Abby (film)
| Abby | |
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Theatrical release poster.
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| Directed by | William Girdler |
| Produced by |
William Girdler Mike Henry G. Cornell Layne |
| Written by | G. Cornell Layne |
| Starring |
Carol Speed William Marshall Terry Carter Austin Stoker |
| Music by | Robert O. Ragland |
| Cinematography | William Asman |
| Edited by |
Henry Asman Corky Ehlers |
| Distributed by | American International Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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89 min |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $100.000 (inflated figure reported as $472,529) |
| Box office | $4.000.000 (inflated figure reported as $18,901,176) |
Abby is a 1974 American blaxploitation horror film about a woman who is possessed by an African sex spirit. The film stars Carol Speed as the title character, William H. Marshall and Terry Carter. It was directed by William Girdler, who co-wrote the film's story with screenwriter Gordon Cornell Layne.
The film was a financial success, grossing $4 million in a month, but was pulled from theaters after the film's distributor, American International Pictures, was accused of copyright violation by Warner Bros., which saw the film as being derivative of The Exorcist and filed a lawsuit against AIP. Girdler himself told the Louisville Courier Journal: "Sure, we made Abby to come in on the shirttail of The Exorcist." The film is also inspired by 1968's Rosemary's Baby.
In 2004, a 16mm low quality copy of Abby was released on DVD. Despite mixed reviews initially, the film has a cult following and is considered by many a classic blaxploitation film.
Abby was directed and produced by William Girdler, a filmmaker who specialized in exploitation pictures that were often in the horror genre. Films such as Grizzly and The Manitou are some of Girdler's more notable productions, while Abby achieved a more infamous reputation because it was accused of copyright violation by Warner Bros., who felt it was a direct copy of The Exorcist. Warner Bros. won their court case, and Abby was eventually pulled from theaters, but not before it was able to take in almost $4 million.
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