While theRosemary’s BabyprequelApartment 7Alooks exciting, it is hard to ignore the movie’s revival of 2024’s most bizarrely specific horror trend. Released in 1968,Rosemary’s Babywas a successful adaptation of Ira Levin’s bestselling novel of the same name. The slyly satirical supernatural horror story follows Rosemary, a newlywed who moves into a creepy New York apartment building with her self-centered actor husband. Rosemary becomes pregnant and, as strange happenings pile up, she begins to realize that something is very wrong. TheupcomingRosemary’s BabyprequelApartment 7Awill expand the original movie’s story.
The Rosemary’s Baby Prequel’s Obvious Story Problem May Actually Be Its Biggest Strength
The most obvious problem with Rosemary’s Baby prequel Apartment 7A is that audiences know how it ends – but that could be its greatest strength.
Apartment 7Afocuses on Julie Garner’s dancer Terry Gionoffrio, who moves into Rosemary’s apartment building shortly before her. After Terry’s promising dancing career is derailed by an injury, she finds that her elderly neighbors Minnie and Roman Castevet begin taking an unhealthy interest in her. Viewers familiar with the story ofRosemary’s Babywill already know how Terry’s story ends, but the movie’s trailer promises plenty of scares before the big climax. AfterAmerican Horror Story: DelicaterevisitedRosemary’s Babyearlier this year,Apartment 7Ajoins a long line of 2024 horror movies exploring one popular theme.
Rosemary’s Baby Prequel Apartment 7A Is 2024’s Latest Pregnancy Horror
Immaculate, The First Omen, Alien: Romulus, and American Horror Story: Delicate Shared This Twist
Judging by its promotional materials,Apartment 7Ais the latest in a string of major 2024 horror releases about deadly pregnancies. This is somewhat surprising since, before 2024, pregnancy horror movies struggled with critics and audiences alike. 2023’sBaby Ruby, 2023’sUnwelcome, 2022’sBed Rest, 2021’sFalse Positive, and 2016’sVisionsall failed to win over reviewers, leaving the sub-genre seeming like a particularly bad bet for creators. However, 2024 thoroughly reversed this trend. Many of 2024’s biggest horror movies center on pregnancy, and most have earned stellar reviews by interrogating the theme.
WhileAmerican Horror Story: Delicate’s reception wasn’t particularly strong,The First Omen,Immaculate, andAlien: Romulusall succeeded as pregnancy horror movies. The latter sci-fi horror seemed like an unlikely pregnancy horror, butAlien: Romulus’ worst death scenefocused on a pregnancy that went horrifically awry. Meanwhile,The First OmenandImmaculateboth focused on young women who were unknowingly impregnated with the Antichrist. Judging by both its trailer and the story ofRosemary’s Baby,Apartment 7Ais likely to revisit this specific type of pregnancy horror. However, the prequel will need to make some alterations.
Apartment 7A’s Prequel Story May Subvert This Horror Trend
The Rosemary’s Baby Spinoff Can’t End With A Successful Delivery
UnlikeThe First Omen,American Horror Story: Delicate, andImmaculate,Apartment 7Acan’t conclude with its heroine giving birth to the Antichrist. After all, there would be noRosemary’s Babyif Terry’s impregnation by the devil was successful. This could be a problem for the prequel, as a passing knowledge ofRosemary’s Babymakes its plot pretty predictable. To avoid this,Apartment 7Amay make a risky change to horror history by having Terry not only live, but even save Rosemary. This would be a fun twist, but it would lead toApartment 7Adefanging the plot ofRosemary’s Baby.
