The Conjuring

Given that David F. Sandberg launched his career on the basis of a viral YouTube short film, it only makes sense that Warner Bros. would look to leverage that narrative for the release of Annabelle: Creation, the fourth film in The Conjuring cinematic universe. Back in July, Warner Bros. announced the contest on its site, encouraging fans to create their own new additions to The Conjuring universe. The contest would feature winners in multiple countries, meaning multiple chances to win.

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The universe of The Conjuring just keeps expanding outward. James Wan’s ’70s-set creepfest made swimming pools of money for New Line Cinema, which made a greenlighting a sequel pretty much a no-brainer. When that film sold like hotcakes too, New Line moved onto an Annabelle spinoff and a scheduled sequel, a solo project for the demon nun that torments Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson, and yet another spinoff for the bowler-sporting Conjuring 2 villain known as The Crooked Man. And now the seventh film in the connected Conjuring world has been announced, promising more highly lucrative scares for New Line.

Funny how there aren’t any movies about creepy-looking dolls that stay inanimate. The tradition of killer miniatures is a rich and varied one, stretching from smart-mouthed icon Chucky to Twilight Zone resident Talking Tina to the gang of supremely ticked-off slave toys in Tales From the Hood’s third quarter. The unsettling lifelessness of a doll’s visage has made it a reliable source of horror in the past, and the Conjuring franchise struck its own vein of gold with the homicidal, pigtailed Annabelle. The precocious little psychopath got her own starring vehicle in 2014 with the simply-titled spinoff Annabelle, and now we’re taking a step back in time to witness her dark baptism in blood.

When the history of this era’s horror movies is written, James Wan deserves his own chapter. Wan has had an enormous influence on the genre for the last decade, as one of the creators of the Saw, Insidious, and Conjuring series. Though he’s branched out his directorial pursuits (he made the tremendous Furious 7 and is now hard at work under the sea on Aquaman), he’s also lending a creative hand on the ongoing universification of The Conjuring, which now has now less than three parallel spinoff series in various stages of production at Warner Bros.

New Line’s next spinoff from The Conjuring franchise is keeping things in the family — at least on the real-world side of things. Taissa Farmiga, sister of Conjuring star Vera Farmiga, is set to star in The Nun, based on the terrifying ghoul featured in James Wan’s sequel to his blockbuster horror hit. Little is known about the upcoming spinoff, though it seems unlikely that Farmiga’s role will be related to her sister’s fictional take on famous paranormal investigator Lorraine Warren.

James Wan is not an exciting filmmaker because he made the outrageously entertaining Furious 7 – he’s an exciting filmmaker because he made Furious 7 and then gladly stepped back to his horror roots to film The Conjuring 2: The Enfield Poltergeist. So we look upon the first images from the set and celebrate. Wan may be moving into the blockbuster big leagues, but he’s not going to forget about the genre that made his name.

The Conjuring was one of the most pleasant surprises of 2013, the rare modern horror movie to strike that perfect balance between crowd-pleasing mainstream fare and nerdy, genre-specific detail. Casual horror fans loved it. Hardcore horror fans loved it. A sequel was announced almost instantly. Now, two years later, we have our first real shred of evidence that the second cinematic case of Ed and Lorraine Warren is actually, truly happening.

In news that should delight horror fans, 'The Conjuring 2' has officially secured the return of director James Wan. His involvement with the sequel was up in the air since he left horror behind to direct 'Fast and Furious 7,' but the genre that gave him his start has pulled him back in ... and we're happy to have him back.

Warner Bros. released the full-length 'Annabelle' trailer, which does not hide the origins of its titular demonic doll. Yes, this is the same doll that left a huge impression on audiences in 'The Conjuring,' and, yes, we're going to get to see exactly how this creepy thing came into being. Considering that 'The Conjuring' is one of the most successful and acclaimed horror movies of all time, this is probably a smart angle to take.