Warning: Spoilers ahead for Apartment 7A.
Apartment 7Ais the official prequel toRosemary’s Baby, but a different horror franchise spin-off —The First Omen— told a much more effective and atmospheric Antichrist pregnancy storyline earlier this year. Produced by John Krasinski ofA Quiet Placefame,Apartment 7Atells the untold backstory of Terry Gionoffrio, a minor character fromRosemary’s Baby. InRosemary’s Baby,Terry is a tenant of Minnie and Roman Castevetwho dies mysteriously.Apartment 7Adigs into exactly what happened to Terry and reveals how and why she died.
After the made-for-TV 1976 sequelLook What’s Happened to Rosemary’s Babyand the Paris-set 2014 miniseries remake,Apartment 7Ais the latest official installment in theRosemary’s Babyfranchise. But based onApartment 7A’s 40% Rotten Tomatoes score, it’s safe to say thatthe new prequel doesn’t quite live up to the original 1968 masterpiece. Fortunately, there’s a different horror movie that came out in 2024 that’s much more atmospheric, much more thematically engaging, and works much better as a revival ofRosemary’s Baby.
The First Omen Works Better As A Rosemary’s Baby Reboot Than Apartment 7A
The First Omen Is A Much More Effective Antichrist Pregnancy Storyline
AlthoughApartment 7Ais a perfectly serviceable return to theRosemary’s Babyuniverse that answers one of the biggest lingering questions from the original film,Arkasha Stevenson’sOmenprequelThe First Omenis a much more effective revival ofRosemary’s Baby. BothThe First OmenandApartment 7Atell aRosemary’s Baby-esque storyline about a young woman being unwillingly impregnated with the Antichrist by a sinister Satanic cult. ButThe First Omenis much scarier in its horror and much more thought-provoking in its social commentary.
10 Scariest Moments In The First Omen
From a gut-wrenching possession scene to a public self-immolation, The First Omen is full of terrifying moments that won’t be forgotten any time soon.
The Omenbegins with the Antichrist being adopted by an American diplomat and named Damien;The First Omenis all about the conspiracy that led to Damien’s birth.LikeRosemary’s Baby,The First Omenexplores the theme of women’s bodily autonomy, and also likeRosemary’s Baby, it effectively uses horror tropes and imagery to convey the terror of having that autonomy taken away.Apartment 7Atries to do the same things, but it doesn’t explore those themes in nearly as much depth asThe First Omen, or hit on the same visceral level.
Why Apartment 7A Doesn’t Work As A Rosemary’s Baby Prequel
Apartment 7A Is More Of A Rehash Than A Reimagining (& It’s Not Very Scary)
Although it sets itself up as a reimagining ofRosemary’s Baby,Apartment 7Aends up being more of an underwhelming rehash.It recreates key scenes fromRosemary’s Baby, like the Castevets’ manipulative gaslighting and the forced impregnation, but to much lesser effect.
The most disappointing thing aboutApartment 7Ais that it’s just not very scary — particularly in comparison to the originalRosemary’s Baby
The glittery disco-ball demon ofApartment 7Ais more laughable than terrifying, especially compared to the haunting demon seen inRosemary’s Baby. The most disappointing thing aboutApartment 7Ais that it’s just not very scary — particularly in comparison to the originalRosemary’s Baby,and, indeed,The First Omen.
The First Omen
Cast
The First Omen is a horror film from director Arkasha Stevenson that acts as a prequel to the 1976 film The Omen. The film follows a young woman who goes to Rome to become a nun but begins to question her faith after encountering a terrifying darkness that aims to spawn an evil incarnate.
Apartment 7A
In this psychological thriller, a young woman is forced into a mysterious cult after moving into a seemingly ordinary apartment complex. As strange events occur there, she begins to question her sanity and the motives of her enigmatic neighbors.
