Ever since the release of the Conjuring film, which was followed by the Annabelle movie in 2014, there has been a constant buzz of rumours surrounding the Warren duo, the events portrayed in The Conjuring, and the veracity of the Annabelle doll’s sinister reputation. Was the actual Annabelle doll as malevolent and wicked as its on-screen counterpart? Did the Warrens genuinely possess a doll harbouring a demonic presence? Despite the real Annabelle doll being a Raggedy Ann doll, bearing little resemblance to the chilling porcelain doll depicted in the film, several eerie similarities in the details emerge. Let’s delve deeper into the facts and unravel the true story behind Annabelle.
The Student Nurse
Donna, a student nurse, received the real Annabelle doll as a birthday gift from her mother. It’s worth noting that Annabelle was a second-hand purchase from a hobby store. At the time, Donna was living with her friend Angie and was initially delighted with the gift. However, the Conjuring doll soon became a source of intense fear for the two young women. Annabelle’s movements began subtly, initially attributed to accidental nudges by Donna and Angie, like falling off a chair. But soon, the doll’s movements escalated, and it appeared in places it shouldn’t have, such as on the couch instead of Donna’s bed or outside Angie’s door after being returned to Donna’s room.
Their close friend, Lou, had an uneasy feeling about the seemingly harmless Raggedy Ann doll. He believed that it was either evil or possessed and insisted that something needed to be done. Donna and Angie, on the other hand, held more progressive views and dismissed any paranormal suspicions, attributing the doll’s movements to their own actions.
The Notes
The Annabelle doll’s story took a sinister turn when the girls started discovering notes around their apartment. What made this even more eerie was that the notes were written on parchment paper, a material neither of them had ever used before. The messages on the notes varied, but they often included phrases like “Help Lou” and “Help us.”
The Blood
The situation escalated when Donna found Annabelle with blood on her hands one day. Upon returning from work, she found the doll in its usual spot on her bed, but now it was stained with what seemed like blood or some kind of red liquid, seemingly emanating from the doll itself. This incident prompted the girls to seek help from a medium to unravel the mystery surrounding the doll before matters worsened.
The First Medium
In a meeting with the first medium, the girls and Annabelle were told a chilling story. The land where their apartment complex stood was once an open field where a young girl, approximately seven years old, had tragically died years earlier. When Annabelle entered their apartment, the spirit of the girl who died there latched onto the doll because she had a fondness for it. Thus, Annabelle, the doll, became a vessel for the spirit. Unfortunately, this transformed Annabelle into a haunted doll. Donna and Angie, compassionate individuals, chose to let the doll stay out of sympathy for the lonely spirit.
Lou
Lou had the misfortune of being the target of Annabelle’s aggression before the Warrens were called in for help. It’s unclear why she disliked him, but perhaps he reminded her of someone who had mistreated her during her lifetime. Several strange occurrences, including nightmares and visions of Annabelle, unfolded. However, the incident that prompted Donna and Angie to seek the Warrens’ assistance was a physical attack.
One day, while Angie and Lou were spending time together at Donna’s, they heard movements coming from Donna’s room, even though Donna was not at home. Initially fearing an intruder, they soon realized the source of the disturbance was Annabelle. Lou cautiously entered Donna’s room, finding no one inside, but the doll was sitting on a chair instead of the bed where it had been placed. As he approached Annabelle, an overwhelming sense of dread washed over him, that unnerving feeling that something was profoundly amiss. He suddenly experienced excruciating pain in his chest and discovered a series of claw-like marks, as if someone had lunged at him and left deep scratches. No one else was in the room, leading him to believe that Annabelle was responsible for the attack. What made these scratches even more bizarre was that they healed within two days, leaving no trace. It was at this point that the Warrens were urgently contacted for their assistance.
The Warrens
A priest was summoned to the apartment along with the Warrens, and it became apparent that Annabelle’s primary objective was to possess Donna’s soul. Annabelle was no ordinary doll; she was a demon attached to the doll. The Warrens explained that demons don’t typically possess objects but rather seek to possess individuals. The apartment was eventually exorcised by the priest, and the Warrens decided to take Annabelle with them. They decided to take the back roads on their way home, fearing that if they traveled on the main highways, Annabelle might attempt to cause an accident. Their fears proved justified as they encountered a series of car problems on the journey, including power steering failure, brake failure, and engine stalling. However, these issues temporarily subsided after Ed Warren sprinkled Annabelle with holy water.
Once they reached their home, Ed placed the doll on his desk, thinking it would be safe there. However, Annabelle demonstrated her true nature by levitating above the desk on multiple occasions. While this activity eventually slowed down and stopped, Annabelle was later found in different rooms of the house, seemingly moving on her own. When the Warrens attempted to confine her to one place, she would quickly reappear elsewhere. Ed and Lorraine contacted a priest, who didn’t take the situation too seriously and even taunted Annabelle, stating that she couldn’t harm him because she was just a doll. This proved to be a grave mistake, as he was later involved in a car accident on his way home. His car overturned, the brakes failed, and the vehicle was completely totaled. Although the priest was badly injured, he did survive.
Annabelle remains in existence to this day, securely enclosed in a locked glass case constructed by the Warrens to prevent her from roaming freely in their home. The case bears a warning sign that reads “Do Not Touch” along with a cross. Some claim to have witnessed Annabelle moving within the case, seemingly awaiting an opportunity to break free.
Annabelle in The Conjuring film unleashed havoc on those around her, and the real Annabelle doll unquestionably did the same. The story of the Conjuring doll stands as one of the most unsettling tales in modern history regarding haunted objects, particularly because it necessitates confinement behind locked glass. Additionally, the Warrens were unable to fully rid the doll of the demon. Annabelle is still on display for those who dare to visit and delve deeper into the true story of The Conjuring.