Bless the Child (2000)

Ever since producing "The Omen," producer Mace Neufeld had looked forward to the day when he would find another supernatural thriller of the same caliber. That day came in 1993 when he came upon a treatment that would later be published as the novel Bless the Child.

"I saw a lot of material that dealt with Satanic cults and the supernatural and religion, but found nothing in the same class as ‘The Omen’ until I read the treatment for Cathy Cash Spellman’s book," he said.

There were a number of elements in Spellman’s book that intrigued Neufeld, not the least of which was that it was a story that dealt with women as the central characters.

"The material worked on many different levels: It was smart, sophisticated and suspenseful," recalls Neufeld. "But if you eliminated the supernatural from the story, you still had an interesting story about a woman who is bringing up an apparently damaged child, the birth mother coming back to claim her, and the clash between the two of them."

Neufeld tapped Chuck Russell, the director of the international hits "The Mask" and "Eraser," to bring "Bless the Child" to the screen.

"I’ve always been fascinated with the supernatural thriller genre," explains Russell. "What makes the classics in the genre -- films like ‘The Exorcist,’ ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ and ‘The Omen’ -- so compelling is that there is a resonant sense of spiritual truth about them. They’re not just about magic; they’re not just about horror film effects. They’re about a very real battle between good and evil that we all have to deal with, on some level, every day of our lives.

"What is so unique about this movie is that most supernatural thrillers tend to empower evil only, which always seemed odd to me. Why are we in Hollywood frightened to empower good as well? There is hope in ‘Bless the Child,’ and there is a sense of the power of good over the power of evil that I find stirring."

Academy Award®-winning actress Kim Basinger stars as Maggie O’Connor, a woman who must delve into the unfamiliar world of religious cults when she is faced with the horror of protecting her niece from evil occult practitioners.

Neufeld says: "Kim projects a kind of sincerity and adult innocence -- even though she’s so physically beautiful -- that makes her very believable as Cody’s aunt, and when she begins to fight for Cody, it gives her, as an actress, a really great ability to do a dramatic turn."

"I identified with this film on a number of levels," Basinger says. "First, of course, it’s an incredibly absorbing story that deals with some truly fundamental issues: the war between good and evil, and the selflessness of love. I was also attracted because Maggie isn’t a peripheral role, she’s not there just to serve as a love interest or helpless victim. She’s a strong woman who is absolutely central to this film."

Emmy Award-winning actor Jimmy Smits was chosen to play the role of FBI Agent John Travis, an expert in ritual homicide and occult-related crime.

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