THE ORIGINS OF THE CREEPY DOLL concept go as far back as Ealing Studios’ chilling1945 portmanteau film Dead Of Night. One section depicted the cunning exploits of a ventriloquist dummy named Hugo that seemingly turns his master (played by Michael Redgrave) murderous – an idea later repeated in the 1978 Anthony Hopkins film Magic.
However, a toy taking on homicidal tendencies itself canbe traced back to the 1963 Twilight Zone episode “LivingDoll”, where a child’s Talky Tina doll takes fatal revenge on an emotionally abusive stepfather.
“People’s reaction to [that episode] indicated something universal was there and that we all, as kids, have at one time or another felt fear at the thought our playthings could come alive,” filmmaker. “It’sa universal theme. Therefore, there was universal appeal to the theme of a doll coming alive.”
