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Sometimes the stars line up and two extremely similar movies are released within a short amount of time. Armageddon and Deep Impact, Volcano and Dante’s Peak, and Madagascar and The Wild are all famous examples of this. We’ve recently had another example of a pair of twin films with two horror movies, Immaculate and The First Omen. Many of the same story beats are shared between them, but their execution is vastly different, saving anybody from complaining that they are too similar.
Immaculate was directed by Michael Mohan (The Voyeurs), stars Sydney Sweeney (Madame Web), and was released on March 22, 2024. The First Omen was directed by Arkasha Stevenson (Legion) in her feature directorial debut, stars Nell Tiger Free, and was released on April 5, 2024, just two weeks after Immaculate. Both are horror movies that are religious in both setting and theme and focus on a child’s birth. Critics and audiences looked upon both films favorably, although Immaculate’s reception was slightly more mixed. Let’s take a look at how much Immaculate and The First Omen have in common, and more importantly, how they differ.
Immaculate vs. The First Omen: Two of 2024’s Best Horror Movies
It’s important to note that the following discussion will contain in-depth spoilers regarding both Immaculate and The First Omen, so if you haven’t seen them, be warned. Let’s start with the obvious. Both horror movies focus on a newly minted nun who is about to take her vows. Both characters are also brought to Rome from their native America. Cecilia (Sweeney) and Margaret (Free) have experienced trauma in the past, with Cecilia drowning in a lake and being declared dead, and Margaret’s history of supposed mental health issues. Oh, and both characters give birth to the Antichrist.
Immaculate and The First Omen feature a conspiracy to impregnate young nuns, perpetrated by a large portion of their respective convents. Father Tedeschi (Álvaro Morte) and Cardinal Lawrence (Bill Nighy) are a priest and cardinal in their respective movies, both of whom lure and trick their victims. Both women are also raped. In Immaculate, Father Tedeschi creates the baby through Christ’s genetic material and implants it in Cecilia without her knowing. While in The First Omen, Sister Valez (Maria Caballero) lures Margaret on a girl’s night out, getting her blackout drunk. Valez, Lawrence, and the others get her forcefully impregnated by a demonic jackal.
Even with all these similarities, once you get past the first 30 minutes of either film, you’ll start to look at them differently. Immaculate is an independent movie and had a budget of $9 million against The First Omen’s $30 million. The First Omen feels bigger because of not only its budget but because it’s also a prequel to an already-established horror franchise. Plus, The First Omen isn’t just set in one place whereas Immaculate nearly exclusively takes place in the convent.
Same, But Different
There are also story beats that turn out differently in the two films. Immaculate’s Sister Gwen (Benedetta Porcaroli) is Cecilia’s only friend who is killed because she refuses to keep quiet. On the other hand, Margaret’s friend Sister Valez sets her up and is not on her side. The final act of both films is where both diverge substantially. Cecilia empowers herself to take revenge on the people of the convent, having the baby and killing it once she realizes it’s demonic. Margaret is compelled by the baby to have the baby, along with a twin.
Remarkably, both women survive the movie, although it’s unclear what happens to them both after the credits roll for each film. Mohan’s attempt at religious body horror feels sterile in the best way. Stevenson’s bigger picture feels more like a mystery thriller because so much of the movie isn’t concerned with Margaret’s pregnancy, as it’s a twist. The First Omen is also much more graphic, whereas Immaculate might not show everything you want it to. Immaculate being an indie film, will probably be a self-contained story, whereas The First Omen could get a sequel if it picks up at the box office.
Both work well independently of each other and the fact that they both released so close to one another doesn’t hamper the quality of each film. Immaculate and The First Omen are so similar on paper, but unless you only think about the story of the films, you should come out of the theater wondering how they managed to be so different. These horror movies would probably make for a killer double feature.
You can see both Immaculate and The First Omen in theaters now.
