‘Devil Baby’ unleashed on New York

Published January 28, 2014 at 7:08 am

Just like in the seminal 1973 film The Exorcist, the devil is turning some heads.

This time, however, it’s in New York City, and the part of pure evil is being played by a robotic baby. It’s all part of a local marketing campaign for a new film titled “Devil’s Due”, starring Zach Galifanakis and Allison Miller as a couple who are slated to have a child. What they don’t know is that their spawn is the eponymous Antichrist.

While current estimates have the film with a relatively modest debut weekend, somewhere in the neighborhood of $6 million dollars, producers are hoping this spooky campaign scares up a ground swell of interest.

The star of the campaign is the animatronic infant, who has the ability to give the middle finger to passersby, spew a mysterious liquid and finish it all with a compelling promo for the upcoming film. While it remains to be seen whether people will actually show up in droves to see similar hijinx in the theater, many have been taken in and startled by the unusual baby. People walking by have approached the mysterious stroller only to jump back in surprise when the unusual antics began.

“One lady decided to cover up the baby with a blanket while another gentleman just stood there, processing the grotesque look of the baby,” said Michael Krivicka, co-founder of the firm behind the stunt “People were totally cool with being in the video after getting the living hell scared out of them. Each reaction ended with a laugh, and everyone loved the look of the baby.”

On Friday, we’ll see if the strategy can help rustle up some more interest, when the film debuts in theaters.