The Omen (1976)
Added How We Rate
- Directed by
- Richard Donner
- Written by
- David Seltzer
- Produced by
- Harvey Bernhard, Mace Neufeld, Charles Orme
Why it’s HorroRated
Peck's grave, gentlemanly authority is the masterstroke: when a man this dignified starts believing in the Antichrist, you believe it with him. Donner stages each death like a dark little set piece, building dread out of ordinary objects and sunny English settings rather than shadows. Billie Whitelaw's Mrs. Baylock is pure, smiling menace, and Goldsmith's chanting score could raise goosebumps on a statue. Before the remake or the prequel, start here: this is the version that made a whole generation side-eye their kids.
Synopsis
In Richard Donner's original The Omen (1976), an American diplomat comes to fear that the boy he adopted at birth is the Antichrist; David Seltzer wrote the supernatural horror film, and Gregory Peck and Lee Remick star. Newly posted as ambassador in London, Robert Thorn has never told his wife Katherine that their newborn didn't survive; as warnings from a frantic priest and a photographer's strange pictures pile up, Thorn is forced to take an old prophecy seriously. Jerry Goldsmith's Oscar-winning choral score helped make it a 1970s box-office hit that spawned sequels, a 2006 remake, and the 2024 prequel The First Omen.
Filed under
Where to watch The Omen (1976)
- Subscription
- Peacock · AMC · Philo
- Rent or buy
- Prime Video · Apple TV · YouTube · Google Play · Fandango at Home
Streaming in the US changes often. Listings from JustWatch via TMDB, checked October 10, 2026.See every option
Quick facts
- Release date
- June 25, 1976
- Runtime
- 1 hour 51 mins
- Country
- United Kingdom, United States of America
- Language
- English
- Content rating
- R
- Entry type
- Movie
Content notes
- Shocking accidental deaths
- Brief graphic injuries
- Animal attacks
Tags
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