TO THE DEVIL A DAUGHTER: A Satanic horror from Hammer

To the Devil a Daughter is the final feature-length horror film by Hammer and the penultimate theatrical production of the studio before it suspended operations in the mid-1980s, later reviving in the 21st century.
The story begins in 1958, when Catholic priest Father Rayner is excommunicated from the Church for heresy. Eighteen years later, Rayner becomes the leader of the Children of Our Lord, a mysterious religious group based in Germany. One of his protégés, teenage Catherine, is sent to London under his orders. Her father contacts American writer and occult expert Verney, asking him to pick Catherine up from the airport and hide her from Rayner’s emissaries. The father claims the Children of Our Lord are actually a dangerous satanic cult planning to use Catherine to summon a demon called Astaroth. Under the influence of black magic, Catherine kills Verney’s friends and is abducted by Rayner’s acolytes. Verney must stop them before they perform their satanic rituals in an abandoned mausoleum.
The commercial success of Rosemary’s Baby (1968) by Roman Polanski and The Exorcist (1973) by William Friedkin inspired other studios to produce films with satanic themes. Hammer Film Productions, which had made its fortune in the 1950s and 60s with Dracula and Frankenstein horror films, followed suit to combat its financial struggles in the 1970s. Originally, To the Devil a Daughter was planned as the first episode of a TV series, The Devil and All His Works, based on Dennis Wheatley’s writings (Hammer had previously adapted his novel The Devil Rides Out in 1968). The series never materialized, but Christopher Lee convinced the studio to adapt To the Devil a Daughter into a feature film. The budget was co-financed by EMI and the German company Terra Kunst Films, which insisted on casting a German lead—hence the involvement of Nastassja Kinski.
At one point, her father, Klaus Kinski, was also considered for a role. According to a story, the filmmakers offered him a part on the condition he remained sober on set, to which the infamous actor allegedly replied that if filming lasted more than ten days, he could promise nothing. Ultimately, the cast included Richard Widmark, Christopher Lee, Denholm Elliott, and Honor Blackman. Peter Sykes directed the film (other candidates included Ken Russell and Nicolas Roeg), with Christopher Wicking penning the screenplay. Wicking, who disliked Wheatley’s novel, heavily reworked the material. Ironically, Sykes found Wicking’s script incoherent and nearly unfilmable, commissioning rewrites by John Peacock. The screenplay underwent constant revisions, with many changes made during filming.
Richard Widmark, a Hollywood star, proved difficult to work with. To create a tense dynamic between Verney and Catherine, he openly criticized the acting of 14-year-old Nastassja Kinski. Widmark frequently threatened to quit the production, which he dismissed as a “Mickey Mouse movie.” Author Dennis Wheatley was even harsher, condemning the film’s violence and departure from the source material. He wrote a scathing letter to Hammer, forbidding them from adapting any more of his novels. Despite these issues, To the Devil a Daughter was a box-office hit in 1976, but Hammer saw no profit due to its substantial debts—any surplus revenue went directly to creditors.
Afterward, Hammer produced two TV series (Hammer House of Horror in 1980 and Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense in 1984) before shutting down, only to relaunch in 2007. Thankfully, Sykes’ film didn’t end up as Hammer’s swan song, as it would have been a disappointing conclusion. What could have been a modern take on Faust became a shallow exploitation tale—bloody, nonsensical, and focused solely on shock value, failing even at that due to its lack of true horror. Instead of frightening, To the Devil a Daughter often amuses. The demonic baby is particularly clumsy, and the absurd ending feels like something out of an Ed Wood movie. Unsurprisingly, Christopher Lee dismissed the film with a single sentence in his autobiography.