5 Terrifying Stories Of Haunted Or Cursed Movie Sets & Productions
By Erik Winther
October 21, 2018 6:00 AM ‐ Paranormal • Movies
This article is more than five years old.
The movie industry invests plenty of money in the horror, supernatural, and thriller genres, trying to scare the soul out of viewers and convincing us that ghosts, curses, and evil entities are out there, eager to play an ugly number on our heads. But when maleficent phenomena, curses, and misfortunes occur on the filming set and during movie production, things are not funny anymore, are they? Today we will share five chilling stories about haunted or cursed movie sets and productions.
1. The Haunting Of 'The Conjuring' Set
'The Conjuring' put director James Wan on the map of filmmakers with a perfect sense of horror cinema and successful productions. While the movie generated a successful franchise and fame for the director, it also generated terror on the set for a while. One of the most bizarre and terrifying abnormal occurrences was the haunting of Vera Farmiga (playing the role of Lorraine Warren).
The actress discovered three digital claw marks on her screen one night when she opened her laptop to read the script. She also reported having found the same claw marks on her thigh on the day she finished filming.
Another chilling story is of director James Wan himself. According to reports back in the day, his dog acted strangely during production. Wan's dog started following around an unseen intruder and continued to do so many nights in a row, behaving agitatedly and freaking out the director.
However, one of the strangest moments that took place on the Conjuring set was the visit of the Perron family – their real story being the source material for the movie.
When the Perrons came one day to see the set, a gust of mighty wind encircled them – a blow that other people on the set saw and felt. However, the Perrons seemed oblivious to what was happening to them. Related or not, a few nights after this visit, the hotel hosting the cast and crew caught fire.
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2. The Curse On 'The Passion Of The Christ' Cast & Crew
It was a controversial movie through and through; nobody denies that. Nevertheless, besides its power to inflame critics and viewers, or tell a gruesome story of sacrifice, 'The Passion of the Christ' production terrified and almost killed the crew and cast members.
Jan Michelini, assistant director on the set, was struck by lightning. Twice. James Caviezel, who took a real severe beating (during the on-set fake whipping scene he suffered a skin ripping out injury), was also struck by lightning. Witness says James’s body was literally glowing at that moment and that smoke went out through the actor's ears.
Add Caviezel’s shoulder dislocation from carrying the cross, hypothermia, lung infection, severe pneumonia, headaches, and skin infections, and you have a freakish series of unfortunate events right here.
3. 'The Omen' Could Not Cheat Death
The 1975 version of 'The Omen' was, and for some still is, one of the creepiest, most haunting, and most chilling movies ever made – primarily because of the kid who played Damien. But while a horror movie should, by all means, strike fear in the hearts of the viewers, nobody expected Death to surround the set, cast, and crew.
The first in the long line of tragedies hitting the Omen production was the suicide of Gregory Peck’s son – who had the lead part – two months before the filming started.
But the Omen Curse did not stop here: during filming, a crew member barely survived a car accident; lightning stroke the scriptwriter’s plane; eight hours later, another lighting stroke the flight carrying Gregory Peck and the movie’s executive producer.
The crew wanted then to hire a private jet – in the light of the accidents mentioned above – but gave up on it because some business executives needed it badly. After take-off, with the business people in it, that plane crashed onto a road, hit a car that furthermore high-speed crashed into another vehicle. Everybody died.
If you check out Netflixguides.com, you will learn that the Omen is still among the top best horror movies ever made that you can watch on Netflix. Thorough research of the list will lead you to other horror stories related to the Omen Curse (including people mauled to death by tigers).
4. 'The Amityville Horror' On & Off Screen
The first Amityville instalment in 1979 relied on a true story and starred James Brolin. The actors were not fond of the idea of making this movie, but a strange event convinced him there was “something” about it. While reading the story in the dead of night, Brolin reached a very frightening scene in the source material. At that moment, a pair of his pants suddenly fell off a hanger, making him jump in terror from his seat.
Other strange happenings include the finding of a young boy with glowing white eyes’ photo – an image captured by cameras inside the Amityville house. Whether it was a camera glitch, a demon, or the ghost of John Matthew DeFeo (the youngest of the DeFeo children) remains a mystery to this day.
The 2005 remake comes with even grittier stories. The cast and crew reported they would all wake up at 3.15 in the morning – the time when Ronald DeFeo murdered his parents and siblings. Many may blame this phenomenon on self-suggestion, but nobody imagined the corpse that washed up on the shore by the movie set.
5. The Dragon Curse
Nobody in cinema or the martial arts rose to the fame, cult following, love, and mystery that surround Bruce Lee and his family. Decades after the beloved actor’s death, fans came up with the “Dragon Curse” theory, triggered by the accidental freak death of his son, Brandon Lee. The curse theories and the mythology surrounding the Lees are still one of the most convoluted and passionate topics in the movie world, as people are still trying to learn the truth.
The string of coincidences leading to the curse theory in a nutshell:
• Both father and son were born in the Year of the Dragon;
• Both died very young;
• Both passed away while filming their fifth feature film;
• Bruce Lee seemingly died of cerebral edema, but others think otherwise;
• Brandon was shot to death by a prop gun that should have had only blanks in it (and no foul play was found);
• Some fans believe that a line in Bruce's last movie in 1973 predicted Brandon's death 20 years later;
• Some fans think that a Bruce Lee biopic from 1993 reveals that both father and son were haunted by a demon.
While the Lee family mystery still prompts fans to concoct and share theories, the legend of the Dragon and his son are still shining brightly. Bruce Lee was a phenomenon in and out of cinema boundaries. Moreover, The Crow and Brandon Lee turned into cult classics. Just take a peek at moviegoers, critics, and reviewers’ reactions when it comes to remaking the Crow.
About The Author
Erik Winther is a passionate video producer from Southern California and the creator of Netflix Guides, a site to help all TV and movie enthusiasts keep up with the latest shows coming on Netflix.
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