New Line Cinema horror film The Children has been re-titled The Curse of La Llorona ahead of its April 2019 release date. And the first teaser trailer for the movie has landed too. It looks like this…
This title change was announced at the ScareDiego presentation that runs ahead of SDCC. At this time, it’s not entirely clear why the name of the film was altered. However, it’s entirely possible that the number of movies that have been called The Children in the past – including a 2008 horror title – may have had something to do with the decision to go with something a little more specific.
Regardless of the name change, the premise of the film remains seemingly unchanged. The Curse of La Llorona is a Michael Chaves-directed horror movie that follows a social worker trying to raise her two children in 1973 Los Angeles. When she notices some eerie similarities between a case she is working on and a scary situation that is plaguing her own family, she begins to investigate the story of a Mexican folklore figure known as La Llorona who once lost her own children and supposedly brings bad luck to her victims.
The film is being produced by James Wan, and early reports about the title indicate that it is technically similar to films like The Conjuring. That is to say that it utilises an almost haunted house-style atmosphere to build tension for some effective jump scares.
Those same reports, which largely come from the ScareDiego audience that saw an extended preview of the title. Director Michael Chaves, as well as leading actors Raymond Cruz and Patricia Velasquez, grew up hearing the story of La Llorona and brought an inherent sense of fear to the production.
Given that The Curse of La Llorona will release ahead of It: Chapter Two, it should have a great chance to find an audience sometime next year.