? Well, itās coming up. Weāre moving ahead very quickly.
Youāll have to understand with us nerds–we donāt have any girlfriends or anything. We have to speculate everything. [Laughs]
Annabelle: Creation will be playing in theaters nationwide next Friday, August 11.