If you hear her cries, run away. La Llorona is one of the great, chilling Central American legends, and after haunting the dreams of children for generations, the ghastly weeping ghost is getting her moment in the spotlight with the new horror movie The Curse of La Llorona. The tale of La Llorona tells of a young woman who drowned her children in a fit of jealousy, only to commit suicide when she realized what she'd done. Now, her spirit haunts the earth, sobbing and cursed to search for her children in the afterlife for all eternity. And if she can't find hers, she might take yours.

The latest horror picture from New Line Cinema comes from producers James Wan, Gary Dauberman, and Emile Gladstone, and tells the tragic and terrifying tale of the legend of La LLorona. Set in the 1970s, the film stars Linda Cardellini as a social worker who finds her self trapped in La Llorona's nightmare when children start going mission. Written by Mikki Daughtry and Tobias Iaconis, and directed by Michael Chaves (who is set to take the helm of the Conjuring franchise from Wan). This is a hugely popular and very freaky folk tale that's rife for adaptation, so if New Line nails it, they could have quite the box office hit on their hands.

As for the trailer itself, it looks about on par with Wan's other work even though he only served as a producer here. It's got those slow burn scares that eventually lead to a terrifying reveal, but I'm intrigued how to see how Central American folklore will factor into the overall story.

The film also stars Raymond Cruz, Patricia Velasquez, Marisol Ramirez, Sean Patrick Thomas, Jaynee-Lynne Kinchen and newcomer Roman Christou, and arrives in theaters on April 19, 2019. Watch the first trailer below.

Here's the official synopsis for The Curse of La Llorona:

La Llorona. The Weeping Woman. A horrifying apparition, caught between Heaven and Hell, trapped in a terrible fate sealed by her own hand. The mere mention of her name has struck terror around the world for generations. In life, she drowned her children in a jealous rage, throwing herself in the churning river after them as she wept in pain. Now her tears are eternal. They are lethal, and those who hear her death call in the night are doomed. La Llorona creeps in the shadows and preys on the children, desperate to replace her own. As the centuries have passed, her desire has grown more voracious…and her methods more terrifying.

 

In 1970s Los Angeles, La Llorona is stalking the night—and the children. Ignoring the eerie warning of a troubled mother suspected of child endangerment, a social worker and her own small kids are soon drawn into a frightening supernatural realm. Their only hope to survive La Llorona’s deadly wrath may be a disillusioned priest and the mysticism he practices to keep evil at bay, on the fringes where fear and faith collide.

 

Beware of her chilling wail…she will stop at nothing to lure you into the gloom. Because there is no peace for her anguish. There is no mercy for her soul. And there is no escape from the curse of La Llorona.

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