Meet Annabelle’s boyfriend

MANILA, Philippines - In 2014, Annabelle showed moviegoers just how creepy a doll can get. This year, how would you like to say hello to “Annabelle’s boyfriend?”

There goes the tagline of The Boy, a film starring Lauren Cohan of the hit series The Walking Dead. And that right there is your guarantee for a frightening thrill ride.

The Boy tells the story of Greta (Cohan), an American woman hired by a British couple in a remote village to be their child’s nanny. But the child turns out to be a life-sized porcelain doll that Mr. and Mrs. Heelshire treat like a real boy to cope with the death of their son Brahms. Greta is provided with a set of rules she must strictly follow. Some of the rules included are: No guests; play loud music; read a bedtime story; do not cover Brahms’ face; never leave him alone and don’t forget to feed him.

After Greta fails to comply, a series of disturbing events brings her worst nightmare to life, leading her to believe that the doll is actually alive.

Cohan revealed in an interview what made her accept the role, considering that she could have just taken the Walking Dead hiatus to disengage from a character that lives in constant fear. “The Boy goes on this really, really disturbing unnatural journey,” she said. “It has some things that happen towards the end that are just twisted… it’s extremely thrilling and entertaining. I read it very quickly, I put the script down, and I thought, ‘Can I handle this? After doing a year of Walking Dead, can I handle this?’ I couldn’t stop thinking about it, and I thought, ‘Well, that’s my answer, then. I have to just handle it. I have to do it.’”

Directed by William Brent Bell (The Devil Inside), there is much to be discovered about the real Brahms in The Boy. The eight-year-old child is said to have died in the fire at the Heelshire residence 20 years ago. But even when he was alive, Brahms was a strange boy. He had a playmate who was also discovered dead in the woods just outside their home. Was there foul play in the fire? What drives the doll to induce dread and suffering on the woman hired to take care of it?

The supernatural thriller also stars Rupert Evans (International Fantasy Film Award Best Actor for The Canal, 2014) as Malcolm, the local grocery delivery man who is the only person Greta sees after Brahms’ parents left her alone with the doll. 

The Boy hits cinemas on Jan. 27, from VIVA International Pictures and MVP Entertainment.