The relationship between horror and faith is, for many, probably not an obvious one. But for Gary Dauberman, one helps the other.
During an interview Monday with Faithwire, the “Annabelle Comes Home” screenwriter and director said his Christian faith has inspired his creative process and made his storytelling more authentic.
“From a story standpoint, I think it helps to always come from a grounded place,” Dauberman explained. “Not knowing what it’s like to write something and not believe the stuff is possible, I can’t really speak to that. It certainly helps me get the juices flowing creatively, having a sense that these things can happen or have happened in the past.”
“Annabelle Comes Home,” which debuts Wednesday, is the third “Annabelle” installment in The Conjuring Universe, a horror film franchise distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures.
The latest film, following “Annabelle” in 2014 and “Annabelle: Creation” in 2017, is loosely based off the real-life experiences of so-called demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren, who, in 1968, took a Raggedy Ann doll from two roommates who claimed it was possessed by the spirit of a young girl named Annabelle Higgins and put it in their “Occult Museum” in Monroe, Connecticut.
But more than offer the usual frights that are a mainstay of any Conjuring Universe film, “Annabelle Comes Home” is a cautionary tale about being “so careless with things we do not understand,” Dauberman said.
“I think oftentimes in life, we can run headfirst into things without taking the time to think and discuss and understand before taking on a problem that’s presented to us,” he added.
Dauberman, who is making his directorial debut in this latest movie, said he also leans on his faith in a practical sense, walking through the “challenging” process of making a movie, learning to entrust his writing to those in front of and behind the camera.
“Annabelle Comes Home” hits theaters nationwide Wednesday.