“The Conjuring” Spinoff “Annabelle” Sets Release Date

If you feel surprised at this news, you’re not alone. We’ve known since last year after The Conjuring‘s stellar box office turnout that Annabelle was getting made, but it wasn’t until today that I even realized it had already been filmed. If you’ve seen The Conjuring, a subplot of the film revolves around a possessed doll named Annabelle. The opening sequence of the film revolved around the doll, and it instantly became one of the creepiest dolls I’ve seen on screen, nicely setting the terrifying tone for the rest of the film. James Wan made tremendously effective use of the doll in a limited capacity, so it will be interesting to see if it can retain the same effect for 90+ minutes. This film will serve as a sort of prequel/spinoff to The Conjuring, while an actual sequel to The Conjuring titled The Conjuring 2: The Enfield Poltergeist is in development with release set for Oct. 23, 2015. Wan is producing the film, and The Conjuring DP John R. Leonetti directs. The film stars Annabelle (hehehehehe) Wallis, Ward Horton and Alfre Woodard.

I realize I haven’t even gotten to the most surprising part of the news. The release date is set for Oct. 3rd. Not 2015 though, this year. In less than 3 months. It’s abrupt news, but welcome nonetheless. I’m willing to remain optimistic about this project for now, because that is seriously one creepy doll and I will most likely not sleep the following week after seeing this film regardless of it’s overall cinematic quality. With the release date less than 3 months away, we should see a proper press rollout soon with a trailer and poster and such. Annabelle will be released on Oct. 3, 2014.

Source: Collider