From "Saw" and "Halloween" to "Scream" and "Paranormal Activity," so many of our favorite horror films have gone on to become huge franchises with multiple sequel films. However, none top the success of "The Conjuring." Since launching in 2013, "The Conjuring" movies have made over two billion dollars at the box office, making it the highest-grossing horror franchise of all time. A decade after it first began, the franchise is still going strong today. The latest film in "The Conjuring" cinematic universe, "The Nun 2," is set to hit theaters on Friday, Sept. 8.
"The Nun" is just one of several spin-off franchises that have come out of "The Conjuring." The others are the "Anabelle" franchise and "The Curse of La Llorona." In total, there are nine films that are part of this shared universe. Since they all take place in different locations around the world and at different time periods, it can be confusing to keep track of them all. So, how are they all connected? Keep reading for everything there is to know about "The Conjuring" cinematic universe.
What Is "The Conjuring" About?
The film that started it all was "The Conjuring." It centers around the Perron family, who move into a farmhouse in Rhode Island with their five daughters. After experiencing mysterious supernatural events in their new home, the family contacts demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga) to help them get rid of the dark spirits. The story is based on the real-life Warrens, who were a husband and wife duo that investigated cases of alleged hauntings.
"The Conjuring 2" saw Wilson and Farmiga reprise their roles as Ed and Lorraine as the couple travels to Enfield, England, to help a single mother and her four children after their home is overtaken by a supernatural entity. The movie is inspired by the Enfield poltergeist case involving the Hodson family. Meanwhile, "The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It" digs into the trial of Arne Cheyenne Johnson, who claimed in court that a demon made him kill his landlord, Alan Bono.
How Does "Annabelle" Connect to "The Conjuring"?
The "Anabelle" franchise centers around the doll that's featured at the beginning of "The Conjuring" film. "Anabelle: Creation" focuses on the doll's origins by revealing that the real Anabelle was a seven-year-old girl who died in a car accident. After losing their daughter, Samuel and Esther Mullins attempted to see Anabelle again by making a deal with the devil. However, it goes terribly wrong, and the couple accidentally lets the demon attach itself to a porcelain doll in their home. All three films in the "Anabelle" franchise show the demon looking for human hosts to take over as it disguises itself as the doll.
How Does "The Nun" Connect to "The Conjuring"?
"The Nun" follows a demon named Valek who is disguised as a nun and terrorizes an abbey in 1952 Romania. After Father Burke and Sister Irene are sent to investigate the dark force, the duo attempts to banish it into Hell. They think they succeeded; however, the demon is revealed to still be alive and has possessed a man named Maurice. In "The Conjuring," we learn that Ed and Lorraine investigated Maurice in a past case. Valek later comes back to haunt Lorraine in "The Conjuring 2."
How Does "The Curse of La Llorona" Connect to "The Conjuring"?
"The Curse of La Llorona" is based on the Latin American folktale about a woman who drowned her children after discovering that her husband was cheating on her. As a ghost, La Llorona — aka, the Weeping Woman — now roams the Earth preying on innocent children. The film follows a caseworker named Anna whose children go missing following an encounter with La Llorona. She seeks help from Father Perez, who also appears in "Anabelle."
While each of the franchises within "The Conjuring" cinematic universe can stand on its own, watching all nine films is recommended for die-hard fans of the series.
FAQs
Universe tie-in moments: The brief appearance by Higgins acts as the primary link to the prequel, Annabelle: Creation. We also see the Warrens briefly at the beginning and end of the film, assisting a group of nurses with their Annabelle infestation, which is a nod to the events of The Conjuring.
Are The Conjuring movies related to each other? ›
How Many The Conjuring Movies Are There? There are 9 total movies set within The Conjuring universe — three Conjuring movies, three Annabelle movies, The Nun and The Nun 2, and The Curse of La Llorna. A fourth Conjuring movie has been confirmed, while a TV series is in development for Max.
How do The Conjuring Annabelle and The Nun connect? ›
Sister Irene from The Nun is a descendent of St. Lucy as is Lorraine from Annabelle. This family connection is why Valek wants both of these women dead.
Are you supposed to watch The Conjuring movies in order? ›
While watching The Conjuring franchise in chronological order certainly helps fans follow the timeline, it's worthwhile to watch the films in release order at least once.
Are The Conjuring Insidious and Annabelle connected? ›
It's a common question, but the answer is no, The Conjuring and Insidious franchises are not linked to each other. The only 'link' is James Wan, who directed both the first two Conjuring movies and the Insidious movies.
How is the curse of La Llorona connected to Conjuring? ›
The Curse of La Llorona isn't actually a part of The Conjuring Universe despite its two Annabelle-related cameos, says director Michael Chaves. It only became known as the eighth installment in the hit horror franchise, apparently, because of a presenter's unfortunate misunderstanding at a film festival.
Is The Nun connected to The Conjuring? ›
The Nun movies are actually prequels to The Conjuring series. While The Nun and its sequel take part in the 1950s, The Conjuring is set in the 1970s. Valak torments a young nun throughout the series, and it's only when Lorraine encounters Valak two decades after that we see the demon defeated.
What movie is connected to Insidious? ›
The films in the franchise include Insidious (2010), Chapter 2 (2013), Chapter 3 (2015), The Last Key (2018), and The Red Door (2023).
Is conjuring 3 connected to 1 and 2? ›
The film serves as a sequel to The Conjuring (2013) and The Conjuring 2 (2016), and as the seventh installment in The Conjuring Universe.
Why is Valak in Annabelle? ›
Valak may be the most powerful entity thus far in the series, and the "Evil Nun" in Annabelle: Creation implies that it may be responsible for Annabelle's involvement in the series as well. Valak possibly was the one who pushed Janice into the barn and allowed Malthus to possess her.
Farmiga and Wilson briefly appeared as Ed and Lorraine in the 2018 spin-off film The Nun, focusing on the character of Valak in its "Demon Nun" form, who was the villain from The Conjuring 2.
Is Valak alive after nun 2? ›
It appears the demon is finally dead, but those who have seen other instalments in the series already know Valak is back haunting the living by the 1970s, when The Conjuring takes place.
Are The Conjuring movies linked? ›
"The Nun" is just one of several spin-off franchises that have come out of "The Conjuring." The others are the "Anabelle" franchise and "The Curse of La Llorona." In total, there are nine films that are part of this shared universe.
Where is the real Annabelle doll? ›
Annabelle is an allegedly-haunted Raggedy Ann doll, housed in the now closed occult museum of the paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren. Annabelle was moved there after supposed hauntings in 1970. A character based on the doll is one of the antagonists that appear in The Conjuring Universe.
Are conjuring 1 and 2 linked? ›
The conjuring 2 is based on another completely different case handled by Warren couple (Ed and Lorraine Warren). There is no connection to the story of the first movie. If you have watched first movie, you would have advantage of knowing the characters of the protagonists a little better. But that is all.
Which Conjuring movie is connected to The Nun? ›
A spin-off film titled The Nun, featuring the "Demon Nun" character Valak from The Conjuring 2, was directed by Corin Hardy, with The Conjuring 2 co-scribe David Leslie Johnson initially announced as the writer before being replaced by Gary Dauberman and Wan, who also produced with Safran.
How is nun 2 connected to Conjuring? ›
The sequel is set four years after the events of the first film and a decade before the events of The Conjuring, seeing the aftermath of Frenchie's (Jonas Bloquet) possession by the demonic entity Valak. Frenchie is also revealed to be Maurice, who dies after a failed exorcism in the first Conjuring movie.
Is nun 2 related to nun 1? ›
Serving as a sequel to The Nun (2018) and the eighth installment in The Conjuring Universe franchise, the film stars Taissa Farmiga, Jonas Bloquet, and Bonnie Aarons, returning from the first film, with Storm Reid and Anna Popplewell joining the cast. Peter Safran and James Wan return as producers.
