The Babadook as he appears in the story.
Mister Babadook, often shortened to just the Babadook, is a boogeyman who appears in the titular 2014 film The Babadook. He was based off of an old myth called the Baddaduk, but this has largely been covered up, until a leak from one of the actors.
Nature[]
The Babadook is summoned when 6 year old Samuel Vanek discovers a mysterious book in the shelf, titled "The Babadook," also known as "The Babadook Book." After pleading with his mother, Amelia, to read it to him, she finally gives in and they open it up. It is seemingly a children's pop-up book, but with each successive page more disturbing than the last, Samuel gets so frightened and ultimately "awakening" the dark being within the story.
The Babadook, like the Boogeyman, seems to feed off fear. It might be said that, in the context of the film, the Babadook is the Boogeyman for Samuel and his mother. The being gets stronger the more you think about it, eventually to the point where it can manifest into something physical. It is possible to be possessed by the Babadook, as Amelia does in the second-half of the film. When in this state, she becomes hostile, aggressive, succeeding in killing the family dog and attempt to kill her own son. It could be, however, that the Babadook is the product of Amelia's pent-up emotions concerning her deceased husband.
Appearance[]
After many consecutive nights, the Babadook, like in the pop-up book, appears as a ghostly pale humanoid in a black coat and hat with long, sharp fingers or claws. The specter is almost completely shrouded in shadow, however. When Amelia sees the same coat and hat hanging in the basement of her house, she immediately believes she is in the presence of the creature.
The dark being may not have a true form, however, and is possibly, or at least partially, amorphous. It gets its form only after a certain level of fear has been reached in its victim. It also appears to Amelia as her deceased husband on more than one occasion.
However, when Amelia stands up to the being, it loses its form almost entirely, becoming a shadowy mass of teeth and claws.
Its final appearance is completely invisible, being kept in the basement and fed by Amelia ever-so-often.
Powers and Abilities[]
- Possession - The Babadook has the power to possess its victims after a certain level of fear has been reached.
- Shape shifting - Changing forms is no problem for the creature.
- Teleportation - It can change from one location to the other seemingly at will.
- Flight - The being is not held to the ground.