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‘The Conjuring 3’ and The Story Behind the ‘Devil Made Me Do It’

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The Conjuring 3

This weekend, Warner Brothers revealed the full title for the latest entry in The Conjuring franchise at Brazil’s CCXP. The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It is set for release in September of 2020.

But what’s the story behind the new film?

For that, we have to go all the way back to Brookfield, Connecticut in 1980.

It All Began with a Possession

David Glatzel, then 11 years old, began to exhibit strange behavior after his family acquired a rental property. He spoke of an old man who made threats against the family and began having night terrors. After he received several large scratches on his body, they called in a local priest to bless the home.

The blessing seemed to make matters worse, and after the phenomena began occurring during the day as well as night, the family was at their wits end. They called upon Ed and Lorraine Warren for help and after investigating, they revealed that they thought that David was being possessed. Lorraine had allegedly witnessed a black mist materializing next to the boy and moving through him at various times.

David would growl, hiss, and speak in voices that were not his own, and it was said that he even demonstrated some precognition during that time.

The Warrens called in more priests who reportedly performed between three and six exorcisms on the boy. It was during this time that Arne Johnson, who was in a relationship with David’s mother, Debbie provoked the demonic entity and would later come to believe that when the demon finally fled David’s body, it took over his own.

The family eventually fled the home, and Debbie took a job working as a dog groomer for Alan Bono who also rented out an apartment to the family.

David seemed to finally be recovering but now Arne began exhibiting similar behaviors to the boy. Debbie allegedly claimed that he would go into a trance-like state growling and hallucinating only to forget what had happened when he would emerge from the trance.

On February 16, 1981, Arne called into his job saying that he didn’t feel well and went to spend the day with Debbie at her job. Bono took everyone out to lunch at a local bar where he became intoxicated. An altercation took place when he allegedly became belligerent and grabbed Debbie’s nine year old niece, Mary, by the arm.

Johnson confronted Bono telling him to let the girl go, but Bono refused. Suddenly, and without warning, Johnson seemed to change. He growled at Bono then produced a five-inch blade which he used to repeatedly stab the man in the torso with one wound in particular stretching from his stomach all the way to the base of his heart.

It was the first murder ever reported in Brookfield, Connecticut, but it would not be the last “first” of this case.

The Devil Made Me Do It

When Arne Johnson was brought to trial later in 1981, his lawyer, Martin Minnella, brought a defense no on in the court room was expecting when he tried to enter a plea of “not guilty by virtue of demonic possession.” It was the first time such a plea had been brought before a court in the U.S.

Presiding Judge Robert Callahan rejected the defense saying there was no way to prove that Johnson was indeed possessed noting that it was unscientific. Minnella changed his tactic, attempting a self-defense case arguing that Johnson was protecting his family when the attack occurred.

The defense was, to a degree, unsuccessful. John was convicted of first-degree manslaughter. He was sentenced to 10-20 years in prison, of which he only served five years.

The Aftermath of the Case

Shortly after the case, NBC produced a made-for-TV film titled The Demon Murder Case.

Author Gerald Brittle, meanwhile, published a book titled The Devil in Connecticut, documenting the case with the help of Lorraine Warren. The book eventually went out of print but when it was re-published in 2006, a new wrinkle in the fabric of the case came to light.

Carl Glatzel, Jr. and David Glatzel sued both the authors and publishers claiming that the Warrens had capitalized on and exploited David, who they claimed suffered from mental illness, turning it into a story of demon possession and sensationalizing the details.

Lorraine that her assertions were correct and both Johnson and Debbie, who are now married, have continued to support those assertions.

The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It

Michael Chaves (The Curse of La Llorona) will direct the upcoming film The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It based on this case which is admittedly a strange one. This is the third Conjuring film and the seventh in the extended Conjuring Universe which was created by James Wan based on the case files of Ed and Lorraine Warren.

Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga will return as Ed and Lorraine Warren for the film starring alongside Ruairi O’Connor (The Spanish Princess) as Arne Johnson and Sarah Catherine Hook (Triangle) as Debbie Glatzel. Julian Hilliard (Color out of Space) will appear as young David Glatzel.

Look for the film in theaters in September of 2020!

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The Original ‘Beetlejuice’ Sequel Had an Interesting Location

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beetlejuice in Hawaii Movie

Back in the late ’80s and early ’90s sequels to hit movies weren’t as linear as they are today. It was more like “let’s re-do the situation but in a different location.” Remember Speed 2, or National Lampoon’s European Vacation? Even Aliens, as good as it is, follows a lot of the plot points of the original; people stuck on a ship, an android, a little girl in peril instead of a cat. So it makes sense that one of the most popular supernatural comedies of all time, Beetlejuice would follow the same pattern.

In 1991 Tim Burton was interested in doing a sequel to his 1988 original, it was called Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian:

“The Deetz family moves to Hawaii to develop a resort. Construction begins, and it’s quickly discovered that the hotel will be sitting on top of an ancient burial ground. Beetlejuice comes in to save the day.”

Burton liked the script but wanted some re-writes so he asked then-hot screenwriter Daniel Waters who had just got done contributing to Heathers. He passed on the opportunity so producer David Geffen offered it to Troop Beverly Hills scribe Pamela Norris to no avail.

Eventually, Warner Bros. asked Kevin Smith to punch up Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian, he scoffed at the idea, saying, “Didn’t we say all we needed to say in the first Beetlejuice? Must we go tropical?”

Nine years later the sequel was killed. The studio said Winona Ryder was now too old for the part and an entire re-cast needed to happen. But Burton never gave up, there were a lot of directions he wanted to take his characters, including a Disney crossover.

“We talked about lots of different things,” the director said in Entertainment Weekly. “That was early on when we were going, Beetlejuice and the Haunted MansionBeetlejuice Goes West, whatever. Lots of things came up.”

Fast-forward to 2011 when another script was pitched for a sequel. This time the writer of Burton’s Dark Shadows,  Seth Grahame-Smith was hired and he wanted to make sure the story wasn’t a cash-grabbing remake or reboot. Four years later, in 2015, a script was approved with both Ryder and Keaton saying they would return to their respective roles. In 2017 that script was revamped and then eventually shelved in 2019.

During the time the sequel script was being tossed around in Hollywood, in 2016 an artist named Alex Murillo posted what looked like one-sheets for a Beetlejuice sequel. Although they were fabricated and had no affiliation with Warner Bros. people thought they were real.

Perhaps the virality of the artwork sparked interest in a Beetlejuice sequel once again, and finally, it was confirmed in 2022 Beetlejuice 2 had a green light from a script written by Wednesday writers  Alfred Gough and Miles Millar. The star of that series Jenna Ortega signed on to the new movie with filming starting in 2023. It was also confirmed that Danny Elfman would return to do the score.

Burton and Keaton agreed that the new film titled Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice wouldn’t rely on CGI or other other forms of technology. They wanted the film to feel “handmade.” The film wrapped in November 2023.

It’s been over three decades to come up with a sequel to Beetlejuice. Hopefully, since they said aloha to Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian there has been enough time and creativity to ensure Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice will not only honor the characters, but fans of the original.

Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice will open theatrically on September 6.

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Russell Crowe To Star in Another Exorcism Movie & It’s Not a Sequel

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Maybe it’s because The Exorcist just celebrated its 50th-anniversary last year, or maybe it’s because aging Academy Award-winning actors aren’t too proud to take on obscure roles, but Russell Crowe is visiting the Devil once again in yet another possession film. And it’s not related to his last one, The Pope’s Exorcist.

According to Collider, the film titled The Exorcism was originally going to be released under the name The Georgetown Project. Rights for its North American release were once in the hands of Miramax but then went to Vertical Entertainment. It will release on June 7 in theaters then head over to Shudder for subscribers.

Crowe will also star in this year’s upcoming Kraven the Hunter which is set to drop in theaters on August 30.

As for The Exorcism, Collider provides us with what it’s about:

“The film centers around actor Anthony Miller (Crowe), whose troubles come to the forefront as he shoots a supernatural horror movie. His estranged daughter (Ryan Simpkins) has to figure out whether he’s lapsing into his past addictions, or if something even more horrific is occurring. “

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New F-Bomb Laden ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Trailer: Bloody Buddy Movie

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Deadpool & Wolverine might be the buddy movie of the decade. The two heterodox superheroes are back in the latest trailer for the summer blockbuster, this time with more f-bombs than a gangster film.

‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Movie Trailer

This time the focus is on Wolverine played by Hugh Jackman. The adamantium-infused X-Man is having a bit of a pity party when Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) arrives on the scene who then tries to convince him to team up for selfish reasons. The result is a profanity-filled trailer with a Strange surprise at the end.

Deadpool & Wolverine is one of the most anticipated movies of the year. It comes out on July 26. Here is the latest trailer, and we suggest if you are at work and your space isn’t private, you might want to put in headphones.

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