'Cruel Summer' Fans Have a Few Theories About the Identity of Annabelle

The mystery surrounding Kate Wallis (Olivia Holt) and Jeanette Turner (Chiara Aurelia) has yet to be solved, and Freeform's Cruel Summer continues to leave fans with even more questions than answers as the series progresses.

The teen psychological thriller takes place during the summers of 1993, 1994, and 1995, and follows unpopular teen Jeanette, who suddenly becomes the queen bee, and picture-perfect Kate, who is kidnapped by the school's vice-principal.

When Kate finally escapes her captor, Martin, she discovers that Jeanette is dating her boyfriend and seemingly took over her life. But, in the biggest OMG moment, Kate claims that Jeanette saw her in her captor's basement and did not report it.

Now, Jeanette is the most hated girl in America, but can we totally believe Kate? Viewers are constantly learning more about these teens and finding out that everyone in the small Texas town has not been 100 percent honest. 

With questions mounting, one of the biggest remains: Who is Annabelle?

The name Annabelle is briefly mentioned by Kate in Episode 4. We hear the blonde teen use the name Annabelle as a character in her scary story during the 1995 hunting trip with her family and friends.

Then in Episode 5, Kate listens back to her therapy tapes and explains to her therapist that she "met" Annabelle on the day that she was rescued. However, she tells her therapist that she doesn't remember who this person is and offers no further clues as to her identity. 

Annabelle is clearly on Kate's mind because we see her doodling the name in a notebook. So, does Kate really know who Annabelle is, or did she block out this person because of her traumatic event?

While we continue to ponder over Annabelle's connection to Kate, fans have come up with a few theories.

1. Annabelle is a figment of Kate's imagination.

One Reddit user believes that Annabelle is not a real person but a figment of Kate's imagination. Perhaps she created her to help her cope with her circumstances. Additionally, this fan pointed out that Martin drugged Kate's food, which could have affected her mentally.

"I don’t think Annabelle exists. I think Kate was so lonely and possibly affected by being drugged up every day, that I think she created a companion in her mind," the person wrote. 

2. Annabelle is not a person at all.

Another fan theorized that Annabelle is not actually a person but the gun that Martin's dad used to kill himself. "I don’t know why but my first thought was that Annabelle isn’t a who, but a what," one Reddit user posted. "Totally off the wall theory that Annabelle is a gun. Specifically, it’s the gun that Martin’s dad killed himself with. The gunshot that Jeanette, Jamie, and Vince heard was from Annabelle being fired."

3. Annabelle is a puppet.

Another Reddit user commented that they think Annabelle could be a puppet that Martin used to talk to Kate, writing, "Maybe Martin would sometimes use a puppet (Annabelle) to communicate with Kate to make him seem less scary." 

Additionally, the person theorized that maybe Jeanette used a puppet to communicate with Kate, which is something we learned Jeanette's brother used to do with his sister when she was little.

4. Martin is Annabelle.

Another Cruel Summer fan suggested that Martin is actually Annabelle and is suffering from a form of Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID).

"Maybe Martin has an alter ego named Anabelle that he tries to suppress in normal life. Maybe he kidnaps Kate cuz he wants to be her," the fan posted.

For now, the mystery remains.

Watch new episodes of Cruel Summer on Tuesdays at 10 p.m. EST on Freeform.