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Arts and Entertainment

What Kind Of Voodoo Marketing B.S. Is This?

By  Juliet Bennett Rylah
Published Oct 1, 2014 11:00 PM
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We got a tip today about a bunch of creepy voodoo dolls being left on Hollywood Boulevard.

Now, we're pretty cynical about this kind of stuff these days. Sure, Nathan Fielder's 'Dumb Starbucks' was sort of genius. But then there were the giant matchsticks to promote Tinder, then the billboards about celebrity divorce to promote some reality show, then Hidden Cash never revealed himself to be The Joker. And we're pretty sure that these voodoo dolls will turn out to be some gimmick as well. However, it's October and that means Halloween, so we'll give it some consideration.

The voodoo dolls have the "MalumEst" written on them. When translated from Latin to English, that means "Evil is." Spooky. When you follow the hashtag, you're led to an Instagram account with more photos of the voodoo doll.

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There's also a photo of a young woman's face with the caption: "No substitutions. I asked for an innocent soul. #MalumEst."

If you watched American Horror Story: Coven, you may remember a voodoo deal with an underworld spirit in which a character must deliver him an innocent soul.

This AHS fan tumblr shows a photo of Emma Roberts with one of the dolls. This photo must have been taken at the San Diego Comic Con, where some attendees also had run-ins with the doll, uInterview reports. They did their own detective work, finding a photo of AHS castmember Sarah Paulson holding a doll during a signing, though it's not clear enough to see if it has the "MalumEst" on it. They also found a promo offering a free voodoo doll gift to early buyers of American Horror Story: Coven on Blu-Ray.

So, the voodoo dolls are probably just another viral marketing scheme for the FX show. The show's fourth season American Horror Story: Carnival premieres on October 8. (Related: If you are a regular at Jumbo's Clown Room, the contortionist in the ad might seem familiar to you.)

Anyhow, if the Fox Mulder in you wants to believe that there's a voodoo priestess lurking in the shadows of Chinese Theatre, we won't stop you.

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