Lights, camera, supernatural action! Join us as we explore the most spine-chilling and unexplained events that occurred behind the scenes of some of Hollywood's most notorious film productions. From haunted sets to bizarre coincidences, these stories will make you question what's real.
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00:00I believe we should begin.
00:01Welcome to Ms. Mojo.
00:03And today we're counting down our picks for the mysterious behind-the-scenes events
00:06that plagued production on some movie classics.
00:09Does it come in threes?
00:10Yeah.
00:11Stops at dawn?
00:13Uh-huh.
00:16Number 10. Annabelle Comes Home.
00:18The haunted doll at the center of the Conjuring franchise returned in this 2019 sequel.
00:23Nice doll.
00:24That's what you think.
00:26In it, famed ghost hunters Ed and Lorraine Warren
00:28bring the allegedly haunted Annabelle home to live in their museum of occult artifacts.
00:33According to several cast members,
00:35not all of the supernatural occurrences were the work of its team of artists.
00:39If there's a presence here in this room, please give me a sign.
00:44The younger actresses in the cast insist that the Annabelle doll would change
00:47locations around the set without anyone moving it.
00:50Other instances, like unexplained nosebleeds and unaccountable knocking sounds,
00:54only added to the growing sense of paranoia on set.
00:57Annabelle.
00:58The doll, she's the one who's doing all of this.
01:02A doll?
01:04She wants a soul.
01:06Number 9. The Exorcism of Emily Rose.
01:09Mixing legal drama with the story of a demonic possession,
01:12this bracing horror tale already had a shadow over its production.
01:16Emily?
01:19Don't touch me!
01:21It's based on the true story of Anneliese Michel,
01:24a woman with mental illness who died of malnourishment
01:26during a series of alleged exorcisms.
01:29Star Jennifer Carpenter experienced a series of eerie coincidences
01:32involving the Pearl Jam song, Alive.
01:35I now command you, tell me your name!
01:38It's my time for you to sit!
01:40Then, actress Laura Linney and members of the crew
01:43kept reporting instances of TVs and radios
01:45starting to play in their hotel rooms without being turned on.
01:48Maybe the mystery and tragedy of the true story carried over onto the set.
01:52Once you've looked into the darkness,
01:55I think you carry it with you for the rest of your life.
01:58Number 8. The Possession.
02:00Movies about possession just seem to attract stories about odd on-set events.
02:04What exactly does she say to you, Emily?
02:07That I'm special.
02:11Well, you know, you are very special.
02:16You know, I would sure like to meet her.
02:18Not possible.
02:20No one can see her.
02:22Not even me.
02:23Whether it's genuine brushes with the supernatural
02:26or simple publicity stunts is always hard to tell,
02:28but the makers of The Possession seemed convinced.
02:31Even the producers were cautious about broaching the taboo subject of the Dibbuk,
02:35a malevolent spirit in Jewish mythology.
02:37The Dibbuk looks for innocence, a pure soul.
02:42It will move back and forth from the box, searching for a proper host.
02:48It didn't help that during filming,
02:50cold drafts would come during key scenes,
02:52and lights that weren't even on at the time would just explode without warning.
02:59Star Jeffrey Dean Morgan told The Hollywood Reporter that his skepticism
03:03toward supernatural occurrences was shaken during the making of this film.
03:06Hey, Em, what's the deal with the box?
03:10Don't touch it, okay?
03:13Okay, I won't.
03:16Number 7. The Amityville Horror.
03:18It's one of the most famous haunted house stories in America,
03:21and much of that has to do with how well-publicized it is.
03:24Doesn't it seem kind of strange to buy this house, honey?
03:27Well, houses don't kill people.
03:29People kill people.
03:31But it's hard to write off some of the unfortunate coincidences and bizarre
03:35mishaps that dogged the 2005 remake of The Amityville Horror as marketing tactics.
03:40God damn it!
03:42You're the one who wanted this godforsaken house!
03:44Well, now you got it!
03:45Mom! Mom!
03:47Home sweet home.
03:49Early in the film's production, a dead body was recovered from the lake near the house.
03:53Star Ryan Reynolds explained that many people involved with the remake found
03:57themselves waking up at 3.15 a.m. unprompted.
04:00This just happens to be the time when a previous inhabitant of the real-life
04:04Amityville house was said to have committed the murders of his family.
04:07It's okay. I'm here.
04:10Number 6. Titanic.
04:12Although it's now a beloved classic,
04:14things were not always easy or peaceful on the set of Titanic.
04:17What was that, Mr. Murdock?
04:20An iceberg, sir.
04:21One memorable story involves an outbreak of sickness among the cast and crew that
04:25director James Cameron later confirmed was the result of a spiked chowder.
04:29The legend goes that Cameron was such a demanding director that a disgruntled crew
04:33member committed the act as revenge.
04:35Apparently, stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet were spared.
04:39You jump, I jump, right?
04:43Right.
04:43Although he claims to know who sabotaged the set,
04:46Cameron assures that it was for reasons that had nothing to do with his working style.
04:50Of course, the operant theory was that I was such a psychomaniac that they were
04:54trying to get back at me, but I reject that theory out of hand for obvious reasons.
05:00The culprit and their reasoning remain a mystery.
05:03Gentlemen, it has been a privilege playing with you tonight.
05:07Number 5. The Passion of the Christ.
05:10Mel Gibson's controversial and unflinching retelling of the story of Jesus Christ
05:14pulls no punches when it comes to the crucifixion sequence.
05:22Production assistant Jan Michelini was struck by lightning not once,
05:25but twice during the shoot.
05:27The second time, Michelini was standing under an umbrella with Jim Caviezel,
05:31the actor playing Jesus.
05:33A lightning bolt struck the umbrella, shocking them both.
05:36Surprisingly, neither was hurt.
05:38Michelini was even referred to as Lightning Boy in the end credits.
05:42Whether it was really unlucky coincidence or divine intervention,
05:46it added even more mystique to an already intriguing project.
05:49The big dark force didn't want us to make this film.
05:52Sure.
05:53What was the force?
05:54What was the force? It's the thing you can't see.
05:56Number 4. The Faith of the Christ.
05:58Even before the accidental death of star Brandon Lee during a stunt gone wrong,
06:02The Crow was gaining media attention for its various and endless string of
06:06on-set disasters.
06:08Suddenly, I heard a tapping, as of someone gently rapping,
06:13rapping at my chamber door.
06:17What are you talking about?
06:19You heard me rapping, right?
06:21From the very day principal photography began,
06:24accidents and mishaps both on and off the studio lot.
06:28At one point, a storm destroyed several sets.
06:31I wish the rain would stop just once.
06:34It can't rain all the time.
06:36The movie's most infamous incident,
06:38which saw Brandon Lee mortally wounded by an allegedly misloaded prop gun,
06:42could be traced back to human error.
06:44But in the context of everything else that happened,
06:47the film's most famous scene was shot in the rain.
06:50Number 3. The Conjuring.
06:52The supposed real-life haunting of the Perron family
06:55may have followed the people behind the cinematic recreation of those events.
06:58There's somebody, goddammit, tell me what's going on here!
07:01The Conjuring stars Vida Farmiga and Patrick Wilson
07:04as two celebrated paranormal investigators
07:06trying to help the family re-establish its identity.
07:09The film's most famous scene was shot in the rain,
07:11but it's not the only one.
07:13The Conjuring stars Vida Farmiga and Patrick Wilson
07:15as two celebrated paranormal investigators
07:18trying to help the family rid their new home of demonic spirits.
07:22But before we even get that far, the church has to authorize it first.
07:25It means we gotta investigate, gather evidence, and provide proof.
07:29And that's the hard part.
07:30Farmiga reported that strange claw marks appeared,
07:32first on her laptop computer and then on her body.
07:36The entire cast lost sleep
07:38and would frequently wake up early in the morning at around the same time.
07:41Even the real-life Lorraine Warren visited the set
07:44and told the filmmakers there was a presence attached to the furniture.
07:48Despite all this, the movie was a massive franchise-launching success.
07:52I can't lose you.
07:54You won't.
07:56Let's finish this together.
07:58Number two, The Omen.
08:00In this horror classic, a diplomat and his wife come to realize
08:03their adopted son is the Antichrist
08:05as a series of inexplicable tragedies befall the family and those around them.
08:09God's name are you talking about?
08:11Your son, Mr. Thorne.
08:13The son of the devil.
08:15Real life began to mirror the film early on.
08:17Terrible deaths and near misses touched practically every level of production.
08:22Would you take him out of here, please?
08:24He's only playing.
08:25Would you just get him out of here, please?
08:27There are so many strange incidents linked to The Omen
08:31and its creative team during and after filming
08:33that it's actually kind of impossible to list them all here.
08:36Among them were animal attacks, plane crashes,
08:39and a grisly accident that mirrored one of the movie's most unforgettable deaths.
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09:15Number one, The Exorcist.
09:17A sensation when it was released,
09:19the blockbusting masterpiece set the standard for demonic horror.
09:22But stories from its production have since become just as legendary.
09:26I'm telling you that that thing upstairs isn't my daughter.
09:31Now I want you to tell me that you know for a fact
09:33that there's nothing wrong with my daughter except in her mind.
09:37Director William Friedkin's unconventional methods were unhinged enough.
09:40On top of several injuries, the entire set burned down,
09:44with only the bedroom where The Exorcism takes place left standing.
09:48The power of Christ compels you!
09:51That the power of Christ compels you!
09:53Actor Jack McGowan died after finishing his scenes,
09:56while people related to other actors and crew fell ill or died during production.
10:00Friedkin even brought in a real priest to bless the production.
10:04I think the point is to make us despair.
10:10To see ourselves as animal and ugly.
10:19To reject the possibility that God could love us.
10:22Whether or not the film was cursed or it was just a long shoot with a demanding director,
10:26The Exorcist remains a case study in how behind-the-scenes drama can add to a movie's myth.
10:31Let us pray.
10:32Did your favorite movie have a troubled production?
10:35Tell us in the comments.
10:44Do you agree with our picks?
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