A staid American ambassador (Gregory Peck) and his wife (Lee Remick) are heartbroken when their child is stillborn, but their heartbreak is only beginning when they adopt an orphan. As the boy grows, disaster surrounds him, beginning with the suicide of his nanny, and as the bodies pile up, his horrified father begins to believe that the boy is evil incarnate and must be destroyed. The unique climax paved the way for the two popular sequels, DAMIEN: OMEN II and OMEN III: THE FINAL CONFLICT. Composer Jerry Goldsmith won an Academy Award for Best Score.