The Conjuring: Last Rites has just hit screens, with the jumpscare-filled film set to mark Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga's final outing as Ed and Lorraine Warren. But with the Warrens shelving their Bibles and hanging up their rosary beads, you may be wondering "is The Conjuring: The Last Rites the last Conjuring movie?"
Welcoming back our favorite ghost-hunting duo, Last Rites sees the Warrens take on their final case in 1986. The case in question is the Smurl haunting, based on real events where a working-class family reported that a demonic presence was taking over their home and assaulting them between the years 1974 and 1979. As well as Wilson and Farmiga, the movie also stars Mia Tomlinson as Ed and Lorraine's daughter Judy, and Ben Hardy as Judy's boyfriend Tony Spera.
Will there be more Conjuring movies?
Yes, it's likely there will be more Conjuring movies, but they might look a little different going forward.
Throughout filming, franchise creator James Wan referred to The Conjuring: Last Rites as the 'final' Conjuring movie many times. In July 2024, Wan called The Conjuring 4 the "finale" on social media, adding, "end of an era," with a sad face emoji. Then later, in October 2024, the filmmaker took to Instagram once more and posted a picture of the Warren's director's chairs captioned, "Always good to see and hang out with old friends. Gonna miss everyone. End of an era."
With that, anyone would think that The Conjuring: Last Rites is the final Conjuring movie. However, it seems as though it is just the final movie featuring Ed and Lorraine Warren. Wilson and Farmiga have made it known for quite some time that their journey as the Warrens would come to a close with Last Rites. As filming wrapped, Farmiga shared a touching post on Instagram dedicated to Wilson, reflecting on the past 12 years playing the demon-catching couple, calling it "a match made in heaven."
In an interview with GamesRadar+, Last Rites director Michael Chaves said that now is the right time to conclude the Warrens' story as "we don't want this to be a series that just kind of gets [run] into the ground. We wanted to end with confidence and on our own terms."
That said, just because the Warrens' time in the Conjuring universe is over, doesn't mean the franchise is. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, New Line Cinema president Richard Brener said that The Conjuring: Last Rites is just the end of The Conjuring Phase One. "While this is the last of what we call phase one, we are hopeful that we can make more," said Brener, adding, "Phase Two is TBD."
Clearly, we don't know what Phase Two will look like, and it is not certain whether original creator Wan will return to head it. But by the way Last Rites ended, we think there's another ghostly gifted couple ready to take on the Warren's bidding. We're looking at you, Judy and Tony!
Without spoiling too much, throughout the movie, we see Judy Warren experience terrifying visions, seeing demonic presences and ghosts just like her mother. Lorraine tries to keep Judy's visions at bay, telling her to close her eyes and sing until the spirits go away. However, Judy wants to help the Smurl family and even puts herself in danger in doing so. But by the end of Last Rites, Lorraine encourages Judy to embrace the spirit realm in order to control what she sees and try to combat it.
As for Tony, we see Judy's young boyfriend desperate for her father Ed's approval, so much so, he takes a keen interest in Ed's part in the Warrens' paranormal investigations. When Ed and Lorraine decide to leave their ghost-hunting days behind, Ed gives Tony the keys to the artifact room, as a passing of the baton of sorts. By the end of the film, Tony and he can be seen operating the projector at some of Ed's lectures and taking notes.
With a supportive man by her side, could Judy Warren, now Judy Spera, take on her mother's role and become the new paranormal investigative duo alongside her husband, Tony? That sure is a possibility.
The Conjuring: Last Rites is out in cinemas now. For more, check out our guides on how to watch The Conjuring movies in order and our ranking of The Conjuring movies, and keep up with upcoming horror movies.
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