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The following FAQ entries may contain spoilers. Only the biggest ones (if any) will be covered with spoiler tags. Spoiler tags have been used sparingly in order to make the page more readable.
For detailed information about the amounts and types of (a) sex and nudity, (b) violence and gore, (c) profanity, (d) alcohol, drugs, and smoking, and (e) frightening and intense scenes in this movie, consult the IMDb Parents Guide for this movie. The Parents Guide for The Omen can be found here.
No. The Omen is a remake of The Omen (1976), which was based on a screenplay by American screenwriter David Seltzer, who is also credited with writing this remake. However, the actual writer for the remake is said to have been screenwriter Dan McDermott. Due to McDermott's proposed screenpllay too closely resembling the one Seltzer had written for the original movie, the WGA refused to grant McDermott the writing credit. Seltzer also novelized the movie in a book that was released in 1976, just weeks before the original movie was released.
The film shares many shots with the original, but it has a very different blend of visuals and maintains a different beginning. The film was highly criticized for this aspect much like Psycho (1998), the remake of the original Psycho (1960). People were reported calling the picture "pointless" and "bland" because it carried so many similarities.
Director John Moore uses it to update the story by including disasters like 9/11 to indicate the spawn of Satan's coming and how prophecies concerning his rising have been fulfilled.
The remake is seen largely as a result of two things. Fox wanted to bring a remake of the film to the Japanese market as "creepy kids" seem to be big box-office there, but when John Moore came on board he suggested redoing the story for the world and not just the Asian market.
Yes, the movie was called "The Omen 666" during the filming and post production. As the release date grew closer, however, the creative team decided to drop the "666" and just stick with the original title. In replacement of the "666" subtitle, the release date 06/06/06 was on every piece of promo work in large font.
The release date references "666", the number of the beast or devil in the Bible. The number "666" features strongly in The Omen's plot. The day of release was a Tuesday, and The Omen held the record for the highest Tuesday gross for over a year, until 3 July 2007 when Transformers claimed the record.
It is strongly rumoured that Mark Romeneck was linked to take on the project at one point but, due to the actors he wanted for the leads, he was unable to bring it in on a reasonable budget.
The curse of The Omen sprang up when several people died and a few horrific accidents took place on the set of the original film. A few minor things have also happened on the remake. A stunt dog reportedly attacked Liev Schreiber, who plays Damien's father, Robert Thorn. Also, after shooting the scene where Mrs. Baylock (Mia Farrow) attacks Robert, it is said that all the film was destroyed. John Moore says at one point on the DVD that he genuinely believes external forces were at work and that the whole franchise is cursed.
Most of the film was shot in Prague with added locations in Dublin, Ireland and in Rome, Italy. The film was initially meant to shoot for a while in Croatia but was chased out of the country by the Catholic Church.
Yes, Harvey Stephens is the blond tabloid reporter in the scene where Robert and the Saudi ambassador arrive at the embassy directly after the Nanny's death.
Beltrami has composed a totally fresh and original score for this movie, bar the final track which plays over part of the credits. This track is a reworking of the famous Avi Santini that Goldsmith did for the 1976 version.
Director John Moore has said the color red is used in the film to show when something important is about to happen or possibly when a death is impending. It is also thought it may have been used to give the film a different visual style than the original
Out of fear. Damien (Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick) is, after all, the son of the Devil. Presumably, the sight of God's house angers and scares him.
Robert is the U.S. ambassador for Great Britain. Most likely, the plane is a private or hired jet of some kind. Many politicians in high places are afforded this exemption from normal flight regulations.
No, the deaths in the photograph plot point is derived directly from the 1976 original version of The Omen, 30 years before Final Destination 3 (2006) was released. If anything, Final Destination 3 is cribbing from the original The Omen, not vice versa.
One scene was part of Katherine Thorn (Julia Stiles)'s first dream sequence. John Moore cut it for pacing reasons. The other scene that seems to appear in some sort of bedroom does not appear in the movie nor as a deleted scene on the DVD. Its status is unknown.
The film was shot and made in Prague, so some small details will have been left in the film that could not be erased, such as the signposts and the fact that Thorn is driving on the wrong side of the road in the film's final moments.
Father Brennan (Pete Postlethwaite) had helped deliver Damien and also had a 666 birth mark. Now that he was dying of cancer, he wished to amend for his sins before death. He thought he could do this by providing Thorn with the facts concerning his son's origin and how Damien might be stopped.
Damien was literally born of a jackal, a canine closely related to dogs and wolves. A photo of a jackal can be viewed here..
The prophecy suggested that the son of the devil would rise from the "eternal sea", which translates into English as the world of politics. This element was made up by the filmmakers and is not biblical fact.
Police will normally be stationed at the Thorn house as Robert Thorn is the U.S. ambassador for Great Britain, a politician of great importance. Given the recent occurrences, such as Kate's "accident" and Robert's absence, added police would probably have been present.
It is explained earlier in the film that the President at this time was also Robert's godfather. Damien must have been left to him after the deaths of Robert and Kate.
Of the main characters, Robert and Katherine Thorn, Father Brennan, Mrs Baylock, and photographer Keith Jennings (David Thewlis) do not survive. Bugenhagen (Michael Gambon) and Damien are the only ones who are still alive at the end of the film.
The death scenes are fairly similar to that of the original film, though this version features an extra death at the beginning to explain how Robert Thorn got the ambassador's job. The death scene shows the first ambassador Steven Haines (Marshall Cupp) blown up in his car as a set of fluke incidents send him and his driver up in flames. The death scene in which the Nanny (Amy Huck) hangs herself is virtually identical to the original film, as is the demise of Father Brennan. The death of photographer Keith Jennings, played by David Warner in the original, is similar in that both men are decapitated, but the means of decapitation differs between films. In the 1976 version, a pane of glass from a rogue truck hits Jennings and takes off his cranium. In the remake, Jennings is decapitated by a falling sign. Katherine Thorn's death is different, too. In the original movie, Katherine was knocked out a window. In the remake, she has her hospital equipment tapped by Miss Baylock.
The core message is that good does not always best evil, as demonstrated by the fact the only main character left at the end is Damien.
Not as yet. The film made a decent profit at the Box-Office though likely not quite enough to convince the studio that remakes of the lesser sequels would be good ideas. Also, with no other gimmicks to use (e.g 06/06/06), it is unlikely the studio will bother any time in the near future.
Seamus Davey Fitzpatrick is contracted to reprise the role of Damien if any further films are made. John Moore has said in interviews that he would not be interested in returning to direct further installments.
It was nominated for two teen choice awards and Seamus Davey Fitzpatrick picked up a Fuse Fangoria chainsaw award for "scariest child". David Thewlis was nominated for a razzie as worst supporting actor for both this and for Basic Instinct 2 (2006).
On the Region 1 and Region 2 DVD's the following are present.The feature film45 minute making of documentry entitled "Omenisims."Extended death sequences and (marginally) alternate endingCommentary from director, producer and editor.A short look at the music for the feature entitled "Abbey Road Sessions"A TV special on the origins of 666 entitled "Revelations 666"2 Theatrical trailers for the film along with trailers for other features that where "coming soon" at the timeLinks to Fox website
Worldwide yes, but when adjusted for inflation, the original beats it.
Yes, the teaser in which Seamus is seen slowly rocking on the swing dressed in red was indeed the little actor's screen test for the role.
The Omen received generally mixed reviews but overall was more applauded by critics than most horror remakes. Financially, The Omen is one of the highest worldwide grossing horror remakes of all time, and, as of July 2008, it's the 10th highest grossing domestic horror remake of all time.
The Omen made just over $119 million worldwide, of a smallish budget of $25 million. This makes the film obviously a modest and fairly profitable success though a figure of under $120 million could never really be seen as a "blockbusting" total. In the domestic Box-Office it made roughly $55 million and opened to a $14 million haul on Tuesday the 06/06/06. It is according to Box-Office Mojo the 48th highest grossing worldwide release of 2006, the highest worldwide money maker in The Omen series and the 10th highest grossing horror remake of all time. These figures are as of July 2008.
The film currently has a score of 43 on Metacritic stating that it has overall garnered mixed or average reviews. Some have praised the film for it's strong performances and creepy style whilst others have slated it for being dull and too faithful to the original movie. The film probably got more negative than positive reviews as is to be expected with most horror remakes. On Rotten Tomatoes the movie has a 27% approval rate and the general critical consensus on the site suggests whilst admirably stylish the movie is to much a void replicant of the original.Some quoutes from critics"done with mood and style by director John Moore ("Behind Enemy Lines"), who knows that the story itself is engrossing enough that we don't need "X-Men" stuff in the visuals" Roger Ebert, 2006"On every level, The Omen isn't just bad filmmaking, it's bad storytelling. " James Berardinelli, 2006"John Moore's remake - while arguably better than its source - can't help but feel a bit stale." BBCi film reviews, 2006"We're Doomed If History Continues To Repeat Itself...Frame-By-Frame" Erik Childress, 2006"The Omen works surprisingly well" Doug Bentin, 2006"A near shot-for-shot remake, with added jolts and jumps, but seriously diminished returns. Please, God, dont let them at the sequels... " Total Film magazine, 2006"The Omen primarily comes off as a slow-paced, surprisingly tedious update " Reel film Reviews, 2006"in the hands of director John Moore its a slick, briskly paced, and at times exciting effort" The Video Graveyard, 2006"This film is for people who've never seen the original, and who are easily scared by mediocre horror films" Eric. D. Snider, 2006"John Moore, another director that is over-criticized for reasons I don't understand, crafts a remake that I actually liked better than the original." Terrorhook.com, 2006
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