Director Oz Perkins explains his thoughts on the toy's origins in The Monkey and the symbolism of how the figure works in the Stephen King movie.

No matter. It's still a grabber. The monkey is not a real monkey, it's a toy with a curse on its head. Wind up the key on its back and it plays a menacing drum roll that portends a gruesome death.

In Stephen King’s original The Monkey short story, the monkey toy that causes so much gnarly chaos is a classic staple of any vintage toy shelf. Specifically, a cymbal-playing monkey ...

Based on a Stephen King short story, the film stars Theo James as twins Hal and Bill Shelburn who have been traumatized since childhood by a cursed monkey toy that brings about a shocking death ...

Their vagabond wastrel of a father (Adam Scott, in a prologue cameo), long out of the picture, has left behind some trinkets and mementos, including one bad-intentioned toy monkey, not a cymbal ...