Do Not Fear, The Conjuring Franchise Isn’t Really Ending After Last Rites

The Conjuring franchise has been scaring audiences for over a decade ever since James Wan’s original movie debuted in 2013. Moviegoers have been treated to multiple installments based around Ed and Lorraine Warren, played by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga, as well as a handful of spinoffs and prequels.

Fast forward to 2025 and The Conjuring: Last Rites was sold as being the end of the franchise. The title signaled this, framing it as the “Last” movie and chapter of the Warren family’s story. Last Rites‘ ending gave Ed and Lorraine a rather happy ending and worked as a conclusion point for this universe.

That’s why Last Rites‘ director Michael Chaves is saying in interviews that “It is done. This is the final chapter … There’s no other Conjuring movies. It is absolutely the end.” Based solely on this interview and the definitiveness in his words, it’d be understandable to think that the franchise really is done. But that is not the case, not by a long shot.

More The Conjuring Movies Are Already In Development

Despite what Chaves is saying, there are already reports about more Conjuring movies being in development. Reportedly, New Line is in the early stages of working on a new Conjuring prequel of some sort. This would be separate from other prequel franchises within this universe, like Annabelle, but no firm story or character details are known.

There are many different routes a Conjuring prequel could take. Last Rites cast younger versions of Ed and Lorraine, so those actors could return to play the paranormal investigators in the earlier part of their careers.

The franchise could also use a prequel to explore different demons or supernatural beings. Last Rites left the door open for multiple possibilities in this front. The Conjuring mirror and new, unnamed demon are one potential avenue for a prequel. The studio could even consider diving into the backstory of the fourth film’s Axe Man.

Beyond the prequel possibilities, it’s also worth noting that The Conjuring universe could continue the story past Last Rites‘ finale. Judy Warren and her husband are set up to be the new leads of future installments. Most of the franchise’s main cast members have expressed some level of interest in coming back for more films too.

Judy’s career as a paranormal investigator provides the franchise with many years and cases to dive into next. And since Ed and Lorraine lived much longer in real life than where Last Rites ends their stories, Wilson and Farmiga could continue popping up in some capacity too.

The various options to continue the franchise and rumblings that the studio is moving forward with some plans shouldn’t come as a surprise, despite what Chaves says. New Line boss Richard Brenner said earlier this year that Last Rites wasn’t the end of the franchise, but rather the end of “Phase One”, suggesting that there will be a Phase Two.

It’s not yet been made clear what Phase Two of the Conjuring universe will look like. What is evident is that New Line has no interest in letting this IP fall by the wayside. They might even be willing to keep it going without James Wan’s involvement, as the two sides are reportedly in a pay dispute regarding his future with the franchise he launched.

More Conjuring movies are surely on the way, but that’s not all. A series for HBO Max is also moving forward. That should be part of Phase Two of the franchise and keep the IP alive as New Line and Warner Bros. figure out exactly what they want the slate of films in this universe to look like.

The Conjuring: Last Rites Was Too Successful To Let The Universe Die

Even if there was a plan originally that Last Rites was going to be the end of the entire Conjuring universe, the film’s performance guaranteed that this would not last. Whether another installment came in two or 10 years from now, audiences showed with their wallets that there is still a lot of interest in this franchise.

Last Rites obliterated box office projections, having a record $84 million opening weekend domestically for the series, which was also a top-three performance for a horror movie ever. The film had incredible legs from there, amassing a grand total of $482 million worldwide at the time of this writing, which is also a Conjuring franchise high.

The idea that New Line and Warner Bros. would let a $2.2 billion horror franchise die was hard to believe before Last Rites came out. Once it performed like this and propelled the series’ total to $2.7 billion, it was always going to be a matter of time before the studios found some way to continue the series.

As long as audiences keep showing that this is a world they are excited to visit in theaters, New Line and WB will continue to make more The Conjuring movies. A near $500 million gross for Last Rites guaranteed that we’ll keep seeing more entries in this universe one way or another.

Cast

Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga, Ron Livingston, Lili Taylor, Joey King, Mackenzie Foy, Madison Wolfe, John Noble, Ruairi O’Connor, Ward Horton, Annabelle Wallis, Alfre Woodard, Tony Amendola, Anthony LaPaglia, Miranda Otto, Brad Greenquist, Lulu Wilson, Talitha Bateman, Grace Caroline Currey, Mckenna Grace, Taissa Farmiga, Bonnie Aarons, Demián Bichir, Jonas Bloquet

Movie(s)

The Conjuring, The Conjuring 2, The Conjuring 3, Annabelle, Annabelle: Creation, Annabelle Comes Home, The Nun, The Nun II