Are you up for more real life1 scares from the case files of Ed and Lorraine Warren?
Man, The Conjuring has come a long way since 2013. What began as a fun little “based on fact” supernatural creeper from Saw director James Wan has spawned an entire cinematic universe. The eight films so far (this one makes nine) have grossed over US$2.2b at the box office, making it the most successful horror franchise of all time. And half of them are good! Or maybe most of them are half good. They blur together.
But now, hopefully aiming to either be in the good half or at least be half good, comes The Conjuring: Last Rites, the fourth direct Conjuring film (there have also been two Nuns and three Annabelles, if you’re keeping score. Judging by the title – and the official stance – it could be the final instalment, although the sheer weight of future potential profits says otherwise.
We don’t have even a skerrick of info about the plot. Even the usually reliable official synopsis has let us down:
The Conjuring: Last Rites delivers another thrilling chapter of the iconic Conjuring cinematic universe, based on real events. Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson return as Lorraine and Ed Warren in a powerful and spine-chilling addition to the global box office-breaking franchise.
…choosing, as it does, to focus on profit rather than plot. I will say that’s at least thematically on point, given profit was the real life Warrens’ chief motive. But hey, we do have a trailer:
This one is directed by Michael Chaves, who also called the shots on The Nun II and The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, making him an old hand at the Conjuring Universe. Weirdly, his debut feature, 2019’s The Curse of La Llorona, takes place in that universe but Chaves doesn’t consider it an official part of the canon, which is a schism we did not expect. Ian Goldberg, Richard Naing, and David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick are on script duties, working from a story by Johnson-McGoldrick and OG The Conjuring director, James Wan.
Cast-wise, we have Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson as Lorraine and Ed Warren; Mia Tomlinson as their kid, Judy; Ben Hardy as Tony Spera, her boyfriend; Steve Coulter as Father Gordon; with Rebecca Calder, Elliot Cowan, Kíla Lord Cassidy, Beau Gadsdon, John Brotherton, and Shannon Kook rounding out the roster. And as of right now, that’s your lot.
The Conjuring: Last Rites hits Australian theatres on September 4, 2025.
- Not even. The Warrens were con artists at best. At best. ↩︎
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