Ruined baby name?

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Baby is due in June, and we picked her name (Annabelle) back in February. Unfortunately, my husband's younger niece informed us that she has started seeing the name all over social media this month because the Annabelle doll (that the horror film was based on) is currently touring the USA. After doing some searching, I learned that a new film is set to be released in a few months.

I am now incredibly concerned that we're going to get comments from people suggesting that we named our daughter after this doll/film and/or that the name is going to suddenly rise in popularity. (It is common for names to become more popular/trendy due to pop culture.) We were aware of the doll and the horror film when we picked the name, but we did not think that it would be revived/become relevant again. Has our baby name been ruined?

Amabel (from the Latin for 'loveable') isn't much used nowadays but has the same vibe. Harder to abbreviate though unless you are going for Belle or Bella.

Anna on its own is simple and fresh.

The nightclub was Annabel's.

The Annabel spelling is nicer. Annabelle is too frilly.

Name her Anna Belle Lastname

I thought this was going to be about Peppa Pig’s new baby sister!

DC is 14 and knows two Annabel(le)s, so I think the name has been reasonably popular for a while.

I think it's better to have a link to a fictional character who has a 'real' name (as opposed to those people who named their kids after GOT characters) than it is to be linked to a suddenly famous celebrity.

Lovely name, but I think people would forever be mishearing and misspelling it?

We have a friend Annabelle. We call her Anna-mal... because she is a bit of an animal.

dd3 is Annabelle she’s 16 and the film hasn’t been related to her in anyway… not even sure if she’s heard of it.

don’t let a film put you off a beautiful name.

Unfortunately a family member has just used this name, and yes, sadly it was more than mentioned behind their backs “why did they use that name?!” Etc. It’s a bit like when The Omen came out and there were the jokes about the name Damian (remember the episode of Only Fools where Rodney thought Del had named his child after the horror film?!). Maybe no one would say it directly to you, but sadly many would think it - as it’s quite a big film. It just depends if that bothers you or not.

I know two, and I think of them when I hear the name rather than the film, or the baby doll we all had as kids!

One is 30ish and spells it Annabel, the other is 10mo and spells it Annabelle. I slightly prefer the Annabel spelling personally, but the name itself is lovely.

I have an Annabel and the original movie came out when I was pregnant or shortly after she was born - can't recall which. I wouldn't change it it's the best name ever and it has never come up in conversation (aside from when me and her dad think she's being a bit of a psycho 🤣)
I prefer Annabel to Annabelle and technically is the English version.

It's a crappy horror film which will be forgotten about within months. The name is a classic, I know older children with the name so I wouldn't think of the film if you mentioned it

Why?

it’s still the same name, it’s still pronounced the same. That’s going to make no difference to people associating it with the horror film.

But OP, as pp have said, no, it hasn’t ruined the name. It’s a well known, established name. I’ve only ever heard of the movie in passing. It’s really not a big deal.

Well I've never heard of that film until now. I know two Annabel's, one in her 30s and one a child of 7. Its a lovely, classic name. I dislike your spelling of it, Annabel or Annabell seems prettier less fussy.
This is why I aim to spend as little time on social media etc as possible, its full of crap that I really dont need to know about. Who watches these naff and grim films? Over here in the real world, the name Annabel is fine. Perhaps in some cyber-geek, nerd world where actual adults watch horror films about dolls(!) then yes it might be a problem. Depends who you associate with.

Darn all these people saying Chucky, you ruined what was going to be my post 😁

I think it’s a lovely name and would have been clueless about the film.

I don’t think people particularly think of the movie Carrie when they hear that name, I don’t automatically think of mermaids if I hear the name Miranda (well maybe I do as I love mermaids).

There are plenty of successful Damians out there who seem to manage OK. I wouldn't worry about the name Annabelle at all.

Annabelle is very popular now.

Agree with Annabel if you're worried. Better spelling anyway. Less fuss

Gosh. What an awful family you have, bitching behind peoples backs about the name of a newborn baby.

Change the spelling to Annabel. It’s nicer anyway.

lol. I have an Evie. Thanks Peppa pig!!! 🤣

Annabelle is a beautiful name, but I would take it into consideration. I grew up with a Damien, and I still remember hearing adults say that he was "living up to his name" when he would misbehave. The people saying that it is a ridiculous thing to be worried about should read the many threads about the name Damien/Damian on here. So many people still view it as an "evil" and unsavoury name solely because of the film. Once a name has a certain association, it can be hard to shake that (no matter how nonsensical it may be).

I don't think changing the spelling would help in any way. Annabelle/Annabel/Annabell all sound the exact same when they're said. The other spellings also look incomplete to me, but that comes down to personal preference. I realise that there are many established and accepted spellings of this name.

Actually I quite like that, and how is not classy? That’s Just your opinion.
So, AnnaBELLE with emphasis on the Belle.
I like it.

I'm in the US. I'm not sure what people are saying about the "upcoming" Annabelle movie; there have been three Annabelle movies released in the past 10 years. It's a pretty popular and current horror franchise. I like the name, but in my mind I will always think, "like the doll?"

One of my close friends has called her daughter Annabelle, over a year ago. Not once has she had a comment like that about the doll