2025 was a big year for movies in general, but mainly because it closed out one of the best horror movie franchises of all time. The Conjuring: Last Rites received love from critics, and even CinemaBlend's review called it a fitting end for the franchise. I finally got a chance to check it out with my HBO Max subscription, and as a big fan of the movies, I was upset that I was let down.

If I were to rank The Conjuring movies against the rest of horror franchises, I would have it near the top. As such, I had high expectations for the final movie, hoping to have lasting memories of Ed and Lorraine's "final case". I was let down, mainly because of how much I had to see of the title characters.

I Found The Conjuring: Last Rites To Be Too Warren-Forward

I never really stopped to think about it until now, but I realized that the reason I watch The Conjuring movies is solely for the cases. I'm not in it for the Warrens, so the entire movie, which largely centers around their family dynamic with their daughter, did absolutely nothing for me. In fact, it made me angrier than anything else, because I wanted to see the family in the thick of some bonkers horror adventure. I get how rare an opportunity is to allow horror icons to ride into the sunset, but to be as candid as I can be, nothing was interesting to me about that. As such, I was let down, and I'd rank the final movie by far my least favorite of The Conjuring movies to date.

The Less I Could Focus On Ed And Lorraine In Conjuring Movies, The Better

Don't get me wrong, this isn't about Patrick Gibson and Vera Farmiga, as I love their portrayal of the Warrens as much as anyone else. What does bug me, however, is the divisiveness of the real-life Warrens, who have their fair share of critics in the paranormal world. Despite their widespread fame thanks to The Conjuring movies, it is well-documented that they were considered frauds.

Truthfully, I would've liked it if The Conjuring: Last Rites acknowledged this and showed people reacting with skepticism to the Warrens and their supposed paranormal investigations. It would've been a terrific way to recognize their controversial status as celebrated paranormal investigators, but obviously, the movie went a different direction.

It's my personal problem of knowing what I know about the Warren family and being unable to enjoy stories about their personal lives, knowing what I know. I wish I could separate the fiction from reality, but in the cast of The Conjuring: Last Rites, I just couldn't. I am happy to hear that others didn't mind it, however, and were able to enjoy the movie all the same.

Stream The Conjuring: Last Rites over on HBO Max right now, or check out some of the other great horror movies on the platform. I know the holiday season is fast approaching, but it's always great to break things up with a little scary movie every now and then.

SPOILER WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for The Conjuring: Last Rites. If you have not yet seen the film, proceed at your own risk!

When a long journey comes to a conclusion, be it via a graduation, retirement, or any such era-ender, it’s customary to have a celebration including the people who helped made that journey special – and Conjuring: Last Rites is a film that brings that tradition to the big screen. The 2025 movie will be remembered for being the last title to feature Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga as Ed and Lorraine Warren, and its final scenes mark the occasion by featuring a collection of awesome cameos from stars of the franchise.

In the aftermath of helping the Smurl family banish the evil that has been residing in their home, the Warren family in The Conjuring: Last Rites gets to have a big celebration with the wedding of Judy Warren (Mia Tomlinson) and her fianceé Tony (Ben Hardy). As the camera pans over the collection of people in the church, there are a number of recognizable faces, and when I interviewed director Michael Chaves earlier this fall, he told me about how the franchise reunion came together. Said the filmmaker,

Looking at the guests at the wedding, one notices that all three previous Conjuring movies are represented. The Conjuring’s Lili Taylor and Mackenzie Foy return as Carolyn Perron and Cindy Perron; The Conjuring 2’s Frances O'Connor and Madison Wolfe reprise Peggy Hodgson and Janet Hodgson; and Julian Hilliard plays David Glatzel from The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. In addition to all of those actors, James Wan is also a member of the crowd, celebrating his role as a franchise producer and director of the first two films in the series.

Michael Chaves told me that everybody was invited to join the party, and while not everyone was available at the time the sequence was shot, he was thrilled with everyone who said yes. Additionally, he told me that he hadn’t met a number of them prior to their Last Rites cameos, so it was a golden opportunity for him just as a fan. He added,

Following its record-breaking arrival in theaters this past September and its arrival on digital release, The Conjuring: Last Rites has now made its streaming debut and is available to watch with a HBO Max subscription (along with all of the other titles in the Conjuring Universe).

Fans who feared the haunted house was finally closing its doors following the newly released The Conjuring: Last Rites can exhale a sigh of relief. That's because The Conjuring Universe is moving forward, but with a twist. Instead of another quick jump back to theaters, the long-running horror juggernaut is taking root on TV, with a newly energized series in the works at one of the best streaming services. That’s right, all you’ll need to follow your favorite gang of demons and haunted objects is an HBO Max subscription.

The news arrives via Variety, whose reporting states Nancy Won has boarded the project as writer, executive producer and showrunner. At the same time, Peter Cameron and Cameron Squires are set to write on the series. HBO Max declined to comment on the story, and details remain locked up like a killer doll behind a blessed glass cabinet. What’s clear, however, is that the show will continue the narrative established by the films, keeping Conjuring lore very much alive, just on the small screen.

The timing is a little eyebrow-raising. Only days after The Conjuring: Last Rites hit the 2025 movie schedule, the franchise is pivoting to TV even as the fourth mainline film barrels toward box-office glory. While the critics were pretty mixed on the series’ swan song, fans showed up at the box office like a horde of zombies, with the worldwide box office now over $210 million, according to Box Office Mojo.

A franchise plan like this an unorthodox one-two punch that suggests the studio sees the franchise as a two-front scare machine. Sure, Ed and Lorraine Warren actors Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson may be saying goodbye to one of the best horror movie franchises. However, this TV show confirmation could mean that the brass behind the IP thinks there is enough mythology to provide ample fodder for prestige TV and future feature spinoffs.

As for Won’s hiring, it's a savvy bit of casting. Her recent work spans the genre spectrum, from Apple TV+’s Sunny to Hulu’s Tiny Beautiful Things and Little Fires Everywhere, plus the Marvel noir of Netflix’s Jessica Jones. Earlier stints on Jericho and Supernatural proved that she can juggle high stakes and the occult without losing her character's heart. If The Conjuring is to sustain weekly dread and long-arc mystery, a storyteller with both emotional intuition and genre chops is essential.

Cameron and Squires bring further genre bona fides. Cameron’s credits include the Marvel Halloween special, Werewolf by Night and stints on Agatha All Along, Moon Knight, and WandaVision–all available with a Disney+ subscription. Squires also wrote on Agatha and Wanda, while hopping across Agent Elvis, The Acolyte, and even Season 2 of Gen V. That collective experience in serialized world-building and in balancing horror, humor and superheroic weirdness should translate nicely, whether the series leans episodic, serialized, or a blend of both.

All in all, it seemsThe Conjuring Universe isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. It might look a bit different as it moves forward, but fans can be happy that it’s continuing and changing. If the team that’s coming together can pull it off, TV could actually be the smartest place for this franchise to give you some genuine scares.

For now, fans of new and upcoming horror movies can catch the fourth—and, if reports are true, final—mainline installment, The Conjuring: Last Rites, in theaters nationwide. Check your local listings.

Sometimes real life feels even too absurd for the movies, which is exactly how I felt when I read that comedian Matt Rife was buying The Warren’s houses and the Annabelle Doll. And, as insane as that headline reads, it's true. Now the director of the newly released The Conjuring: Last Rites, Michael Chaves, reacted to the information in a way I was not expecting.

Chaves isn’t clutching a crucifix over the Matt Rife headlines, mind you. However, the filmmaker is instead pitching a film that feels like it could be right at home on the upcoming horror movie schedule. When asked about the comedian buying Ed and Lorraine Warren’s former Connecticut home and becoming legal guardian of the Annabelle doll, the Nun II helmer laid out a concept to Entertainment Weekly, imagining a “Phase 2.” He explained:

Rife announced in early August that he’d “officially purchased” the Warrens’ home and Occult Museum, which helped launch the blockbuster horror movie franchise. The funnyman officially became the legal guardian of the haunted artifacts — including Annabelle — for at least five years, leaning into his long-standing obsession with the paranormal. That real-world setup is precisely what fires Chaves’ imagination: an influencer-era entry point that threads the Warrens’ lore through today’s attention economy.

Of course, Michael Chaves can’t resist leaning into the irony and absurdity of the cursed relics being turned into content. He continued:

Franchise-wise, the timing is tidy. The Conjuring: Last Rites is billed as the final on-screen outing for Ed and Lorraine Warren, but the broader Conjuring Universe of movies was built for side doors and spin-offs. Chaves’s pitch is basically a ready-made logline. A headline-grabbing caretaker films bite-sized encounters with infamous artifacts? Honestly, it feels like the sort of biting satire that Weapons and Barbarian director Zach Cregger is known for, and it could honestly be deeply revitalizing to the franchise.

The pitch also aligns with what these films do best: blending the intrigue of “based on a true story” with pulpy, demonic escalation. Rife’s guardianship also gives the series a modern conduit, turning the way mythology spreads today—through clips and viral moments—into the story itself.

Michael Chaves may be half-joking but, if Warner Bros. were to bite, the idea could be more viable than it sounds. Frankly, while I’ve enjoyed some Conjuring entries, more have been a miss for me. A new direction and era for the franchise would be a welcome change for this horror movie fan.

So far, the franchise’s next steps are unclear, aside from a previously announced series for those with an HBO Max subscription, set in the same horror world. Until then, fans can catch the latest (and possibly last) big screen entry, The Conjuring: Last Rites, now playing in theaters. Fans can all stream all of the films on the aforementioned streamer.

Spooky season is drawing closer, but overall so far the 2025 movie calendar has been kind to those who love the horror genre. Fans of The Conjuring movies are undoubtedly hoping that The Conjuring: Last Rites — the conclusion to Ed and Lorraine Warren’s story — will be the year's next hit horror, and the critics are here to weigh in ahead of the film’s September 5 release to theaters. So what are they saying?

Set five years after The Devil Made Me Do It, the Warrens (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga) are eyeing retirement when they meet the Smurl family, who have come into possession of a mirror whose evil has ties to the Warrens’ daughter Judy (Mia Tomlinson). In CinemaBlend’s review of The Conjuring: Last Rites, Eric Eisenberg says the movie brings the series to a satisfying conclusion, but its return to the haunted house narrative doesn’t pack the same punch as previous movies. He rates it 3.5 out of 5 stars, writing:

Meagan Navarro of Bloody Disgusting also gives the movie 3.5 out of 5 skulls, saying Last Rites includes a few standout moments of blood-curdling dread while also playing up the sentimentality audiences have developed for the Warrens. The critic says:

Matt Zoller Seitz of RogerEbert.com gives it 3 stars out of 4, writing that Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson’s performances have always been part of what makes The Conjuring one of the best horror movie franchises, and the same is true for their final chapter. Of the movie overall, Seitz says:

Travis Hopson of Punch Drunk Critic isn’t fully on board with the emotional family aspect overshadowing the scares. However, characters from the past movies showing up does remind fans of the impact this franchise has had on the horror genre for so long. Hopson gives the film 2.5 out of 5 stars and says:

Frank Scheck of THR says it’s not just the floorboards that are creaky in the ninth movie on The Conjuring’s timeline. Last Rites offers “stale scares” in director Michael Chaves’ fourth movie in the franchise, which feels like it’s suffering from fatigue. Scheck continues:

Overall, critics seem to be a bit “meh” on the newest offering in The Conjuring franchise, as it’s accumulated just 57% on Rotten Tomatoes from 74 critics. If you’ve been loyal to the Warrens’ story since 2013, however, it’s probably worth checking out Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson’s swan song. The Conjuring: Last Rites hits theaters on Friday, September 5.

Using CGI to make an actor appear younger than they are has become a not uncommon practice in modern cinema. It’s certainly come a long way in the decades that it’s been in use, and while it’s difficult to argue that it doesn’t still have some problems, it does the job remarkably well. This is likely why Michael Chaves, director of The Conjuring: Last Rites, fully assumed he would be using the technology in the new film.

The opening of the newest and final, Conjuring film includes a flashback sequence that sees protagonists Ed and Lorainne Warren, played in the rest of the franchise by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga, as much younger people than we’ve ever seen them. Chaves tells EW that when he originally conceived of the sequence, he knew exactly how he wanted to portray the younger characters, saying:

Not so long ago, the need to have younger versions of your characters in a film meant casting younger actors. There really was no other option. Today, using CGI to de-age an actor is a real choice, and it’s one that a lot of movies go with. While finding a young actor who is believable as a younger version of a character is certainly possible, using CGI can technically create a more realistic version of the character. It also allows the stars of the movie to be on screen more.

It’s not surprising that the film planned to use de-aging to make Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga look younger, but when The Conjuring: Last Rites opens this weekend, that’s not what you’ll see. The movie ended up pivoting and going with actors. It seems that when the director started to look into the actual process of de-aging, he became less sure it was the right way to go. And then he got a call from one of his actors. Chaves explained:

Farmiga’s argument was that using different actors would make the scene somewhat unsettling for the audience, that having the main actors on screen would give the audience a level of comfort you wouldn’t necessarily want in a scene that was supposed to be scary. In the end, the decision was made to pivot and cast the parts rather than use CGI.

Madison Lawlor and Orion Smith were ultimately cast as the young Lorainne and Ed. Overall, it certainly appears that everybody now agrees that going with the younger actors was the right call. And while The Conjuring: Last Rites is set to be the last film in the franchise for Wilson and Farmiga, perhaps this opens the door to prequel stories?

Ever since the Marvel Cinematic Universe became a pop culture titan, studios have regularly tried to create their own massive shared canons in the same vein, and while most of the efforts failed, there is a case to be made that the Conjuring Universe is the one exception. In addition to the main Conjuring series, the franchise has also spawned the Annabelle trilogy and the Nun duology (and there is also The Curse Of La Llorona, for those who want to count it).

Given this scope and success, you might think that the grand finale, the upcoming The Conjuring: Last Rites, might craft a story akin to what was pulled off in Avengers: Endgame – featuring the return of various villains to square off with Ed and Lorraine Warren – but it turns out that the director took inspiration from a different comic book blockbuster in the making of the film.

How A Logan-Esque Approach Ended Up Being Chosen Over An Avengers: Endgame Angle For The Conjuring: Last Rites

Earlier this month, I had a nice long interview with filmmaker Michael Chaves about his latest chapter in the Conjuring Universe (Last Rites follows his work on The Curse Of La Llorona, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, and The Nun II), and one thing I asked was if there was ever consideration of having the movie feature some kind of grand villain team-up – with potential appearances from Valak, The Crooked Man and more. He confirmed that it was an idea that was definitely discussed during early blue sky meetings about the project, saying,

There is a natural logic: The Conjuring: Last Rites picks up with Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga’s Ed and Lorraine Warren as they are getting older and nearing the end of their careers as demonologists… so what better time for a team-up attack from evil’s all-stars?

That exciting option was on the table, but Michael Chaves preferred taking cues from another capstone superhero movie: director James Mangold’s Logan. The film was designed to be the final chapter for Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine (that didn’t turn out to be true, but whatever), but the approach to the story didn’t see all of his old demons come back to haunt him (if you’ll pardon the pun). Choosing not to go that route ultimately lets the focus just be on who the protagonist is in his final mission, and Chaves wanted that for the Warrens:

Instead of a villain team-up, the filmmakers instead opted to go back to basics.

Why The Haunting Of The Smurl Family Was Chosen As The Case In The Conjuring: Last Rites

Like all of the movies in the Conjuring series, Last Rites pulls from the actual case files of the real Ed and Lorraine Warren, and when the filmmakers behind the upcoming horror movie knew what they wanted to build the plot around, they found a perfect fit: the haunting of the Smurl family in West Pittston, Pennsylvania.

In an effort to find the appropriate fit, Michael Chaves, screenwriter David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, and the producers of the movie found that the mid-1980s incident made for perfect subject matter: the timing fit, it was highly publicized, and there was plenty of scary material to work with. Said Chaves,

How will the Warrens fare when they square off with the new evil? Fans everywhere will be able to find out soon, as we are now just a little over a week away from the arrival of The Conjuring: Last Rites in theaters on September 5.

Move over, Monkey drummer popcorn bucket, because there’s a new horror movie merch icon in town, and she’s a whole lot creepier. With the upcoming The Conjuring: Last Rites set to hit theaters amid the 2025 movie schedule soon, Regal has revealed the latest collectible guaranteed to haunt your kitchen cabinet: the Annabelle popcorn bucket. As cool as it is, eaters beware, as you’re in for a scare if you're going to eat out of this container.

The Regal theater chain dropped the first look at the Conjuring bucket on Instagram. True to form, the possessed doll is just as unsettling when she’s holding your buttery treat as when she’s staring blankly from behind glass in the Warrens’ artifact room. Fans in the comments wasted no time declaring they “NEED” it — though you might want to think twice before digging in, unless you’re cool with Annabelle cursing your snack time:

This cool item is a bittersweet reminder that the final chapter in one of horror’s most successful franchises is nearly here. Last Rites is set to close out the long-running Conjuring Universe and sees paranormal investigators Lorraine (Vera Farmiga) and Ed Warren (Patrick Wilson) tackling their last case. Trailers for the upcoming horror movie hint at a familiar evil tied to one of their earliest encounters, making it a fitting full-circle finale for a series that’s spanned more than a decade, inspired multiple spinoffs and delivered some of modern horror’s biggest scares.

S what better way to mark the end of an era than with an Annabelle popcorn bucket? Naturally, horror fans had plenty to say when Regal unveiled the collectible on social media. Let's take a look at some of the best comments:

• @alexandroarroy – Yeah I’m not bringing that home 😂
• @full_circlelife – You know what I think? This is one bucket I will skip.
• @lenny_tsents – How and where do we purchase this.
• @Jho_fra22 – Amoooooo 😍
• @Cinema1ine – Ok, I’ll be watching. I want that bucket🔥
• @theghoulishmortal – I fear this is a need.
• @zowzaaa – Nope☺️

For me, a longtime Conjuring fan, the choice of Annabelle makes perfect sense. The doll has been a fixture within the franchise ever since her first appearance in the Warrens’ artifact room in 2013’s The Conjuring, which led to three spinoff films centered around the doll. Yet, as cool as the bucket is, some fans are less amused and flat-out refuse to bring Annabelle into their homes. Honestly, that makes sense, given the somewhat creepy vibe of the admittedly creative bucket.

The Warrens’ stories blended real-life legends with cinematic scares, and this popcorn bucket blurs the line between fun collectible and haunted artifact. Even if you don’t believe in cursed objects, it’s hard not to feel a little uneasy reaching into Annabelle’s popcorn stash in a dark theater.

Fans can decide for themselves if they’re brave enough to dig into Annabelle’s cursed popcorn stash when The Conjuring: Last Rites hits theaters on September 5. Bucket or no bucket, the franchise seems determined to send horror lovers off with one final, unforgettable scare. In the meantime, stream past entries in the franchise with an HBO Max subscription.

We live in an age where there's so much real and sketchy information coming out, one sometimes has to drill down on due dilligence to make sure a piece of news is actually accurate. When I initially read the news that popular stand-up comedian Matt Rife purchased the house of Ed and Lorraine Warren, I 100% assumed it was a joke, because how could those words mashed up together not be a made up? After triple-dipple checking to confirm that bill of sale did indeed transpire, I need to see this turned into a TV series or documentary or something.

Yes, as horror fans wait for Conjuring: Last Rites to scare the pants off them, the comedian who blew up on TikTok has now put forth his hard-earned wages to purchase the home once owned by the paranormal investigators who sparked an entire industry. Oh, and on top of that, he's now in possession of the real-life Annabelle doll, which I only recently learned is a Raggedy Ann doll, and doesn't resemble the creepy toy in those movies. In any case, this whole situation is just begging to get turned into some kind of story that I'd immediately binge with a Netflix subscription (given that's the platform where his special streamed), and I'll tell you why.

The Situation Surrounding Matt Rife Acquiring The Warren House Is Rather Unsettling

It's worth noting that Matt Rife and YouTuber Elton Castee have been pursuing ownership of the Warren home for a while now, and long before it made news for another grim reason. Readers may remember hearing about how one man, Dan Rivera, passed away while on a tour of the home and in the presence of the now-iconic Annabelle doll.

WPRI.com reported that Rivera was actually going to be a partner in owning the home with Castee and Rife ahead of his passing, but that Rife only met him once a couple of years prior to his death. ,

It's pretty wild, given the spooky history surrounding Annabelle as well as the other occult items found in the Warren home, that one of the three future owners would die just a month before taking possession (so to speak) of the home.

All this being said, it's been reported there was no signs of foul play in Rivera's death. Thankfully, no one involved seems to be sensationalizing the death for the sake of driving tourism to the home.

The Spookiness Mixed With The Comedy Is The Main Appeal To Me

There's a golden opportunity here to mix comedy and horror, something that doesn't happen as often as I'd like. This is basically the premise that's as close as we could get to a plotline in Scary Movie, to the point I think it'd be a crime if someone didn't try to make a show out of it.

I also like the potential of using someone like Matt Rife to pull other celebrities into the fold. I know that Cardi B commented on the purchase, so maybe she and her boyfriend and NFL star Stefan Diggs could stop by and see all the scary stuff that's in the estate.

Let's also remember there's other comedians that could be featured on a show like this as well. Imagine The Conjuring with Dave Chappelle in the mix. I love the vision, though I guess they'd only be able to find as many celebrity guests that are willing to deal in stuff with a history of haunting individuals across decades, which may be a tall ask. If it can happen, though, consider me on board as officially wanting to see that.

Until we get some updates on a potential collaboration between Matt Rife and the The Conjuring universe, this whole idea will just have to remain on paper. Still, if someone isn't ideating the possibility of it happening, then what are we even doing here? Besides avoiding haunted dolls at all cost, obviously.

The Conjuring movies featured many dark forces like Bathsheba Sherman, The Crooked Man, The Occultist, and more. But the most prominent and subtle antagonist of the series is the Annabelle doll that is a vessel to a demonic entity. The toy is based on a real one from the case files of the real Ed and Lorraine Warren, and a lead investigator for the New England Society for Psychic Research recently died while touring with it.

The Evening Sun has reported sad news out of the Gettysburg from the Devils on the Run tour, which travels around the country with the Annabelle doll. On July 13, Dan Rivera, a senior lead investigator for the Connecticut-based New England Society for Psychic Research, died on that tour where he attended to show the “demonically possessed” toy (which, unlike its depiction in the movies, is an old Raggedy Ann).

Emergency crews responded to calls from a Gettysburg hotel where CPR was performed on Dan Rivera. Three days later, the Pennsylvania State Police shared a report with People providing more details on what happened to the lead investigator:

As of yet, no cause of death has been confirmed. Annabelle’s origins were first brought to the big screen in the first Conjuring movie. The film starts in 1968 with Ed and Lorraine visiting a nursing student who was gifted the doll and brought it back to her home.

The story is that strange occurrences took place with the nursing student and her roommate, and a psychic medium told them the doll possessed the spirit of a young girl named Annabelle. Paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren were called in and kept the doll in a glass case to better contain any “evil” stored in it.

While the Annabelle doll made a brief appearance in the first Conjuring movie, the demonically possessed doll’s story was expanded in future movies. In the haunted doll’s first spinoff movie, Annabelle, we see the antique doll in possession of young couple John and Mia Form. After satanic cultist Annabelle Higgins breaks into their home, she bled to death while holding the doll to further bind the demon into it; the doll causes paranormal disturbances in an attempt to take Mia’s soul.

Annabelle: Creation connects back to the previous spinoff movie that told the origins of cultist Annabelle Higgins. We learn she was originally an orphan named Janice, possessed by a demon attached to the infamous creepy doll she encountered in her childhood. Then, set after the events of The Conjuring is Annabelle Comes Home: which sees the babysitter of the Warrens’ daughter and her friend accidentally open Annabelle’s case and unleash the evil inside.

What makes the demonic Annabelle doll so terrifying throughout the Conjuring universe is that she’s not like Chucky, who physically fights their foes. She’s a magnet for demonic energy in summoning or empowering evil spirits, a master of manipulation, and causes psychological torment without ever moving.

Our thoughts go out to the friends and family of lead investigator Dan Rivera. The New England Society for Psychic Research has said in their statement that they’ll continue its previously planned events of the tour, believing “Dan would have wanted the work to continue.” You can see Ed and Lorraine’s infamous Annabelle doll movies and the rest of The Conjuring series on your HBO Max subscription.

Outside of Marvel, most of the “cinematic universes” that studios have attempted to create have failed to catch on, but one that has been surprisingly successful is The Conjuring and its numerous spinoffs. Fans will get the final Conjuring movie, The Conjuring: Last Rites, later this year. But it will happen without a major crossover that many fans were likely expecting, or at least hoping, to see.

The last movie in the Conjuring franchise, 2023’s The Nun II, contained two things of relevance to the new film. First, it starred Taissa Farmiga, the sister of Vera Farmiga, the co-star of the main films. Second, the movie contained a post-credits scene with Vera and her Conjuring co-star Patrick Wilson, indicating a possible meeting between the two sisters on screen.

Unfortunately, fans hoping for the sisters to team up will be disappointed in Last Rites as it doesn’t happen. Michael Chaves, who directed both The Nun II and the new Conjuring film, tells EW he wanted to do more with the characters, but unfortunately, it was simply too complicated. He explained…

While how much of The Conjuring stories are “true” is certainly a topic of debate, the movies are based on the experiences of the real-life Ed and Lorraine Warren. So drawing a connection between two characters where none existed IRL was simply a step too far for the movies. At least if the franchise was going to keep itself as close to the official stories as possible. He continued…

Drawing connections between characters, potentially even making the characters in the two franchises related, as they are in real life, is exactly the sort of thing we’d expect from a cinematic universe of connected movies. However, that’s the problem according to Chaves. At that point, it becomes the fiction of the movies, and it seems everybody wants to hold on to the authenticity of the core stories. Chaves said…

Hopefully, what the franchise may have lost in larger connections is more than made up with the authenticity that The Conjuring: Last Rites is looking for. We’ll find out when the film hits theaters in September.

The horror genre has been thriving for years, to the delight of fans like me. Some of the best horror movies from recent memory have come from filmmaker James Wan, including The Conjuring franchise (which is streaming with a Max subscription). There were plans for a Crooked Man spinoff, but it looks like the cinematic universe will end with the upcoming horror movie The Conjuring: The Last Rites. And Wan and producer Peter Safran explained why that never happened.

What we know about The Conjuring: The Last Rites is limited, but it looks like it's going to be the final chapter of the long-running franchise. This a bummer for fans who were hoping to see The Crooked Man bring something new to the universe, but it turns out that those plans were actually scrapped thanks to the popularity of The Nun. As Safran revealed in an interview with EW:

So that explains it. As horror fans will know, The Nun became its own franchise, with two different movies starring Taissa Farmiga. That titular villain had one of the scariest senes in The Conjuring 2, even more than its main antagonist The Crooked Man. And as such, plans for the latter creature to gets its own movie eventually faded away.

But just because the Crooked Man movie got scrapped doesn't mean that James Wan doesn't still have passion for that horror project. In that same interview, the Saw filmmaker revealed that he's still got ideas for what that spinoff could be, offering:

Well, I'm going to keep crossing my fingers that his happens. Because while the main Conjuring franchise is ending, perhaps Blumhouse will keep the spinoffs alive. Wan's reputation with horror is stellar, and he's been able to bring bonkers projects like Malignant to life. So maybe he'll get a chance at The Crooked Man sometime in the future... especially because he's clearly so passionate about the project.

The Conjuring: Last Rites will hit theaters September 5th as part of the 2025 movie release list. We'll just have to wait and see if it's actually the end of the entire franchise as a whole.

Any fan of all things spooky will tell you that most romantic couples in horror movies are really anything but romantic. Typically, one partner is seen gaslighting the other or (sometimes literally) stabbing them in the back. This trope begs the question, are there any great horror movies in which the “lovers” at the center actually do give a damn about each other?

As a matter of fact, there are many romantic horror movies that, despite the deadly circumstances of their plots, remind you that love is not dead by featuring couples who share a bond that is absolutely heartwarming, or even heartbreaking. The following are a few examples of creepy classics and the people who make killer love stories out of them.

Beetlejuice (Adam And Barbara)

Director Tim Burton’s sophomore feature, Beetlejuice, is considered one of the best Michael Keaton movies for the actor’s uproarious, scene-stealing performance as the eponymous bio-exorcist (whose name is actually spelled “Betelgeuse,” by the way). However, the true stars of the classic ‘80s movie are the recently deceased Adam (Alec Baldwin) and Barbara Maitland (Geena Davis), who want nothing more but to spend their afterlives together in peace, if not for the new living tenants of their dream home getting in the way.

The Evil Dead (Ash And Linda)

I can understand why some people might look at the Evil Dead movies and see nothing but viciously gory demonic possession films. However, at the heart of Sam Raimi’s 1981 original is a tender romantic tragedy, anchored by Ash J. Williams (horror movie icon Bruce Campbell) and his ill-fated relationship with Linda (Betsy Baker, the first of three actors to play the role). When Ash is about to do the right thing and dismember his Deadite girlfriend with a chainsaw but, after one look at the necklace he bought her, breaks down in tears instead, it gets me every time.

Let The Right One In (Eli And Oskar)

Tomas Alfredson’s Swedish 2008 adaptation of John Ajvide Lindqvist’s novel, Let the Right One In, is one of the best vampire movies to portray the struggles that come with being an undead bloodsucker. More impressively, it is also a relatable tale of first crushes, as seen through the eyes of the lonely Oskar (Kåre Hedebrant), whose affection for Eli (Lina Leandersson) remains even after he learns her dark secret.

The Conjuring (Ed And Lorraine)

If not for their indelibly terrifying imagery and breathtaking atmosphere, the core Conjuring movies would still be appealing dramas due to the impeccable chemistry between Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga as Ed and Lorraine Warren. While the hit horror movie franchise does not offer the most historically accurate portrayal of the married paranormal investigators – a 2023 Vox feature covers all the infamous details of their lives and careers – I would be more than happy to invite their adorable cinematic counterparts into my home even without a demon present.

Happy Death Day (Tree And Carter)

I am surprised 2017’s Blumhouse horror movie favorite, Happy Death Day, is not more widely recognized as a great rom-com, considering how Tree Gelbman (Jessica Rothe) falls more in love with Carter Davis (Israel Broussard) each time she wakes up in his dorm room to relive the day of her murder. Their romance is even sold more strongly in the time loop flick’s 2019 sequel, Happy Death Day 2U (also a fun multiverse movie), when Tree chooses to abandon an alternate reality where her mother is still alive but Carter is dead just so she can be with him.

Warm Bodies (R And Julie)

Director Jonathan Levine’s adaptation of Isaac Marion’s novel, Warm Bodies, reimagines the story of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet with a more positive ending… and a post-apocalyptic future setting overrun with reanimated corpses. Nicholas Hoult stars as a young zombie known only as “R,” whose major-league crush on the still-living Julie (Teresa Palmer) eclipses his craving for human flesh and ultimately proves to be the cure for the deadly plague.

The Fly (Seth And Ronnie)

In David Cronenberg’s 1986 remake of The Fly, the reclusive Dr. Seth Brundle’s (Jeff Goldblum) unexpected storybook romance with journalist Veronica “Ronnie” Quaife (Geena Davis) is cruelly interrupted by an accident that causes him to slowly become a half-man, half-insect creature. Seeing Seth’s dreadful, dehumanizing transformation through the heartbroken Ronnie’s eyes is what makes the classic body horror movie one of the genre’s all-time most upsetting romantic tragedies.

Spring (Evan And Louise)

A film that could almost be considered the antithesis to The Fly in certain ways is Justin Benson and Aaron Moorehead’s supernatural drama Spring, which feels like how Richard Linklater’s Before Sunrise might have turned out if written by H.P. Lovecraft. The less you know about this underrated international thriller from 2014 the better but I will say that Evan (Lou Taylor Pucci) and Louise’s (Nadia Hilker) Italian romance serves as a wonderful, symbolic representation of love's ability to transform people into the best versions of themselves.

Tucker And Dale Vs. Evil (Dale And Allison)

Eli Craig’s clever 2010 horror-comedy movie, Tucker and Dale vs. Evil, starts off, primarily, as a story of friendship, following the innocent, titular hillbillies' (played by Alan Tudyk and Tyler Labine) struggle to understand why college students keep dying on their woodland property. However, as blood continues to hit the screen and more classic slasher movie tropes are subverted, the young, attractive Allison (Katrina Bowden) begins to grow more fond of Dale, who is an undeniable step up from her initial love interest, Chad (Jesse Moss), for reasons fans of the flick will understand.

Heart Eyes (Ally And Jay)

One of the more recent horror movies with a romantic twist is 2025’s darkly comedic slasher, Heart Eyes, in which recently acquainted coworkers Ally (Olivia Holt) and Jay (Mason Gooding) become mistaken for lovers by a masked killer who targets couples on Valentine’s Day. However, their more-than-professional affection becomes clear by their commitment to protecting one another from their ruthless attacker.

Ghost (Sam And Molly)

While not an overt horror film like the other titles above, 1990’s Oscar-winning box office smash, Ghost, is a sexy supernatural thriller that absolutely deserves a shoutout as a testament to love’s lasting power. Even beyond death, the lingering spirit of the murdered Sam Wheat (Patrick Swayze) is committed to reaching out and protecting his grieving lover, Molly Jensen (Demi Moore), with the help of medium Oda Mae Brown (Whoopi Goldberg).

Not everyone would think to look to the horror genre as inspiration for couple goals, but a true fan knows where to look.

The horror genre is about to bid farewell to two of its most popular heroic characters, Ed and Lorraine Warren, with the release of The Conjuring: Last Rites. However, fans of the long-running, blockbuster horror movie franchise should not fear, as this does not mean we have seen the last of the Conjuring Universe movies in order yet. Learn why, and more about this highly anticipated upcoming horror movie in our guide below.

What Is The Conjuring: Last Rites Release Date?

Spooky season is coming just a little earlier than usual this year because The Conjuring: Last Rites appears on our upcoming 2025 movies schedule with a release date of September 5, 2025. It will be predated by plenty of exciting horror sequels due in the summer, such as the June releases of 28 Years Later, showing more of the Rage Virus’s aftermath, and M3GAN 2.0, which brings back the dancing killer robot with a new agenda.

What The Conjuring: Last Rites Is About

As one could infer from its title, The Conjuring: Last Rites will serve as a curtain call for Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga’s portrayals of famed alleged demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren. Farmiga reflected on this finale of sorts with an Instagram post commemorating her fake marriage to Wilson and the end of principal photography for the sequel in November 2024.

Fittingly, the Conjuring Universe’s final movie to feature the Warrens dramatizes one of their last high-profile cases, which is known as the Smurl Haunting. According to the New England Society for Psychic Research, Jack and Janet Smurl claimed, in 1986, that their family’s Pennsylvania duplex was inhabited by a vicious demon that terrorized them in various ways, including sexually molesting Janet. The case was previously depicted in a Golden Globe-nominated TV movie called The Haunted from 1991, which was based on a book the Smurls penned with the Warrens and writer Robert Curran.

The Conjuring: Last Rites Trailer Introduces A Terrifying Villain For The Warrens To Face

In an exclusive first look at The Conjuring: Last Rites from Entertainment Weekly, director Michael Chaves says that the film introduces “the darkest thing we've ever seen in the series.” Well, the sequel’s official trailer corroborates that claim quite effectively just by the sight of its central, demonic antagonist. Watch the clip below and bear witness to this metaphysical monster if you dare:

I typically balk at horror movie trailers that show what we are supposed to be afraid of instead of saving it for the film (a sin previous Conjuring movie promos have committed). However, I must admit that grim, grinning demon face really got under my skin and actually makes me interested in seeing more of it when the film hits theaters.

The Conjuring: Last Rites Cast

Two of modern cinema’s most iconic horror movie actors are reprising the roles that earned them that honor in the Conjuring: Last Rites cast, but they are not alone. See who the newcomers are portraying, as well as what they and the franchise veterans are also known for.

Patrick Wilson (Ed Warren)

Patrick Wilson first worked with director James Wan on another haunted house movie favorite, 2011’s Insidious, two years before he first portrayed Ed Warren in 2013’s The Conjuring. The Emmy nominee also has superhero movies under his belt (Wan’s Aquaman films), tried his hand at directing horror with Insidious: The Red Door, and is diving into a different shade of the genre by starring in an upcoming Apple TV+ series based on Cape Fear.

Vera Farmiga (Lorraine Warren)

Vera Farmiga was already well on her way to Scream Queen status when she was cast as Ed Warren’s medium wife, Lorraine, having previously starred 2009’s Orphan and A&E’s Psycho prequel series, Bates Motel as Norma Bates. The Academy Award nominee (for Jason Reitman’s Up in the Air) does not seem to have any future horror titles on the horizon, but is set to star in a movie about the Heaven’s Gate cult called The Leader, which is a pretty unsettling topic.

Mia Tomlinson (Judy Warren)

Mia Tomlinson makes her feature film debut in The Conjuring: Last Rites as the Warren’s daughter, Judy, who was previously portrayed as a child by Sterling Jerins and McKenna Grace. According to Deadline, the British actor could previously be seen in dramatized sequences Netflix’s The Lost Pirate Kingdom, as well as a TV show called The Beast Must Die, and short films called Bandits and The Mediator.

Ben Hardy (Tony Spera)

Judy Warren’s boyfriend (and real-life future husband), Tony Spera, is played by fellow Brit Ben Hardy. The last time the actor portrayed an actual person was when he starred in the music biopic Bohemian Rhapsody as Queen Drummer Roger Taylor and, before then, was best known for the U.K. soap opera EastEnders and playing Angel in X-Men: Apocalypse.

Rebecca Calder (Janet Smurl)

Portraying alleged haunting victim Janet Smurl is Rebecca Calder, whom one might recognize from the Guy Ritchie movie Wrath of Man and House of the Dragon as “Dragon Keeper Elder.” The English actor is also no stranger to horror, having appeared in the 2021 werewolf flick, The Cursed.

Elliot Cowan (Jack Smurl)

Janet’s husband, Jack, is being played by Elliot Cowan, who also did a werewolf movie in 2015 called Howl, but was better known then for appearing in Oliver Stone’s Alexander. More recently, the English actor was seen in Apple TV+’s Foundation and Netflix’s The Crown.

Kíla Lord Cassidy (Heather Smurl)

Jack and Janet’s daughter Heather, is played by Kíla Lord Cassidy, who is making her horror debut with The Conjuring: Last Rites. However, the actor has already experienced a variety of genres in her career, such as action with The Doorman and period dramas with Netflix’s The Wonder.

Beau Gadsdon (Dawn Smurl)

Another Smurl daughter, Dawn, is portrayed by Beau Gadson, who debuted as a young Jyn Erso in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story two years before playing a young Lisbeth Salander in The Girl in the Spider’s Web. She would later play a young Enid in the 2021 horror movie, Censor, young Princess Margaret on Netflix’s The Crown, and young Elizabeth in Robert Zemeckis’ Here.

Tilly Walker (Carin Smurl)

Tilly Walker makes her feature debut in The Conjuring: Last Rites as one of Jack and Janet’s younger daughters, Carin, is Tilly Walker. She has previously appeared in episodes of the English mystery series, C.B. Strike, and BBC’s The Famous Five.

Molly Cartwright (Shannon Smurl)

Playing Carin’s twin sister, Shannon, is Molly Cartwright, who is making her screen acting debut in the horror film. She also has a horror-comedy movie in the works called The Scurry.

Michael Chaves Is Directing The Conjuring: Last Rites

The aforementioned Michael Chaves returns to helm The Conjuring: Last Rites after previously directing the third installment, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. Before then, he made his directorial debut overseeing one of the spin-off features, The Curse of La Llorona, in 2019.

David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, who co-wrote The Conjuring 2 and went solo on The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, returned to pen this fourth installment, along with The Nun II scribes Ian Goldberg and Richard Naing. Johnson-McGoldrick is also a producer on the film, alongside the director of many great horror movies (including 2013’s The Conjuring), James Wan, and Peter Safran.

Last Rites Concludes The Conjuring Universe's "Phase One”

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter from April 2025, New Line Cinema president Richard Brener builds upon Michael Chavez’s comments to SlashFilm from 2023, in which he claimed that The Conjuring: Last Rites was the grand finale to the franchise. He assures that the sequel actually marks the end of the franchise’s “Phase One.”

That appears to be a Marvel-esque way of announcing that there are more ghosts and demons to expect beyond the release of Last Rites. Brener does not reveal any specifics about what “Phase Two” may entail, but we do know that there is one forthcoming installment in the works.

There Is Also A Conjuring TV Show Spin-Off In Development

In 2023, Variety reported that there were plans to continue the Conjuring Universe on the small screen with a spin-off series. There is still no word on what the upcoming horror TV show is about, specifically, nor has it been revealed when it will become available to stream with a Max subscription.

How To Watch The Previous Conjuring Movies

Before the Warrens’ cinematic legacy comes to an end with The Conjuring: Last Rites, relive the previous installments of the franchise. Most of them are among the best horror movies on Max, while The Conjuring 2 is currently only available to rent.

How to watch the Conjuring Movies

I, for one, am looking forward to seeing how The Conjuring: Last Rites wraps up the Warrens’ story when it haunts theaters this fall!

It's every young filmmakers dream to get a small loan from a family member, max out a credit card or two, and produce a masterpiece that resonates with audiences and makes a ton of money. It's not easy to do, to say the least, but somehow the makers of the movies on this list pulled it off. Well, maybe on as little money as some stretched credit, but on pretty tight budgets. Our of movies with a small budget that made a big impact. 

Clerks

According to Box Office Mojo, Clerks made a little over $3 million in theaters. While that might seem like much, consider how little it cost Kevin Smith to make. $27,000. That's it. The lore is that first-time writer/director/star Smith maxed out his credit cards and enlisted his friends as actors to make the movie. Of course, it looks like it doesn't have much of a budget, but it's so funny and well done it doesn't matter, the movie is a bonafide cult classic still.  

The Blair Witch Project

There is no better example of a small budget having a huge impact than 1999's The Blair Witch Project. The movie was made for just $60K, but when the word spread virally around the country in the early days of the internet, it started packing theaters. When all was said and done, it made just $1.5 million, more than 25 times its budget. Just incredible. 

American Graffiti

Four years before he redefined what science fiction could be with Star Wars, George Lucas made a movie much closer to reality, at least how he saw reality in his formative years. American Graffiti didn't have the smallest budget on this list, it was around $770,000, but it still had an outsized impact. The movie made $115 million in total. 

28 Days Later

Director Danny Boyle has had some big-budget movies in his career, but he's proven again and again that he doesn't need a monster budget to make a great film. 28 Days Later is one of his most beloved movies and it was made for just £8 million. It took in over ten times that in box office receipts and has spawned multiple sequels. 

Mad Max

When you think about how huge the Mad Max franchise has become, it's important to remember how small it started. The original Mad Max starring Mel Gibson was made for about $250K in 1979. It made almost $9, but it spawned a franchise that has raked in cash over the decades since. 

El Mariachi

The lore of El Mariachi runs deep. According to most reports, director Robert Rodriguez originally made the film for under $7,000. While this may be technically true, another couple hundred thousand eventually went into post-production when Columbia Pictures bought the film. Still, it was made on a shoestring budget either way. 

Get Out

Until Get Out was released in 2017, director Jordan Peele was mostly known for his comedic work. The horror movie he made wasn't comedy, but it was box office gold. It did have a budget of around $4.5 million, but when you consider it made over 50 times its budget at the box office, that number looks pretty darn small. 

My Big Fat Greek Wedding

Every once in a while, a movie comes out of nowhere and becomes a massive hit. My Big Fat Greek Wedding is a classic example. The rom-com wasn't perfect, but it was made for just $5 million in total, and it ended up grossing well over $350 and spawned two successful sequels. 

The Conjuring

2012's The Conjuring had a more robust budget than some of the movies on this list, at $20 million, but since it made well over 10 times that budget in theaters, it's safe to call it a sound investment. It also led to a franchise that has released a slew of modestly budgeted films that have made big money. 

Napoleon Dynamite

One movie that no list like this would be complete without is Napoleon Dynamite. The 2004 surprise hit was made on a meager budget of just $400K, but audiences adored it and it raked in over $100 million at the box office and is still beloved decades later. 

Pi

Filmmaker Darren Aronofsky burst onto the scene with a tiny movie he made with a budget of just $34K, but Pi ended up bringing in over $3 million in theaters. It's a wild movie and looks very much like the small-budget movie it is, but it's exciting and fast-paced. In it, you can see the blueprint for Aronofsky's later movies like Requiem for a Dream.

Swingers

Swingers was soooo money. Literally. Not only did the 1996 film launch the careers of Jon Favreau, Vince Vaughn, and Ron Livingston, as well as director Doug Liman, it made $4.5 million in theaters and oodles more on home media. All that on a budget of just $200K.

Paranormal Activity

The horror genre has always made the most of its budgets. Some of the most successful films, in terms of ROI, have been horror flicks. Paranormal Activity is a great example of this. The 2007 release was made for just $17,000 but took in nearly $200 million upon its release! It also led to multiple sequels.

Godzilla Minus One

It seems all the best Godzilla movies are made on tight budgets. Godzilla Minus One is no exception. While its budget was in the $10+ million range, it's still astonishing what director Takashi Yamazaki was able to get out of that. It looks like its budget could be ten times that number, which is about how much money the movie made. 

Rocky

In 1976, Sylvester Stallone introduced the character of Rocky Balboa to the world. The original movie, Rocky, had a budget of around $2 million and it crushed at the box office to the tune of $117 million. Of course, it spawned one of the most successful franchises of all time with a total box office gross in the neighborhood of $2 billion. 

Nomadland

The 2021 Oscar winner for Best Picture was the indie film Nomadland. The stirring movie was made for just $5 million but on the strength of its reviews and its award haul, the movie brought in nearly $40 million. Not a bad ROI for a movie about people living in vans. 

Hoodwinked!

2005's animated indie flick Hoodwinked! was made for right around $8 million according to director Cory Edwards. It took in over $150 million at the box office. It was the first time an animated indie had ever done those kinds of numbers and none have done it since, either.

The Usual Suspects

1995's The Usual Suspects had a bit of a slow burn at the box office. It started modestly, making just $645K when it first opened. As word of mouth spread about the mystery thriller, more and more people started seeing it. In total, it made $23 million on a $6 million budget, but it also was very successful on home media and is considered a stone-cold classic with an incredible plot twist at the end. 

Sling Blade

Written, directed, and starring Billy Bob Thornton, Sling Blade was made for just around $1 million. Thornton was nominated for two Oscars, one for Best Actor and one for Screenplay, winning for the latter. The movie's box office haul of about $36 million looks modest compared to big blockbusters, but with that kind of ROI, you can't say it wasn't a massive success. 

Black Swan

Director Darren Aronofsky is a master of getting more for less. One great example is 2010's Black Swan. On the surface, a movie about the ballet might seem like a risky bet, but that bet paid off big time when the movie brought in over $300 million against a $13 million budget. It also garnered five Oscar nominations with Natalie Portman winning for Best Actress. 

Memento

In 2023, director Christopher Nolan released the phenomenally successful Oppenheimer. It made nearly a billion dollars on a $100 million budget. A couple of decades early, Nolan showed just what he could do with a tight budget as well. His first film, 2000's Momento, was made for under $10 million and made about $50 million in theaters. 

Garden State

Director and writer Zach Braff's very personal 2004 movie Garden State was an indie darling when it was released. Made for a budget under $3 million, it brought in $35.8 in theater receipts. While some people make fun of it, it was a seriously buzzy film when it was released and still has huge fans today. 

Halloween

John Carpenter's Halloween is one of the most influential horror movies of all time. While the franchise has made hundreds of millions over the years, it all started with that one film in 1978. Made on a shoestring budget of just over $300K, it grossed $47 upon its release and the rest is horror history. 

Searching

2018's Searching by first-time filmmaker Aneesh Chaganty was a surprise hit. Made for just $880,000, the thriller raked in over $75 million at the box office. Chaganty has made two more movies on modest budgets, 2020's Run which had mixed results financially, and 2023's Missing, which, while not as successful in terms of ROI as Searching, still made an impressive $48 million on a $7 million budget. 

The Whale

Nobody saw The Whale coming in 2022, but once again director Darren Aronofsky hit a home run with a modest budget. The movie took home a slew of awards including a Best Actor Oscar for Brendan Fraiser, leading to the "Brenaissance" for the veteran actor. Made for just $3 million, it made $57 million in theaters.

Insidious

When it comes to small-budget horror, Blumhouse Productions really knows what it is doing. One of the best examples is Insidious. The 2010 movie was made for about $1.5 million, and it took home a massive $100 million at the box office. It also launched a franchise that racked up more than $700 million in total. Just insane numbers. 

Pulp Fiction

You might be surprised to see such an iconic film as Pulp Fiction on this list, but remember, it was Quentin Tarantino's second film. Miramax financed the film with about an $8 million budget, far less than some of his future movies. Of course, it's gone on to be a cultural touchstone and one of the most beloved movies of all time. When it was released, it brought in over $200 million at the box office. 

Once

It's common to see horror movies and comedies have huge ROIs on small budgets, but it's very uncommon to see off-beat musicals do it. 2007's Once is a massive exception. The movie, directed by John Carney, with original music by its stars Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová, was made for $150K. Not only did it make $23 million in theaters, it led to a successful Broadway musical that won eight Tony Awards. 

Trainspotting

1996's Trainspotting wasn't director Danny Boyle's first movie, but it was the one that made him a star. The brutal movie about addicts in Scotland became a huge hit, making £48 million against a £7 million budget. It also helped launch the careers of Ewan McGregor, Jonny Lee Miller, and Kelly Macdonald. Not bad for an indie. 

Open Water

For anyone with hydrophobia, Open Water is an impossible movie to watch. Even viewers who don't suffer that affliction might after seeing it. The horror thriller, released in 2003, was a surprise hit at the box office, making $55 million. All that for a movie with a budget well under one million bucks. Talk about swimming with sharks, wow. 

Lost in Translation

Sofia Coppola's 2003 hit Lost in Translation was the movie that officially brought her out from behind her father's shadow. Bill Murray and Scarlet Johansson brought their immense talent to the small-budget flick ($4 million) and helped Coppola make a masterpiece that made over $100 million in theaters. 

Saw

The Saw horror franchise is an unstoppable monster. With a collective box office haul of over $500 million, it's crazy to think it all started with the original movie with a budget of right around $1 million. All this from a series that many people simply won't watch at all because of the goriness. Amazing. 

While in Paris for the highly anticipated House of the Dragon Season 2 premiere, JB Perrette, president and CEO of global streaming and games at Warner Bros. Discovery, and Casey Bloys, chairman and CEO of HBO and Max content, took a moment to sit down for an interview. Their conversation centered on exciting new developments for Warner Bros. and HBO, particularly their plans to expand their streaming content. Many fans will surely be thrilled by the announcement, but I have major reservations about one series, particularly their upcoming horror TV series based on The Conjuring Universe of films.

Warner Bros. And HBO’s Major Announcements 

Speaking with Variety, Perrette and Bloys not only teased several new shows but also announced release dates for TV series based on beloved Warner Bros. IPs. Among the titles discussed were Crazy Rich Asians, Harry Potter, the prequel series to Stephen King’s IT, Welcome to Derry, and the aforementioned The Conjuring TV series. This exciting lineup is a testament to the potential and future of Warner Bros. and HBO.

The James Wan series of films has been a personal source of some of the best horror movies of all time–especially the first two. As a viewer who's been deeply captivated by the cinematic universe James Wan built, I can’t help but feel a bit skeptical. The series is set to expand the world of The Conjuring, which includes spin-offs like The Nun, Annabelle, and The Curse of La Llorona. While the prospect of more haunting tales is undeniably appealing, several concerns have me worried about this project.

My Key Concerns About The Conjuring TV Series

Firstly, the magic of The Conjuring movies hinges on the stellar chemistry between Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga, who portray Ed and Lorraine Warren. Their dynamic infuses the horror with emotional depth and authenticity. With the fourth movie reportedly set to conclude the Warrens’ story, it’s doubtful we’ll see Wilson and Farmiga reprise their roles for the series. Can the show capture the same essence that made the films so compelling without them? Even in the movies I liked the least–like the third main series flick–Wilson and Farmiga made the viewing experience at least entertaining.

Moreover, the phrase “set in the world of the James Wan Conjuring movies” is a bit of a red flag. If the series resembles the less impactful spin-offs like The Nun or The Curse of La Llorona, it might struggle to hit the mark for me and, I suspect, most fans. These spin-offs have often been criticized for not living up to the mainline films’ standards, and that’s a fate I wouldn’t wish on this new series.

Why I Am Still Cautiously Optimistic

Warner Bros. and HBO’s new lineup of shows is undeniably exciting, but I remain cautiously optimistic about The Conjuring series. It faces significant challenges in living up to the legacy of its predecessor's mainline movies while avoiding the pitfalls of some of the Universe’s lesser-ranked entries. Here’s hoping it can overcome these hurdles and deliver the chills and thrills fans crave. Only time will tell if it can recapture the magic of the original films. You know what would really get me excited? Reviving the Crooked Man project. James Wan said the movie was officially scrapped, but maybe this character is best suited for a streaming series.

The next big tentpole series coming up is Penguin with Colin Farrell, a spinoff of Matt Reeves’ The Batman. You can stream the series with a Max (formerly HBO Max) subscription.

Whether or not you believe in ghosts, few would deny that the mere idea of being in a haunted house is unsettling. For that reason, there are many great horror movies based on the premise of sharing a home or any isolated area with a deceased individual’s spectral remains, yet some are more frightening than others. If you are looking for a truly terrifying supernatural movie night, these scary ghost movies should do the trick.

The Shining (1980)

While trying to finish a novel, a recovering alcoholic author (Jack Nicholson), his wife (Shelley Duvall) and young son (Danny Lloyd) become caretakers of a desolate Colorado hotel where a sinister presence threatens to tear them apart.

Why it is a seriously scary ghost movie: While the author himself was not a fan of Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of his 1977 novel, The Shining is considered to be among the best Stephen King movies — if not the best — for its unrelentingly eerie atmosphere and aimlessly unique depiction of hauntings.

Stream The Shining on Max.
Rent or buy The Shining on Amazon.

The Changeling (1980)

A recently widowed music professor (Academy Award winner George C. Scott) becomes wrapped up in a disturbing mystery about his new home — a long-vacant mansion in Seattle — with guidance from the ghost haunting it.

Why it is a seriously scary ghost movie: One of Martin Scorsese’s favorite horror movies is The Changeling, which is acclaimed as one of the best horror movies that address grief in a profound way in addition to its top-notch scares.

Stream The Changeling on Tubi.
Stream The Changeling on Peacock.
Stream The Changeling on Plex.
Rent or buy The Changeling on Amazon.

Poltergeist (1982)

A real estate agent (Craig T. Nelson) and his wife (JoBeth Williams) tries to rescue their youngest daughter (Heather O’Rourke) from the evil spirits that have invaded their home and abducted her into their realm.

Why it is a seriously scary ghost movie: Hailing from producer Steven Spielberg and director Tobe Hooper, Poltergeist is an essential haunted house movie — not just for its indelibly frightening elements, but also for its emotionally grounded depiction of parents longing to find their missing child.

Stream Poltergeist on Max.
Rent or buy Poltergeist on Amazon.

The Sixth Sense (1999)

A child psychologist (Bruce Willis) with his own dark past tries to help a young boy (Haley Joel Osment) come to terms with his disturbing gift.

Why it is a seriously scary ghost movie: Arguably M. Night Shyamalan’s best movie, the clever and frightening classic The Sixth Sense has a unique set of rules about the afterlife which, once you see the killer twist ending, you’ll never think of the same way again.

Rent or buy The Sixth Sense on Amazon.

Stir Of Echoes (1999)

After agreeing to be hypnotized by his sister-in-law at a party just for a laugh, it quickly proves to be no laughing matter for the man (Kevin Bacon) as he begins to see visions of a girl who is dead. 

Why it is a seriously scary ghost movie: Because it was released not long after The Sixth Sense and bore similar themes of ESP and paranormal activity, writer and director David Koepp’s intense adaptation of Richard Matheson’s novel Stir of Echoes did not get the attention it deserved, and rarely has since then.

Stream Stir Of Echoes on Tubi.
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Stream Stir Of Echoes on Freevee through Amazon.

Session 9 (2001)

Relations between the somewhat normally close-knit crew of an asbestos removal company grow sour as they race to complete a job at an abandoned mental hospital with a dark past that slowly comes to light.

Why it is a seriously scary ghost movie: From director Brad Anderson — who also co-writes with star Stephen Gevedon — and also starring CSI: Miami star David Caruso, Session 9 is yet another unfairly overlooked horror movie with some really good scares and a chilling final act.

Rent or buy Session 9 on Amazon.

1408 (2007)

A grieving father who specializes in disproving supernatural phenomena (John Cusack) puts the legend of an hotel room with a supposedly deadly curse to the test, only to find a reason to believe.

Why it is a seriously scary ghost movie: From director Mikael Håfström, 1408 is another haunted hotel story from author Stephen King that mostly plays out like a spooky one-man show, while also starring Cusack’s future Cell co-star, Samuel L. Jackson.

Rent or buy 1408 on Amazon.

The Orphanage (2007)

During a visit to the foster home where she grew up, a woman (Belén Rueda) and her husband (Fernando Cayo) accidentally lose their young son (Roger Príncep) and turn to unusual measures in hopes of finding him.

Why it is a seriously scary ghost movie: From producer Guillermo del Toro and writer and director J.A. Bayona, the Spanish-language thriller The Orphanage is already spine-tingling as a missing child story, but its ghostly elements make for an unforgettable frightening experience.

Rent or buy The Orphanage on Amazon.

Lake Mungo (2008)

A family from Australia recalls in interviews the strange events that would begin to plague their home shortly after their teenage daughter drowned to death.

Why it is a seriously scary ghost movie: From writer and director Joel Anderson, and one of the most unlikely After Dark Horror Fest entries, Lake Mungo is an overlooked supernatural drama that's so mysteriously compelling, delicately constructed, and convincingly acted, no one could fault you for assuming this faux documentary was real.

Stream Lake Mungo on Tubi.
Stream Lake Mungo on Plex.
Rent or buy Lake Mungo on Amazon.

Grave Encounters (2011)

The typically skeptical crew of a docuseries that explores notorious sightings of alleged hauntings find the irrefutable evidence they never thought they would after locking themselves in an empty insane asylum.

Why it is a seriously scary ghost movie: Part satire of paranormal investigation reality series like Ghost Adventures, and another part relentless nightmare fuel, Grave Encounters is another relatively underrated found footage thriller featuring some of the most unforgivably frightening supernatural entities you could imagine.

Stream Grave Encounters on Freevee through Amazon.
Stream Grave Encounters on Tubi.
Stream Grave Encounters on Plex.

Insidious (2011)

A teacher (Patrick Wilson), his wife (Rose Byrne) and their children begin to suffer from very strange and disturbing circumstances after their eldest son (Ty Simpkins) mysteriously falls into a coma.

Why it is a seriously scary ghost movie: Writer Leigh Whannell and director James Wan of Saw fame already turned the haunted house genre on its head with the unique concept of Insidious, but rarely had a film of this kind been so visually arresting and indelibly frightening at this time either.

Stream Insidious on Max.
Rent or buy Insidious on Amazon.

The Pact (2012)

After her sister goes missing not long after the death of their mother, a woman (Caity Lotz) begins to suspect that the secret behind her disappearance is tied to the unexplainable events she begins to experience in her childhood home.

Why it is a seriously scary ghost movie: If you have never seen or heard of writer and director Nicholas McCarthy’s The Pact, I highly recommend it to people who enjoy engrossing mystery stories that do not hold back on high-stakes frights.

Stream The Pact on Tubi.
Rent or buy The Pact on Amazon.

The Woman In Black (2012)

A widowed legal practitioner (Daniel Radcliffe) is shocked to learn that an abandoned manor in a small London village is haunted by a vengeful spirit who struck fear in the locals.

Why it is a seriously scary ghost movie: Based on the novel by Susan Hill, The Woman in Black is one of Daniel Radcliffe’s best movies outside of the Harry Potter franchise in the way it harkens back to a forgotten era of gothic tales of the unexplainable, but with haunting imagery for audiences of any generation to get spooked by

Stream The Woman In Black on Paramount+.
Rent or buy The Woman In Black on Amazon.

The Conjuring (2013)

A family calls upon the help of famed paranormal investigators Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) to help rid their new Rhode Island home of the evil presence inhabiting it.

Why it is a seriously scary ghost movie: While the more memorable antagonists in any of the Conjuring Universe movies are of the demonic sort, director James Wan’s original that started it all has its fair share of great and grandly creepy ghostly moments.

Stream The Conjuring on Max.
Rent or buy The Conjuring on Amazon.

Ouija: Origin Of Evil (2016)

A mother of two (Annalise Basso and Lulu Wilson) who makes a living as a fake medium (Elizabeth Reaser) adds a new element to her performance that turns out to be much more real than she could have envisioned.

Why it is a seriously scary ghost movie: Some of the earliest proof of writer and director Mike Flanagan’s expertise in horror storytelling was the surprisingly taut and viscerally unsettling Ouija: Origin of Evil — a prequel to an almost universally reviled generic teen thriller from 2014.

Stream Ouija: Origin Of Evil on Netflix.
Rent or buy Ouija: Origin Of Evil on Amazon.

If these ghost movies do not manage to scare you, we hope they at least warm your spirit as a horror fan.

Some of the scariest things about the 2026 TV schedule so far? All the recent cancellations, amirite? When it comes to shows that actually strike fear in viewers, however, there's thankfully a lot to celebrate and look forward to, from the long-awaited new season of The Terror to the future of IT: Welcome to Derry to Walking Dead and Last of Us' post-apocalypses. Not to mention a couple of solid options that are currently airing.

Let's start there before expanding the scope to incorporate all the big horror shows set to debut elsewhere in 2026 and beyond.

Currently Airing Horror TV Shows

From (Sundays on MGM+)

• The Cast: Harold Perrineau, Catalina Sandino Moreno, David Alpay, Elisabeth Saunders, Scott McCord, Ricky He, Eion Bailey, Julia Doyle
• The Creator: John Griffin (Crater)
• Why Horror Fans Should Be Watching: If you haven’t yet watched the creature-filled chaos that came before the currently airing fourth season, remedy that immediately. It’s best to know as little as you can before meeting the Stevens and Matthews families (among others), but do know that the series was already ordered for its fifth and final season ahead of Season 4’s debut, so it’s building up to quite the explosive ending.

Widow's Bay (Wednesdays on Apple TV)

• The Cast: Matthew Rhys, Kate O’Flynn, Kevin Carroll, Stephen Root, Dale Dickey, Jeff Hiller, Kingston Rumi Southwick, Neil Casey, Toby Huss
• The Creator: Katie Dippold (MadTV, Parks and Recreation, The Heat, Ghostbusters)
• Why Horror Fans Should Be Watching: Apple Originals rarely go wrong, especially when it comes to genre material. Critics are loving this one, praising the blend of small-town comedy with a genuinely spooky atmosphere and unpredictable moments for Matthew Rhys as the optimistic mayor of a struggling resort town who’s trying to make it a tourist destination despite long-held superstitions suggesting the area is cursed. Plus, anything with Stephen Root is a winner.

Horror TV Shows Coming Soon In 2026

The Terror: Devil In Silver (Shudder, AMC, AMC+)

• The Cast: Dan Stevens, Judith Light, CCH Pounder, Chinaza Uch, Aasif Mandvi, Hampton Fluker, John Benjamin Hickey, Stephen Root
• The Creator: Victor LaValle (author of Devil in Silver, The Changeling), who serves as co-showrunner with Christopher Cantwell (Halt and Catch Fire)
• What’s The Terror: Devil In Silver About? The third season of AMC’s acclaimed horror anthology, Devil In Silver adapts the novel of the same name, with a story centered within a struggling mental health facility whose most notorious patient is believed by some to be the epitome of evil. Pepper (Dan Stevens) is unfairly committed to the facility after a violent incident, and his goal for justice quickly become a fight to survive within the hospital’s walls.
• Why We’re Most Excited: The first two seasons of The Terror established a high pedigree of storytelling, and LaValle adapting his own acclaimed novel serves as quite the intriguing way to bring the horror franchise into the modern day. Having a cast of ringers certainly helps, and yes, this is the second cast that boasts Stephen Root.

The Boroughs (Netflix)

• Release Date: May 21, 2026
• The Cast: Alfred Molina, Geena Davis, Alfre Woodard, Denis O’Hare, Clarke Peters, Bill Pullman
• The Creators: Jeffrey Addiss and Will Matthews (The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim)
• What’s The Boroughs About? A retirement community that looks downright ideal from the outside, but proves to be something entirely more dangerous and monstrous for the aging inhabitants.
• Why We’re Most Excited: Technically more in the sci-fi realm than straight horror, The Boroughs is one of the projects ushered into Netflix by Matt and Ross Duffer, with Stranger Things’ teens traded out for a more mature set of protagonists. And you can’t tell me those six actors would ever join together for a project that legitimately sucks.

Interview With The Vampire Season 3 - The Vampire Lestat (AMC, AMC+)

• Release Date: June 7, 2026
• The Cast: Sam Reid, Jacob Anderson, Eric Bogosian, Assad Zaman, Sheila Atim, Jennifer Ehle, Damien Atkins
• The Creator: Rolin Jones (Based on the novels by Anne Rice)
• What’s The Vampire Lestat About? The third season of AMC’s “Vampire Chronicles” adaptations will cover the second book, also titled The Vampire Lestat, which shifts the perspective more to Lestat, flashing back to his earliest days as a bloodsucker, and digging heavily into his era as a 1980s rock star.
• Why We’re Most Excited: The TV show could finally give Anne Rice fans a counterpoint to 2002’s heavily panned Queen of the Damned, which seems absolutely imminent given the quality of the first two seasons. As well, I’m optimistic for Lestat’s band, which boasts music supervisor Ryan Katten, better known to indie rock fans as Man Man’s frontman(man) Honus Honus.

The Walking Dead: Dead City Season 3 (AMC, AMC+)

• Release Date: TBA Summer 2026
• The Cast: Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Lauren Cohan,Lisa Emery, Logan Kim, Gaius Charles, Željko Ivanek, Keir Gilchrist, Aimee Garcia, Jimmi Simpson, Raúl Castillo
• The Creators: Eli Jorné, with Walking Dead vet Seth Hoffman taking over as showrunner for Season 3
• What’s TWD: Dead City Season 3 About? Exact details are unclear at the moment, as Dead City hasn’t yet unveiled a Season 3 trailer. That said, it will no doubt follow the events of Season 2’s finale, which saw Herschel further aligning himself with The Dama against Maggie’s wishes, as Negan and Perlie agreed to put differences aside to work together to keep a semblance of civilization intact.
• Why We’re Most Excited: Maggie spent so many years picturing Negan as the biggest monster on the planet, and now that she’s finally learned to let go of that overwhelming hate, she’s lost her hold on her son, which should bring about a different kind of beast-mode for Lauren Cohan’s character. As well, seeing It’s Always Sunny vet Jimmi Simpson in the post-apocalypse can’t be a bad thing.

American Horror Story Season 13 (FX)

• Release Date: TBA 2026
• The Cast: Sarah Paulson, Jessica Lange, Evan Peters, Emma Roberts, Kathy Bates, Angela Bassett, Billie Lourd, Gaborey Sidibe, Leslie Grossman, Ariana Grande, John Waters, Joey Pollari
• The Creators: Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk
• What’s AHS Season 13 About? Though official details are fairly few and far between, tthe horror anthology is indeed heading back down to New Orleans to reconnect with Season 3’s Coven of witches.
• Why We’re Most Excited: Coven is easily one of American Horror Story’s strongest and most beloved seasons, and it makes the most sense for a returning storyline. (Considering the infamous Murder House was already sequelized for the Stories spinoff.) Plus, I’m fascinated with finding out any and all changes in these characters’ lives due to Antichrist Michael being killed via magical time-jaunting shenanigans, which retconned the titular apocalypse. Also, seeing John Waters in the world of AHS should be as magical as the aforementioned time-jaunting. Even more so if Lily Rabe’s Misty Day also returns.

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon Season 4 (AMC, AMC+)

• Release Date: TBA 2026
• The Cast: Norman Reedus, Melissa McBride, Romain Levi, Eduardo Noriega, Óscar Jaenada, Alexandra Masangkay, Hugo Arbués, Candela Saitta
• The Creator: David Zabel, who returns as showrunner for Season 4
• What’s TWD: Daryl Dixon Season 4 About? AMC has yet to reveal much information at all about Season 4 of the Norman Reedus-led spinoff, but it’ll likely pick up some time after Daryl and Carol’s latest attempt to sail home was derailed by their boat getting destroyed. We do know the season will stick around in Spain, as that’s where the bulk of the episodes were filmed during the August-November 2025 production.
• Why We’re Most Excited: The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon will close out its across-the-ocean adventures with Season 4 so these episodes will presumably end in a way that brings them back to the States, hopefully to reunite with other long-unseen characters from Alexandria and other settlements. Assuming Carol and Daryl actually survive it all, that is.

Yellowjackets Season 4 (Paramount+, Showtime)

• Release Date: TBA Late 2026
• The Cast: Melanie Lynskey, Sophie Nelisse, Tawny Cypress, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Christina Ricci, Sammi Hanratty, Sophie Thatcher, Courtney Eaton, Liv Hewson, Warren Kole, Kevin Alves, Sarah Desjardins, Nia Sondaya, Jenna Burgess, Molly Ringwald, June Squibb, Hilary Swank, Elijah Wood
• The Creators: Ashley Lyle, Bart Nickerson, and Jonathan Lisco, who are all back as co-showrunners for the final season.
• What’s Yellowjackets Season 4 About? Given that this will be the final season, fans can expect to see exactly how the teen soccer team was rescued from the wilderness, what happened after Hilary Swank’s Melissa killed Van, how Shauna’s attempt to reclaim her Antler Queen power goes, and a heck of a lot more.
• Why We’re Most Excited: Namely, to get any and all of the answers that have been evading us for the past three seasons. Knowledge is key! (Though I guess eating hearts doesn’t hurt.)

Crystal Lake (Peacock)

• Release Date: TBA Late 2026
• The Cast: Linda Cardellini, William Catlett, Devin Kessler, Cameron Scoggins, Gwendolyn Sundstrom, Callum Vinson
• The Creators: Brad Caleb Kane (based on characters created by Victor Miller)
• What’s Crystal Lake About? At this point, the main thing that’s known about Crystal Lake is that it’s a prequelized story focusing on franchise matriarch Pamela Voorhees. Various versions of this project were in development prior to Kane taking over as showrunner, and it’s assumed that the latest iteration jettisoned all of the prior creative contributions out.
• Why We’re Most Excited: You had me at “Linda Cardellini as Pamela Voorhees,” but the general idea of bringing an episodic approach to Friday the 13th’s central location is wildly ambitious and exciting.

Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 (Paramount+, Showtime)

• Release Date: TBA Fall 2026
• The Cast: Michael C. Hall, Uma Thurman, James Remar, Jack Alcott, Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine, Kadia Saraf, Dominic Fumusa, Brian Cox, Dan Stevens, Bokeem Woodbine, Desmond Harrington, Nona Parker Johnson
• The Creators: Clyde Phillips
• What’s Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 About? With the titular serial killer-stopping vigilante having brought an end to the collective efforts of Peter Dinklage's Leon Prater, Dexter's crosshairs are now set on the elusive New York Ripper, as well as other unsolved cases.
• Why We’re Most Excited: Season 1 of the continuation series was arguably the closest the Dexter-verse has come to matching the fun and bonkers energy of those first seasons, with a murderer's row of guest stars. Color me blood-red with glee that Brian Cox and Dan Stevens are two of the newest entrants, even if they're both already doomed.

Carrie (Prime Video)

• Release Date: TBA Late 2026
• The Cast: Summer H. Howell, Samantha Sloyan, Siena Agudong, Amber Midthunder, Joel Oulette, Matthew Lillard, Arthur Conti, Alison Thornton, Josie Totah, Kate Siegel, Katee Sackhoff, Heather Graham, Rahul Kohli
• The Creators: Mike Flanagan (based on Stephen King’s novel)
• What’s Carrie About? No stranger to bringing new visions to horror adaptations, even King’s works in particular, Mike Flanagan has kept details about his Carrie reimagining close to the vest, and no amount of telepathy has been able to pry anything loose.
• Why We’re Most Excited: I’m always just generally being pumped about new Stephen King adaptations, with new Mike Flanagan projects earning an equal level of obsessive enthusiasm, especially knowing that we’ll be seeing a lot of the filmmaker’s frequent collaborators. Plus, I’m eager to see the idea that convinced Flanagan to make this his next King project before The Dark Tower.

Everything Premiering Beyond 2026

The Last Of Us Season 3 (HBO)

• Release Date: TBA 2027
• The Cast: Bella Ramsey, Kaitlyn Dever, Young Mazino, Isabella Merced, Gabriel Luna, Spencer Lord, Tabi Gabrielle, Ariela Barer, Michelle Mao, Kyriana Kratter, Jason Ritter, Patrick Wilson
• The Creators: Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann, with Druckmann exiting that creative role following Season 2, leaving Mazin as sole showrunner for Season 3
• What’s The Last Of Us Season 3 About? Taking inspiration from the video game series, Season 3 will jump back in the timeline to center on Dever’s Abby and her group, which will add a new world of context to her minimal-but-violent interactions with Ellie and Joel.
• Why We’re Most Excited: If Mazin can be anywhere near as successful as the game was with Abby’s character development, it could potentially win back some of the audience segments who were most vocally against Season 2’s deadliest turn. Even if not, though, I adore Kaitlyn Dever, and can’t wait to see her slaughter some clickers and emotionally bond with Patrick Wilson as Abby’s father.

Alien: Earth Season 2 (FX)

• Release Date: TBA (Filming set to start in late May 2026)
• The Cast: Sydney Chandler, Alex Lawther, Essie Davis, Samuel Blenkin, Babou Ceesay, Adarsh Gourav, Erana James, Lily Newmark, Jonathan Ajayi, Timothy Olyphant, Adrian Edmondson, Peter Dinklage
• The Creators: Noah Hawley
• What’s Alien: Earth Season 2 About? At this point, all we know is that the second season will follow up on Wendy's successful attempt to take control away from Boy Kavalier and his company. Given Noah Hawley's penchant for secrecy, this might be all we know until the first trailer comes out.
• Why We’re Most Excited: The first season was a smart and visceral mix of classic Alien thrills and action, with an added layer of Peter Pan mythology to aid in the overarching synthetics storyline. If Hawley is able to up the ante even slightly, it could be peak TV in whatever year it actually comes out.

Wednesday Season 3 (Netflix)

• Release Date: TBA 2027
• The Cast: Jenna Ortega, Hunter Doohan, Emma Myers, Joy Sunday, Billie Piper, Joanna Lumly, Thandiwe Newton, Luis Guzmán, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Georgie Farmer, Moosa, Mostafa, Isaac Ordonez, Evie Templeton, Eva Green, Fred Armisen
• The Creators: Alfred Gough and Miles Millar
• What’s Wednesday Season 3 About? With filming having started in February, not much has been revealed about the new season just yet, though it'll certainly follow up on Tyler joining a pack of secret Hydes, as well as bringing in a formal introduction to Ophelia Addams.
• Why We’re Most Excited: Personally, I'm all about seeing as much of Evie Templeton's Wednesday-obsessed Agnes as possible, but I guess it'll also be cool to see who ends up getting cast as Morticia's sister Ophelia, as well as seeing the motley crew hunting for Enid. (If this leads to that long-gestating Uncle Fester spinoff, all the better.)

Stay tuned for more udpates on upcoming horror TV shows. Or else! I mean, or else you'll miss out on exciting information.

The Conjuring Universe has become a sprawling tapestry of supernatural tales, and many fans of horror movies are always eager to uncover the hidden connections and threads that tie its characters and stories together. One link that diehard franchise devotes have been asking for is an established connection between real-life sisters Vera Farmiga and Taissa Farmiga, who play Lorraine Warren and Sister Irene, respectively. As the much-anticipated The Nun II finally releases, director Michael Chaves is weighing in on the possibility of connecting these two characters, and what he shares (or doesn’t) is pretty interesting. 

CinemaBlend's own Eric Eisenberg spoke with the filmmaker during the virtual junket for The Nun II. As you can see in the video embedded above, Michael Chaves couldn’t help but tease the idea of a connection between Lorraine Warren and Sister Irene. This notion has intrigued fans since Taissa Farmiga joined the Universe in 2018. On the subject, Chaves stated: 

The director's playful response will undoubtedly keep fans excited about what surprises this sequel has in store. The possibility of a connection between Lorraine Warren, a beloved character at the heart of the spooky series, and Sister Irene, the enigmatic protagonist of The Nun, adds an exciting layer to the expanding lore of this supernatural franchise.

If you've followed the Conjuring movies in chronological order, you likely have your personal favorite in the James Wan-created franchise. Regardless of your choice, there's no denying that the series is one of the best horror movie franchises. While the initial installment of The Nun is often regarded as a lesser addition to the franchise, it managed to become the highest-grossing entry at the box office thus far. Critics have already seen The Nun II, and, though opinions vary on Taissa Farmiga's latest contribution to the universe, our very own Eric Eisenberg awarded it a solid 3.5 out of 5 stars review. He praised its ability to set the mood for the spooky season, making it one of the six movies audiences should eagerly anticipate this Halloween.

As fans eagerly await the opportunity to catch this latest movie, the buzz surrounding its potential connections to the broader Conjuring Universe is bound to grow. With the formidable Vera and Taissa Farmiga leading the way and director Michael Chaves steering the ship, this installment promises to deliver yet another spine-tingling addition to this beloved franchise.

Now, the time has arrived to venture to your nearest cinema and immerse yourself in a fresh dose of terror, as The Nun II begins haunting theaters today, Friday, September 8. Remember to consult your local showtimes. Additionally, keep an eye on our schedule of 2023 new movie releases and list of upcoming horror movies to stay updated on what other cinematic treats are on the horizon.

The Conjuring Universe has been known to send chills down spines, having spun tales of terror that have enthralled fans for almost a decade now. While some movies have opted for the more suspense-filled scene approach and others have embraced the art of jump scares, the series has constantly reinvented its approach to horror, catering to the ever-evolving appetite of its fans. With The Nun 2 soon to hit screens, it seems directorial choices have taken a slightly unexpected and, might I add, thrilling turn. According to director Michael Chaves, the follow-up to the evil habit-wearing spectral sister franchise is the most violent of all the James Wan-produced spin-offs. And by all means, sign me up.

The world of Valak is enigmatic, mesmerizing and deeply terrifying. With its first installment, The Nun, while not a hit with critics, was a hit with fans because it gave fans a taste of the deep-seated evil lurking in the shadows of a Romanian monastery. The upcoming sequel promises more—more scares, more story, and, as it turns out, more violence. In a recent interview with our sister publication, SFX Magazine, Michael Chaves revealed:

The evolution of horror movies over the years has been nothing short of fascinating. Recently, filmmakers, especially those involved with the latest A24 movies, have started to tell more intense and direct stories. The Nun 2 seems to be following this trend. This claim that it's the most violent movie in the Conjuring series has certainly raised my expectations, and I can't wait to see what's in store.

If you've seen the Conjuring movies in chronological order, you'd know The Nun comes first, even though Valek appeared in The Conjuring 2 first. The upcoming sequel will directly follow the original movie, placing it as the second story in the overall series.

Taissa Farmiga, who followed in the footsteps of her older sister Vera Farmiga in joining the series, will return as Sister Irene but with a more minor role. Reports say, Storm Reid, known for The Invisible Man, Euphoria, and a memorable guest spot on The Last of Us, will be the lead in this next movie.

While The Nun isn’t my top pic in my ranking of the Conjuring Universe, I’m still a dedicated fan and avid watcher of every twist and turn in the fascinating and spooky Universe. I'm gearing up for what might just be the most riveting experience yet. The promise of intensified horror and violence in the series' second outing only amplifies my anticipation for the sequel. 

Till then, let's keep our crucifixes close, our night lights on and revisit the original The Nun, which is available for streaming with a Max subscription.  

In recent years, cinematic universes have expanded beyond comic-book movies, with horror movie franchises gaining popularity; captivating audiences with chilling tales. From masked killers to sinister creatures, these franchises have left a mark on the genre and pop culture. As we delve into the dark recesses of horror history, we'll uncover the best and worst aspects of some of the most iconic horror franchises ever spill blood on the silver screen.

Saw (2004 - Present)

Busting onto the scene in 2004, Saw, helmed by James Wan and Leigh Whannell, offered a fresh and twisted take on the genre and, for better or worse, ushered in the rise of the “torture porn” subgenre in the early 2000s.

Best Thing: The Innovative Puzzles - At the core of Saw's appeal were Jigsaw's elaborate and mind-bending puzzles, challenging victims' morals and pushing them to their limits, making the audience eagerly anticipate the next twisted puzzle and driving each movie to outdo itself with gruesome set pieces.

The Worst Thing: The Convoluted Mythology - As the series advanced, it grew more complex, particularly after John "Jigsaw" Kramer (Tobin Bell) died in the third film, causing writers to get creative to fit him into the narratives. The intricate backstory and interconnected plots created a convoluted mythology, challenging both new and longtime fans with confusing webs of characters and timelines. Bell is set to return (again) in the forthcoming Saw X. 

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974 - 2022)

The 1974 OG film, directed and produced by Tobe Hooper, and written by Hooper and Kim Henkel, is a low-budget slasher set in rural Texas, revolving around a family of cannibals who abduct gas station customers, and is considered one of the best '70s movies and a great summer horror watch.

The Best Thing: The Sawyer Family - The series’ enduring legacy lies in the terrifying and deranged Sawyer family. Led by the iconic Leatherface, a chainsaw-wielding maniac with a penchant for human skin masks, the family’s grotesque and unpredictable nature made them standout in the horror pantheon.

The Worst Thing: Leatherface’s Character Inconsistency - While Leatherface remains a horror icon, the character's portrayal suffered from inconsistency across the franchise. In some films, he was a mindless brute; in others, he showed signs of vulnerability and complexity.

A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984 - 2010)

Wes Craven’s 1984 A Nightmare on Elm Street centers around Freddy Krueger, a vengeful apparition of a former child killer, terrorizing and killing Springwood, Ohio's teenagers in their dreams after being burned alive by their parents.

The Best Thing: The Iconic Dreamscapes - Elm Street revolutionized horror with its dream-based terror, blurring the line between reality and nightmare. Freddy's invasion of victims' dreams resulted in unforgettable and imaginative horror sequences, and some incredibly gruesome kills.

The Worst Thing: The Evolution to a Comedic Tone - As the franchise wore on, it gradually shifted from bone-chilling horror to a more comedic approach. While Freddy's dark humor initially added to his sinister charm, it eventually led to a tonal shift that diluted the terror and alienated some die-hard horror enthusiasts.

Child’s Play/Chucky (1988 - Present)

Created by Don Mancini, the Child's Play franchise centers on a notorious serial killer who transferred his soul into a "Good Guy" doll named Chucky (voiced by Brad Dourif) using a voodoo ritual. Since the original film's release on November 9, 1988, the franchise has expanded with six sequels, a successful television series, a remake, comic books, a video game, and tie-in merchandise.

The Best Thing: Writer/Creator Don Mancini - What makes Child’s Play one of best scary doll movies is the creative genius of Mancini, whose vision brought to life the possessed doll with a wicked sense of humor, and his ongoing stewardship of his creation keeps the franchise fresh and engaging.

The Worst Thing: The Shift in Focus to Chucky as a Lead - Chucky became a prominent lead character as the franchise evolved, losing some of the tension from earlier films. However, the fantastic recent TV series has found a more balanced tone.

Friday The 13th (1980 - 2009)

In 1980, the Friday the 13th movies introduced Jason Voorhees and his vengeful mother, who targeted camp counselors for her son's supposed drowning. Decades later, the "cursed" lake becomes the backdrop for a series of mass murders perpetrated by the resurrected Jason.

The Best Thing: The Iconic Villain, Jason - Though it took three movies to solidify the look, the hockey-masked killer with his signature machete became synonymous with the franchise and a pop culture icon.

The Worst Thing: Lack of Compelling Franchise Leads - The franchise struggled to create compelling lead characters that could match Jason's fearsome presence, with Tommy Jarvis being the closest to a recurring lead. As a result, the focus often returned to the killer, leaving some films with lackluster protagonists.

Halloween (1978 - 2022)

Committed to a sanitarium as a child for murdering his sister, on Halloween 1978, the masked Michael Myers returns to Haddonfield to wreak havoc among the townspeople.

The Best Thing: John Carpenter’s Music - Director John Carpenter’s eerie piano melody became synonymous with the masked killer, setting the stage for one of history's most influential slasher films. When the series was rebooted (again) 40 years later, he returned to provide a killer soundtrack.

The Worst Thing: The Many Differing Timelines - The series' convoluted timeline, including reboots, sequels, a standalone, and alternate continuities, can be confusing and frustrating for casual and die-hard fans. So, no shame if you need a guide to the timeline. 

Alien (1979 - 2017)

Ridley Scott's Alien (1979) is one of the best sci-fi movies ever and tells the story of Sigourney Weaver’s warrant officer, Ellen Ripley, and her battles with the extraterrestrial lifeform known as the Xenomorph.

The Best Thing: The Xenomorph - Audiences were introduced to the perfect killing machine designed by the late H.R. Giger, with its sleek, biomechanical design and acidic blood, becoming a symbol of extraterrestrial horror and one of cinema's most iconic creatures.

The Worst Thing: The Prequels (Prometheus and Covenant) - Criticism emerged for the prequels deviating from the original films' horror roots and spending too much time on Xenomorph's origins.

Paranormal Activity (2007 - 2021)

Oren Peli's low-budget original found footage flick is set in October 2006 and follows a young couple, Katie and Micah, terrorized by a demon that has haunted Katie since childhood.

The Best Thing: The Low-Budget and Real-World Approach to Found Footage - Paranormal Activity revitalized the found footage subgenre, proving that a low-budget approach and a clever premise could achieve massive box office success and even become one of the best-haunted house movies of all time.

The Worst Thing: The Lack of Time Between Sequels - If you have watched the Paranormal Activity series in order, then you know quick turnaround between sequels led to diminishing returns.

Psycho (1960 - 2017)

Starting with Alfred Hitchcock's 1960 original, the Psycho franchise revolves around the life of truly terrifying classic horror villain, Norman Bates, a deeply disturbed young man running the Bates Motel. His mentally unstable nature stems from a twisted split personality resulting from his domineering relationship with his mother, leading him to occasionally commit murders.

The Best Thing: Anthony Perkins’ Performance - Psycho's enduring legacy is largely attributed to Anthony Perkins' iconic portrayal of the disturbed innkeeper. His unsettling and nuanced performance made Bates one of the most memorable villains in cinematic history.

The Worst Thing: The Gus Van Sant Remake - Gus Van Sant's color shot-for-shot remake of the masterpiece faced skepticism and failed to capture the essence of the original, feeling like an unnecessary imitation lacking the tension and brilliance of the original film, with Vince Vaughn unable to match Perkins' portrayal.

The Conjuring Universe (2013 - Present)

Beginning with James Wan's 2013 first entry, the films dramatize the real-life cases of Ed and Lorraine Warren, paranormal investigators linked to prominent yet controversial haunting cases.

The Best Thing: Strong Initial Core Films (Conjuring 1 & 2) - The first two flicks are pillars of the modern horror genre, renowned for expertly crafted scares, engaging characters, and Wan's effective storytelling, setting the standard for the expanding universe. The clap sequence from the original remains memorable and chilling.

The Worst Thing: Weak Spinoffs of Varying Quality - While The Conjuring films thrived, some spinoffs, such as The Curse of La La Llorona, struggled to maintain the same quality and scares. The universe's expansion led to some Conjuring movies not living up to standards set by the core entries.

Final Destination (2000 - 2011)

Beginning in 2000, the Final Destination films revolve around a small group of people who escape the manifestation of death after one individual (the protagonist) has a sudden premonition and warns them about an impending disaster.

The Best Thing: The Memorable Kills - Final Destination's unique premise of death's design led to inventive and memorable death sequences, some based on real-life accidents, captivating audiences with the Rube Goldberg-like chain of events leading to each character's demise.

The Worst Thing: Lack of Story Innovation - As the franchise progressed, the formula became predictable, leading to a sense of repetition.

The Evil Dead (1981 - Present)

Sam Raimi's 1981 debut film and subsequent series revolve around the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis, an ancient Sumerian text (now three volumes) causing havoc among a group of cabin inhabitants in a wooded area in Tennessee.

The Best Thing: The Series’ Cinematic Evolution - The Evil Dead franchise has undergone a remarkable evolution, starting as a low-budget cult classic and transforming into a polished, action-packed horror-comedy series, back to its horror roots.

The Worst Thing: The Treatment of Female Characters Early in the Series - The first movie faced criticism for its treatment of female characters, subjecting them to brutal violence, degradation, and an unfortunate sexual assault scene involving a demonic tree.

Scream (1996 - Present)

In 1996, director Wes Craven and writer Kevin Williamson jump-started a hip meta slasher whodunnit series that is still going strong nearly 30 years later.

The Best Thing: The Self-Aware Meta Tone - Scream revitalized the slasher genre with its self-referential and meta approach to horror. Characters in the film were well aware of the rules of horror movies, and the franchise's clever writing and humor set it apart from traditional slashers.

The Worst Thing: Scream 3 - Rushed into production, Scream 3 is a definite low point for the series. This Hollywood-set outing faced criticism for its weaker plot, over-the-top moments, and weak villain reveal, leading some to feel it needed to live up to the standards set by the first two.

Hellraiser (1987 - 2022)

The Hellraiser series, starting in 1987 with Clive Barker's film, centers around the Lament Configuration, a mysterious puzzle box that opens a gateway to a dimension ruled by sadistic beings known as Cenobites. Led by iconic character, Pinhead, the Cenobites bring unimaginable pain and pleasure to those who dare open the box.

The Best Thing: Clive Barker - Hellraiser owes its horrifying and twisted world to Barker, who created the novella "The Hellbound Heart," on which the franchise is based.

The Worst Thing: Miramax/Dimension’s Involvement - From the '90s to the 2010s, Miramax and Dimension Films held the rights and produced numerous direct-to-DVD sequels with questionable creative decisions, leading to lackluster entries and hindering the franchise's potential for consistent quality.

Every major horror franchise has its successes and missteps, leaving lasting memories of fear and excitement. From Saw's innovative puzzles to Friday the 13th's iconic villains, these franchises have etched their names into horror history, tapping into our deepest fears and captivating audiences for generations to come.

When you think of the best horror movies, there are plenty of characters and genres that might come to mind first. For me, one of the scariest kinds of horror movies has to do with demonic possession.

Whether it be because of my Catholic upbringing or my genuine love of horror movies, nothing quite gets to me like a movie about someone getting possessed by either a demon or a super freaking evil spirit, because I do believe in a world that is not our own and these films make it even scarier.

Here are my picks for the best demonic possession movies that you could check out, from classics like The Exorcist to newer favorites.

The Wailing (2016)

First up on this list is The Wailing, a South Korean horror film that is directed by Na Hong-jin. The film tells the story of a policeman who investigates a remote village where there has been a strange string of murders and illnesses that cause the infected to kill their own families.

This film is honestly one of the best demonic possession films I have seen in many years. There are so many reasons to love it, from its eerie suspenseful tone to the acting, to even the story, which is truthfully one of the most original here. South Korea knows how to do horror really well, and this is one of their best flicks. You have to check it out.

Stream The Wailing on Pluto TV.
Rent/Buy The Wailing on Amazon.

The Exorcist (1973)

I’m pretty sure that when you think of demons and demonic possession, this is the film that comes to mind.

The Exorcist, which was released in 1973, is one of the most classic horror movies of all time. You can’t consider yourself a horror movie lover if you’ve never seen it. The film follows the story of two Catholic priests who are exorcists as they try to save a young girl from a demon who is possessing her body.

I mean, there’s seriously so much to love about this film, from the iconic score to the acting to the practical effects — God, the effects. The first time I watched this film, I’m pretty sure I almost threw up from how realistic everything looked. It was the first ever horror movie to be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards, and the screenplay won Best Adapted Screenplay.

Stream The Exorcist on Max.
Rent/Buy The Exorcist on Amazon.

Jennifer’s Body (2009)

Oh, you knew I’d put this on here. In this cult classic film, Jennifer’s Body stars Megan Fox as the titular Jennifer, and how one night, she’s used as a human sacrifice for a satanic band but ends up becoming possessed and turning into a succubus who kills boys at her school. Now, it’s up to her best friend to stop her.

I could go on and on about how Jennifer’s Body is underrated and deserves so much more hype, and thankfully over the last decade or so it’s gained many more fans. It’s a go-to for me during spooky season. It’s hilarious, scary, and features a great performance from not only Megan Fox but the entire Jennifer’s Body cast, so I’d certainly recommend it if you want more of a horror/dark comedy.

Stream Jennifer’s Body on Peacock.
Rent/Buy Jennifer’s Body on Amazon.

Sinister (2012)

Starring Ethan Hawke, Sinister is considered one of the scariest films of the 2010s for a reason. The film follows a true-crime writer who moves into a new house and discovers a series of snuff films that show the murders of a family that once lived there, but soon, the entities behind those films come to haunt him.

Sinister was actually one of the first horror films I watched way back when I was just getting into them, and let me tell you that this movie scared the absolute bejeezus out of me, and I mean that with every part of my being. Not only is Ethan Hawke a fantastic lead, the ending had me thinking about it for weeks.

Stream Sinister on Max.
Rent/Buy Sinister on Amazon.

Hereditary (2018)

Many know Ari Aster now for Midsommar or even his 2023 movie Beau is Afraid, but the director’s debut was actually with Hereditary.

The 2018 film follows the story of a family dealing with the loss of their grandmother, but their lives are anything but peaceful as something from their relatives' past comes back to haunt them.

Let me tell you a story – I watched Hereditary on my own at midnight in college because I couldn’t get to sleep. For some ungodly reason, I thought watching a horror movie would help me sleep.

This movie did not help me sleep. In fact, it terrified me so much that I laid awake in bed for hours, wondering what the heck I just did to myself, and then could not go to bed until the next day when I was with someone I loved again. Watch this during the day, with friends. That’s all I’ll say.

Rent/Buy Hereditary on Amazon.

Paranormal Activity (2007)

Arguably, Paranormal Activity is the OG demonic possession movie for people of my generation, and a great found footage film. It's the first in a series of films that follows a young couple who move into a new home but are haunted by a supernatural presence there, and it only begins to get darker and darker as time goes on, from possession to so much more.

To be honest, I didn't understand the point of the Paranormal Activity movies for a while, but after watching the latest films in the franchise, I have a whole new appreciation for the original and how simple it is. It really made the found footage genre of horror explode – and for good reason. The tension is great and the ending is even better.

Stream Paranormal Activity on Max.
Rent/Buy Paranormal Activity on Amazon.

The Evil Dead (1981)

Directed by Sam Raimi, The Evil Dead is quite possibly one of the goriest demonic possession films there is. It follows five college students who are in a cabin in the woods and discover an audio tape; after they play it, it releases demons into their world, possessing almost all of them except for Ash Williams.

This film is iconic for many reasons. Ironically, I had seen the 2023 film in the franchise without seeing any other, and I had a fun time, but the first one is just something else. It’s campy in the right way, but also terrifying in many others. It’s gory, fun, and Bruce Campbell is an amazing leading man. I would re-watch this, and I don’t say that about many horror movies. You have to love it.

Stream The Evil Dead on Tubi.
Rent/Buy The Evil Dead on Amazon.

Evil Dead Rise (2023)

Oh please, you knew I’d put this on here after mentioning it in the section above this. Evil Dead Rise is the latest iteration in the Evil Dead franchise and came out in 2023, and this time, it follows the story of how a mother is possessed by Deadites and now her sister must try and keep the kids alive when this new demonic version of her family begins to attack and kill everyone.

Look, this film…is gross. I mean that in the best way. If you like the first Evil Dead movie (the one above here), you’ll probably end up liking this one, but think of the first Evil Dead film and multiply it by about 100. This movie is disgusting in the way it delivers its gore and it’s perfect for a demonic possession film because it’s exactly how I would imagine something like this to go. If you’re looking for absolute nightmare fuel, this is it.

Stream Evil Dead Rise on Max.
Rent/Buy Evil Dead Rise on Amazon.

The Conjuring (2013)

The Conjuring is the first movie in The Conjuring franchise that follows the story of Ed and Lorraine Warren, paranormal investigators, and their time at the home of the Perron family who are experiencing supernatural instances and want to find a way to stop it.

When the movie came out in 2013, many fans deemed it one of the scariest horror films in years. I can completely confirm that I feel the same way. The story is great, and it’s even scarier knowing that it’s based on a true story. If anything, it made me want to research Ed and Lorraine Warren more because their life fascinates me.

Rent/Buy The Conjuring on Amazon.

The Exorcism Of Emily Rose (2005)

The Exorcism of Emily Rose, starring Jennifer Carpenter as the title character, tells the story of a priest who was accused of negligent homicide when he was tasked with the exorcism of Emily Rose, a young woman who was supposedly possessed by a demon.

The film is loosely based on the real-life trial of Anneliese Michel, and the film itself is not only terrifying, but offers a lot of legal drama, too. While I don’t think that the story the film presents is as interesting as some of the others on this list, I do think the scares and the acting make up for it.

Stream The Exorcism of Emily Rose on Paramount Plus.
Rent/Buy The Exorcism of Emily Rose on Amazon.

Late Night With The Devil (2023)

Considered an indie film in comparison to many of the big-budget picks on this list, Late Night with the Devil takes a look at how a late-night talk show invites an allegedly possessed girl to boost ratings on Halloween night, but of course, it takes a horrific turn.

This movie is one of those demonic possession films that I really think more people need to see, because it almost feels a little too realistic. As someone who has spent a good majority of her life enjoying late-night TV, the scenario of this happening feels all too real, and I could totally see a late-night host pulling a trick like this. But the fact that the story is delivered through not only traditional filmmaking but also elements of found footage make this a great pick.

Stream Late Night with the Devil on AMC+.
Rent/Buy Late Night with the Devil on Amazon.

Insidious (2010)

Last but not least, we have to talk about Insidious. This now-classic, directed by James Wan, follows the story of a young couple whose son goes into a coma without any explanation, only for them to realize later that he has become a vessel for a demonic entity. Now, it’s up to them to find a way to get him back home once again.

This is one of those series that you learn to appreciate with time, and the first film was honestly so great. The latest film in the Insidious franchise, Insidious: The Red Door, released in 2023, which is the latest film in the franchise, but there’s nothing quite like returning to the one that began it all.

Stream Insidious on Max
Rent/Buy Insidious on Amazon.

What are your favorite demonic possession movies? There are so many out there to pick from – all I know is that I’m sleeping with my eyes open tonight and the ouija board put away.

Unquestionably, 2013’s The Conjuring is one of the most influential horror movies of modern cinema. James Wan’s film helped make way for the genre really being revived in Hollywood in the 2010s. Between the filmmaker delivering a seriously scary movie and it doing so well commercially, it ended up becoming eight movies, so far, and the universe remains alive and well. Well this weekend, the first installment is actually a decade old, if you can believe it, and the director celebrated with some awesome behind-the-scenes photos. 

James Wan is among the biggest names in horror right now, and a lot of that has to do with the last impression The Conjuring left on audiences when it hit theaters on July 19, 2013. The filmmaker took to Instagram this week to thank his collaborators and the movies’ “huge fanbase” for always supporting the spooky franchise. Check out the awesome celebratory video: 

Wan also reflected about the release with EW. In his words: 

At the time The Conjuring hit theaters, a horror movie had not received a wide release in the summer months of June or July since 2006’s The Omen. It proved a smart decision when it opened at No. 1 with $41.9 million, and it became the biggest opening ever for an original R-rated horror film at the time, beating out The Purge’s record. The Conjuring was clearly a huge box office hit, making over $320 million worldwide on a budget of $20 million, but it also really impressed critics and audiences alike. 

It gave way to a massive interconnected horror franchise Hollywood has never given audiences before too. In CinemaBlend’s own ranking of all The Conjuring movies, 2013’s The Conjuring still sits at the top of the list. That being said, audiences have remained dutiful followers of the franchise and there’s more in the works right now. 

The Nun II will be the next of the upcoming horror movies in The Conjuring universe, and it's set to hit theaters this fall. Additionally, it’s been announced that a fourth Conjuring movie is in the works from David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, the writer of the last two installments, along with a Conjuring TV series being in the works for Max.  James Wan is involved in both projects, and he's expected to be producing. 

As Wan plans the next moves for The Conjuring universe, we imagine he’s getting nostalgic about how it all started on the set of the 2013 film starring Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga as real-life paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren. As we look forward to the upcoming installments in the franchise, we certainly do wonder if The Conjuring 4 will be the last movie in the franchise, or if the universe will keep on keeping on. Given the anniversary, feels like a good weekend to revisit the spooky film a decade after its initial release! 

As Warner Bros’ HBO Max soon reaches its third year as a streaming service this May, some changes are afoot. WarnerMedia and Discovery CEO David Zaslav announced on Wednesday that it will be rebranded to be named “Max” instead and there’s a ton of exciting new exclusive series coming to the platform, notably from The Big Bang Theory and Conjuring universes. 

The Big Bang Theory is among the profitable sitcoms of all time, finding a 12-season run along with Warner Bros. Television launching the prequel, Young Sheldon, which is currently in its sixth season. As announced today in a press release, Big Bang Theory creator Chuck Lorre is now developing another comedy that will draw from the world of the beloved sitcom. 

What exactly will that be? Plot details have yet to be disclosed. WarnerMedia previously earned exclusive rights to The Big Bang Theory in an over $1 billion deal back in 2019, per THR.

In addition to more Big Bang Theory coming to audiences, Warner Bros has also unveiled that it will be taking The Conjuring universe to a serial format for the first time. James Wan and his Atomic Monster Productions in concert with Peter Safran are working on a drama series “based on the films” as well. 

News of the mysterious series comes following eight Conjuring movies being released in the past decade and more films on the way, starting with The Nun 2, set to hit theaters this fall.  Wan also previously shared that a fourth Conjuring movie is currently in the works that could "potentially" wrap up the segment of the franchise revolving around Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson’s Ed and Lorraine Warren. 

In the cases of the untitled The Big Bang Theory and The Conjuring series just made known to the public, it certainly sounds like both of them are in the early days of development and it could be some time before we learn more about the specifics of them. Good news for both of them is that their original creators are involved in both instances, rather than these properties simply being expanded on just for namesake. 

In addition to plans for these franchises to find homes on HBO Max’s newly renamed “Max” platform, Warner Bros. also unveiled a first trailer teaser for The Penguin series starring Colin Farrell as his character from last year’s The Batman along with sharing plans for another Game of Thrones prequel series called A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight and confirmed Max will adapt the Harry Potter books into a show. 

A lot is certainly coming up for those with an HBO Max subscription! The “Max” version of the service will debut in the United States on May 23.  

For many horror fans The Conjuring is one of the best horror movies of the 2010s and--quite possibly--of all time. The 2013 horror release was a financial success, earning over $319 million at the box office, paving the way for two direct sequels and an entire Conjuring Universe of films. It seemed like a no-brainer when it was announced in late 2022 that a fourth Conjuring movie project was in the works with all the main players behind and in front of the camera returning. But, according to the franchise’s long-running producer and frequent principal series director, James Wan, the fourth might be the final installment, at least for actors Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson’s Ed and Lorraine Warren.

James Wan has been promoting the upcoming horror movie release, M3GAN, which he produced alongside frequent collaborator Jason Blum. During one of these conversations, Wan was asked about the fourth Conjuring movie and his future plans for the franchise. The filmmaker said he is “very precious” about the series. He also said movement on the next film is going slow because he wants to ensure the emotions are suitable for the potential “wrap-up” of the Warren’s story. The director told Collider:

The moviemaker's comments suggest that the next installment in the Conjuring universe could very well be the last, or at the very least, the last starring Farmiga and Wilson. However, when pressed by the interviewer, Wan was not ready to confirm anything for sure. Wan continued:

I'd hope we Conjuring fans remain optimistic that more future installments could be in our future, though while it's not a “No,” his answer is certainly not a “Yes” either... Perhaps the continuation of the series hinges on the box office performance of the confirmed spinoffs and the next chapter in the main series? 

Only a little is known about the Conjuring 4. Stars Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson are set to return, along with Wan as producer and Conjuring 2 and The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It writer David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick. However, no director has been confirmed for the fourth installment, and Devil Made Me Do It director, Michael Chaves, is currently busy helming the prequel/sequel The Nun 2. The follow-up to the first The Nun is set to see Taissa Farmiga return as Sister Irene. Who knows, maybe before the curtains close on the Conjuring Universe, we can see a family team-up of the Farmiga sisters. That is a crossover event this horror fan would love to see! 

We at CinemaBlend will update you if there are any updates regarding The Conjuring 4 or The Nun 2. Until then, check out our schedule of 2023 new movie releases to plan your next cinema experience. 

Max is one of the best streaming services out there and has a ton of great movies, which can make the process of deciding on one a difficult task. There are so many films you can see with a Max subscription, and as of March 2025, so many have been added, like The Florida Project, Flow and more. Here is what you can check out.

Intense Dramas

For the times you want to be on the edge of your seat:

The Zone Of Interest (2023)

The Director: Jonathan Glazer

The Cast: Christian Friedel, Sandra Huller

What It's About: This movie focuses on the life of an Auschwitz commandant, and how he and his family live in the “Zone of Interest,” an area around the concentration camp.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: The film won Best International Feature at the 2024 Academy Awards and was praised for its story and sound.

• Stream The Zone of Interest on Max.

Civil War (2024)

The Director: Alex Garland

The Cast: Kirsten Dunst, Cailee Spaeny, Wagner Moura, Jesse Plemons, Stephen McKinley Henderson

What It's About: Civil War is a dystopian thriller film that follows the story of photojournalists, both professionals and a rookie, who travel across a United States that has been torn apart by a civil war, and the horrors they face, all to interview one person – the president.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Civil War is hands down one of the best films of 2024, and it’s by A24, which rarely ever misses in the films they distribute.

• Stream Civil War on Max.

The Iron Claw (2023)

The Director: Sean Durkin

The Cast: Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson

What It's About: The Iron Claw is based on the real-life wrestling family known as the Von Erichs, and how they suffered tragedy after tragedy while in the professional sport.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: This is a film that will emotionally gut you by the end, but you’ll thank yourself for it. It’s beautifully acted and well-shot.

• Stream The Iron Claw on Max.

Prisoners (2013)

The Director: Denis Villeneuve

The Cast: Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Viola Davis, Maria Bello, Terrence Howard, Melissa Leo, Paul Dano

What It's About: After two girls are abducted in Pennsylvania, a suspect is released back to the public, and one of the fathers decides to take matters into his own hands and hunt him down.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: I personally think Prisoners is one of Hugh Jackman’s best performances, and you will be riveted by the end of it. The movie is thrilling from beginning to end.

Stream Prisoners on Max.

A Different Man (2024)

The Director: Aaron Schimberg

The Cast: Sebastian Stan, Renate Reinsve, Adam Pearson

What It's About: A man with Neurofibromatosis undergoes a surgery to change his face forever only for the procedure to bring up past insecurities.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: A24 rarely misses when it comes to many of their dramatic films, and A Different Man is right up there with its compelling story and incredible lead performance from Sebastian Stan. It even won the Golden Globe for Best Performance by a Male Actor - Musical or Comedy in 2025.

• Stream A Different Man on Max.

Powerful, Emotional Dramas

For the dramas that make you laugh, cry, and more…

The Florida Project (2017)

The Director: Sean Baker

The Cast: Willem Dafoe, Brooklynn Kimberly Prince, Bria Vinaite, Valeria Cotto, Christopher Rivera, Caleb Landry Jones

What It's About: The Florida Project mainly focuses on the daily life of a six-year-old girl as she and her mother struggle not to become homeless in Kissimmee, Florida while also simultaneously living close to Disney World.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Since Sean Baker recently swept the 2025 Academy Awards for his film Anora, I think it’s time to check out one of his lesser-known films from A24. It’s emotional in all the right ways and beautiful, as well.

• Stream The Florida Project on Max.

Taxi Driver (1976)

The Director: Martin Scorsese

The Cast: Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster, Albert Brooks, Harvey Keitel, Leonard Harris, Peter Boyle, Cybill Shepherd

What It's About: Travis Bickle is a former Marine who takes a job as a taxi driver in New York City, and as the world around him continues to crumble, so does his mental state.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: I mean, I think if you think of Martin Scorsese, there are a few films that instantly come to mind for the brilliant director, and Taxi Driver is one of them. It’s an iconic movie with even better performances and if for some reason you haven’t seen it, you need to check it out now.

• Stream Taxi Driver on Max.

The Imitation Game (2014)

The Director: Morten Tyldum

The Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode, Rory Kinnear, Charles Dance, Mark Strong

What It's About: Based on the autobiography, Alan Turing: The Enigma, this film follows the story of the real-life game cryptanalyst Alan Turing and how he and a team decrypted German intelligence messages and essentially created one of the world’s first modern computers.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Nominated for several awards in many different ceremonies, The Imitation Game is one of those films that really captures your interest the moment you watch it, and by the end, you’ve not only learned something new but want to learn more after.

• Stream The Imitation Game on Max.

The Color Purple (2023)

The Director: Blitz Bazawule

The Cast: Taraji P. Henson, Danielle Brooks, Colman Domingo, Corey Hawkins

What It's About: Based on the stage musical of the same name, which is based on the 1982 novel, The Color Purple is a movie musical about the life of Celie, an African American woman in the early 1900s trying to make a life for herself over time and dealing with domestic abuse at home.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: The movie earned several Academy Award nominations, and features some of the best performances of 2023. You have to check it out if you love musicals.

• Stream The Color Purple on Max.

King Richard (2021) 

The Director: Reinaldo Marcus Green

The Cast: Will Smith, Aunjanue Ellis, Saniyya Sidney, Demi Singleton, Tony Goldwyn, Jon Bernthal

What It's About: King Richard tells the story of Richard Williams (Smith), the father of famous tennis duo, Serena and Venus Williams, and the struggles he went through to see his daughters become the best tennis players in the world.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Starring Academy Award-winner Will Smith, King Richard features the actor in his best role, and is the story that shows the beautiful kind of resilience that we all need.

• Stream King Richard on Max.

Priscilla (2023)

The Director: Sofia Coppola

The Cast: Cailee Spaeny, Jacob Elordi

What It's About: Priscilla is a biographical drama that tells the story of Priscilla Presley, the legendary wife of Elvis Presley, following the tale of how they met, fell in love, and navigated their complicated relationship until their divorce.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: The movie received critical praise for its acting performances and Spaeny shines as Priscilla.

• Stream Priscilla on Max.

Sully (2016)

The Director: Clint Eastwood

The Cast: Tom Hanks, Aaron Eckhart, Laura Linney

What It's About: Based on the inspiring true story, Sully tells the story of real-life pilot Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger and how he saved all the passengers of his flight when he had to make an emergency landing on the Hudson River.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: When I first saw Sully back in 2016, it was one of those films that really opened my eyes to a story that I didn’t fully know, and it’s a quick movie that flies by while also delivering compelling performances from its cast.

• Stream Sully on Max.

Romantic Rendezvous

From dramatic romances to funny ones, these are the romance movies for you:

We Live In Time (2024)

The Director: John Crowley

The Cast: Andrew Garfield, Florence Pugh

What It's About: We Live In Time follows the love story of two people who meet on a whim, and their beautiful and heartbreaking love story.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: We Live In Time utterly broke me when it first came out back in October 2024 and I was seriously shocked it wasn’t up for more awards, because it’s one of those films that just sits with you and makes you think about the beauty in your life, and to learn to enjoy every second that you can, because you never know when it will be taken from you. So beautiful in so many ways.

• Stream We Live in Time on Max.

Eat Pray Love (2010)

The Director: Ryan Murphy

The Cast: Julia Roberts, James Franco, Richard Jenkins, Viola Davis, Billy Crudup, Javier Bardem

What It's About: Based on the memoir of the same name, Eat Pray Love follows a woman who looks for fulfillment in life after ending her marriage, and decides to travel the world.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: I think if you’re ever looking for something that’s romantic but also has a touch of self-love as well, this is the movie for you. You can’t get much better than Julia Roberts in a romantic drama.

• Stream Eat Pray Love on Max.

Love Lies Bleeding (2024)

The Director: Rose Glass

The Cast: Kristen Stewart, Katy O’Brian

What It's About: Love Lies Bleeding follows a young woman who owns a gym but is secretly part of a huge crime family. She gets tangled up in a romantic relationship with a female bodybuilder, and drama ensues once the bodybuilder finds out what is going on.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Love Lies Bleeding features an amazing LGBTQ+ storyline that somehow breaks barriers and also keeps you on the edge of your seat the entire time. Plus, Stewart and O’Brian’s acting is top tier.

• Stream Love Lies Bleeding on Max.

Casablanca (1942)

The Director: Michael Curtiz

The Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Ingred Bergman

What It's About: An American expatriate who runs a successful nightclub in Casablanca, Morocco, is given a second shot at redemption and love when his old flame waltzes back into his life and asks him to help her fugitive husband escape the Nazis once and for all.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: One of the greatest films to ever win Best Picture at the Academy Awards, Casablanca has it all: drama, romance, action, and one of the most quotable lines ever. I mean, do you need me to go on?

• Stream Casablanca on Max.

Crazy Rich Asians (2018)

The Director: Jon M. Chu

The Cast: Constance Wu, Henry Golding, Gemma Chan, Lisa Lu, Awkwafina, Ken Jeong, Michelle Yeoh

What It's About: A Chinese-American professor travels to Singapore with her boyfriend only to find out that his family over there isn’t normal – they are incredibly rich.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: I think Crazy Rich Asians is one of those films that everyone has to watch at least once. The romance in it is top-tier, with some expert-level chemistry and acting, but the comedy aspect is really what makes it so great. Plus, the cast is outstanding.

• Stream Crazy Rich Asians on Max.

Pretty Woman (1990)

The Director: Garry Marshall

The Cast: Richard Gere, Julia Roberts

What It's About: Pretty Woman is a rom-com that follows the story of a rich man hiring a sex worker for a week in order to pretend to be his date for several upcoming social events, and the relationship that grows from there.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Pretty Woman is hands down one of Julia Roberts’ best romantic comedies, and features one of the best romances on the big screen, mixed in with some steamy chemistry.

• Stream Pretty Woman on Max.

Fun Comedies

Get ready for your tummy to hurt from laughing so much:

Modern Times (1936)

The Director: Charlie Chaplin

The Cast: Charlie Chaplin, Paulette Goddard, Henry Bergman

What It's About: Charlie Chaplin’s 1936 silent movie classic, Modern Times, follows the Tramp (Chaplin) as he attempts to make sense of the technologically-advanced world around him and stay out of trouble, failing at both.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: I mean, it’s Charlie Chaplin. How can I not recommend him? There are some of his other films on the platform but I’ll always stand by Modern Times as the best.

• Stream Modern Times on Max.

The Hangover (2009)

The Director: Todd Phillips

The Cast: Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Heather Graham, Justin Bartha, Jeffrey Tambor

What It's About: When a bachelor party goes wrong and the groom winds up missing, it’s up to three groomsmen teaming up together to look for him across Las Vegas before the wedding.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: It’s The Hangover. It’s pretty much considered one of the best comedy movies of the 2000s. I would be a fool not to recommend it to you. It’s hilarious and great to watch with friends.

Stream The Hangover on Max.

• Stream The Hangover on Max.

Teen Wolf (1985)

The Director: Rod Daniel

The Cast: Michael J. Fox, James Hampton, Scott Paulin, Susan Ursitti, Jerry Levine, Jay Tarses

What It's About: A teenager suddenly finds his ordinary world turned upside down when he turns into a werewolf.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: I mean, I think when we remember the most iconic films of the 1980s, Teen Wolf is probably up there for it being one of Michael J. Fox’s biggest movies. It’s funny, a great coming-of-age story, and honestly one that plenty of people can enjoy – and it’s not even scary.

• Stream Teen Wolf on Max.

Keanu (2016)

The Director: Peter Atencio

The Cast: Jordan Peele, Keegan-Michael Key, Method Man, Luis Guzman, Nia Long, Will Forte

What It's About: Two cousins go on the ultimate adventure when a kitten is stolen and they do anything to get him back – including getting tangled up with criminals.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: This movie is so. Freaking. Funny. I stand by it every time I watch it because I think Peele and Key just have the best chemistry out there. Anyone who hasn’t seen it needs to.

• Stream Keanu on Max.

Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World (2010)

The Director: Edgar Wright

The Cast: Michael Cera, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kieran Culkin, Chris Evans, Anna Kendrick, Alison Pill, Brandon Routh, Jason Schwartzman

What It's About: Based on the graphic novel of the same name, the titular character, Scott Pilgrim, must face off against the seven evil exes in order to be with his new girlfriend, Ramona Flowers.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: This film is an absolute classic, especially now fifteen years later. The action is fun, the comedy is great, and it’s an all-around entertaining time.

• Stream Scott Pilgrim vs. The World on Max.

Intense Horrors

These are the kinds of horrors that you might want to leave the light on for:

Evil Dead Rise (2023)

The Director: Lee Cronin

The Cast: Lily Sullivan, Alyssa Sutherland, Morgan Davies, Gabrielle Echols, Nell Fisher

What It's About: Evil Dead Rise is the latest installment in the Evil Dead franchise, this time following the story of a mother who is possessed by the Deadites in that famed demonic book, and causing chaos for her sister and children on the same night.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: The film was a critical success – and even if you haven’t seen an Evil Dead movie before, this one is good for a solo watch for any horror fan.

• Stream Evil Dead Rise on Max.

MaXXXine (2024)

The Director: Ti West

The Cast: Mia Goth, Elizabeth Debicki, Moses Sumney, Michelle Monaghan

What It's About: The final part of the X trilogy, MaXXXine follows Maxine as she makes her way to Hollywood and finds herself in the middle of someone else’s killing spree – someone who is looking to kill her next.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: You could check out X or Pearl prior, but MaXXXine takes the gore to another level and is fun as heck.

• Stream MaXXXine on Max.

The Conjuring (2013)

The Director: James Wan

The Cast: Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Ron Livingsgon, Lili Taylor

What It's About: Based on the real-life haunts, The Conjuring tells the story of Ed and Lorraine Warren, two paranormal investigators, and their experience in a house on Rhode Island that is overcome with disturbing events.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: I remember when The Conjuring first released back in 2013, it was all everyone could talk about, and now, The Conjuring universe is still going strong, twelve years later, with a final film releasing in 2025, The Conjuring: Last Rites. You should certainly check it out if you haven’t yet for the frights.

• Stream The Conjuring on Max.

Sinister (2012)

The Director: Scott Derrickson

The Cast: Ethan Hawke, Juliet Rylance, Fred Thompson, James Ransone

What It's About: Sinister is a horror film that follows the story of a true-crime writer who begins to experience supernatural events after moving his family into a new home, only to find out that there’s more to this house than he thought, including plenty of murder.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Sinister is certainly one of Ethan Hawke’s best movies, but truthfully you should just watch it for how utterly horrifying this film is and how quickly it gets under your skin.

• Stream Sinister on Max.

Not So Intense Horrors

For the ones who need a light horror day:

Child’s Play (1988)

The Director: Thomas Lee Holland

The Cast: Catherine Hicks, Chris Sarandon

What It's About: The ghost of a serial killer possesses a doll, and soon, that new doll is unknowingly gifted to a young boy, which causes nothing but chaos.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: I know that at first glance you might wonder why I put Child’s Play in the “Not So Intense Horror” section but truthfully the first movie isn’t that scary. It’s not as gory or bloody as later Child’s Play movies, and the film is scary in a delightful way and enjoyable for those who want more subdued horror.

• Stream Child’s Play on Max.

The Lighthouse (2019)

The Director: Robert Eggers

The Cast: Robert Pattinson, Willem Dafoe

What It's About: The Lighthouse follows the story of two lighthouse keepers in the nineteenth century, and how a storm one night changes their lives forever.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Look, this is a Robert Eggers film. That means you know it’ll be visually stunning but also trippy as heck and will certainly make you say “huh?” a couple times while watching. But let me tell you that this is the kind of horror that is not aimed to scare, but make you uncomfortable and freaked out. And I eat it up each time I watch it.

• Stream The Lighthouse on Max.

I Saw The TV Glow (2024)

The Director: Jane Schoenbrun

The Cast: Justice Smith, Bridgette Lundy-Paine, Helena Howard

What It's About: I Saw The TV Glow follows two high school students who bond over their connection to a children’s show that they love, but things in their lives begin to take a turn when the show is cancelled.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: As I said before, A24 doesn’t miss with its horror movies, so this is a great pick for those who want that scary feeling but don’t want to be completely horrified by the end of it.

• Stream I Saw The TV Glow on Max.

The Killing Of A Sacred Deer (2017)

The Director: Yorgos Lanthimos

The Cast: Colin Farrell, Nicole Kidman, Barry Keoghan

What It's About: The Killing of a Sacred Deer follows how the lives of a teenage boy and a cardiac surgeon begin to twist in unexpected ways, but things take a turn when the family of the surgeon begins to fall ill, one by one.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Yorgos Lanthimos directed this film so it really does have some crazy visuals and twists throughout it. Truly one of a kind and not too scary but scary enough.

• Stream The Killing of a Sacred Deer on Max.

Black Swan (2010)

The Director: Darren Aronofsky

The Cast: Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, Winona Ryder

What It's About: Black Swan captures the essence of a ballerina slowly losing her mind as she becomes obsessed with perfection regarding her starring role as the Black Swan in the stage production of Swan Lake.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Natalie Portman won the Academy Award for Best Actress because of her performance in Black Swan. Truly a great performance.

• Stream Black Swan on Max.

Heroes And Villains Galore

It’s a bird, it’s a plane - nope, it’s some exciting superhero (or villain) movies!

The Batman (2022)

The Director: Matt Reeves

The Cast: Robert Pattinson, Zoë Kravitz, Paul Dano, Jeffrey Wright

What It's About: Bruce has been fighting crime for two years in Gotham City, and now must uncover corruption as the Riddler (Paul Dano) wreaks havoc on the wealthy.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: It’s certainly one of the best live-action Batman movies out there, and there’s a sequel on the way, so you might as well check out the first.

• Stream The Batman on Max.

Superman I And II (1978, 1981)

The Director: Richard Donner and Richard Lester

The Cast: Christopher Reeve, Margot Kidder, Gene Hackman, Marlon Brando, Ned Beatty

What It's About: The movies, considered some of the best Superman movies ever, star Christopher Reeve as the beloved DC superhero, telling the origin story of Superman, from his time as a young child on Krypton to his crime-fighting days against Lex Luthor.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: If you want a pure superhero movie with a lot of heart, not crazy CGI, and good acting, these are some of the best out there and ones you need to check out.

• Stream Superman on Max.
• Stream Superman II on Max.

The Dark Knight (2008)

The Director: Christopher Nolan

The Cast: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Morgan Freeman

What It's About: The second movie in the Nolan Batman trilogy, The Dark Knight follows Batman as he forms an alliance with lawmakers in order to take down the Joker.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: What can I say about this film that hasn’t already been said as to why you should watch it? It’s The Dark Knight. Ledger’s performance is incomparable and the film is full of action and great lines. Give it a watch.

• Stream The Dark Knight on Max.

Blue Beetle (2023)

The Director: Ángel Manuel Soto

The Cast: Xolo Maridueña, Adriana Barraza, Damián Alcázar, Raoul Max Trujillo, Susan Sarandon, George Lopez

What It's About: Blue Beetle follows the story of Jaime Reyes, a young man trying to help out his family in their time of need, but when he touches an ancient Scarab and it fuses with him, it gives him the powers of the Blue Beetle – a moment that will change his life forever.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Many other heroes in the upcoming DC universe formed by James Gunn haven’t made the cut, but Blue Beetle will. Now is the best time to check out the film.

• Stream Blue Beetle on Max.

Deadpool (2016)

The Director: Tim Miller

The Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Morena Baccarin, Ed Skrein, T.J. Miller, Gina Carano

What It's About: Deadpool is the first film in the Deadpool franchise, following a mercenary who is diagnosed with cancer and undergoes a treatment that’s supposed to cure him but ends up giving him superpowers that change his life for the worse. Now, he uses it to fight against evildoers and find the person who did this to him.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Ryan Reynolds is perfect as Deadpool and with the third film out, now is the best time to check out the original.

• Stream Deadpool on Max.

Joker (2019)

The Director: Todd Phillips

The Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz

What It's About: Joker tells the origin story of how Arthur Fleck donned that famous face paint and ended up becoming a symbol for all of crime in Gotham City, through his own madness.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Joker earned Phoenix an Academy Award for Best Actor and was one of the highest-grossing R-rated films ever. Truly a great one to watch. You could check out the sequel on Max as well but I prefer to stick to the original.

• Stream Joker on Max.

Action Galore

These are the picks that will get your heart racing!

Elevation (2024)

The Director: George Nolfi

The Cast: Anthony Mackie, Morena Baccarin, Maddie Hasson

What It's About: When the life of a young boy is threatened, a single father and two women go on an incredibly perilous journey in order to save him, leaving behind the safety of their elevated community to travel into the depths of danger beneath them.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: I feel like no one knows about Elevation. The movie came out during a time where there were a lot of other big movies at the box office and it wasn’t marketed as much. But it’s an enjoyable thriller with a lot of action going for it.

• Stream Elevation on Max.

Speed (1994)

The Director: Jan de Bont

The Cast: Keanu Reeves, Dennis Hopper, Sandra Bullock, Joe Morton, Jeff Daniels

What It's About: This iconic action thriller tells the story of a city bus that is set to explode if the speed drops below 50 mph, so now an LAPD officer has to figure out how to save the people on board.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: I really think that Speed is one of the best action movies out there. When I think of high-paced action, I think of this film. It’s a great movie to check out on a random Saturday night.

• Stream Speed on Max.

Bad Boys (1995)

The Director: Michael Bay

The Cast: Martin Lawrence, Will Smith, Tea Leoni, Tcheky Karyo

What It's About: Bad Boys is a buddy-comedy movie about two detectives who are trying to investigate a huge drug case but get entangled into protecting a woman after she sees someone murdered.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: There’s a reason why there have been so many of these films over the last two decades (five and counting). You just can’t help but enjoy Lawrence and Smith’s hilarious chemistry and performances.

• Stream Bad Boys on Max.

Greenland (2020)

The Director: Ric Roman Waugh

The Cast: Gerard Butler, Morena Baccarin Roger Dale Floyd, Scott Glenn, David Denman, Hope Davis

What It's About: When a comet is coming that will destroy the Earth, a family races against time in order to get to an evacuation point so they can somehow survive.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: There are some great modern-day apocalypse movies and I do think Greenland is one of those. While it doesn’t do anything new – as we’ve all seen the films that follow someone trying to survive a planet-killing comet – it’s fun acting, action, and the effects are great as well. I would fully recommend it.

• Stream Greenland on Max.

The Boondock Saints (1999)

The Director: Troy Duffy

The Cast: Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus, Willem Dafoe

What It's About: Two Irish twin brothers become vigilantes after they kill members of the Russian mafia up in Boston.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: This film is just fun. That’s the best way I can describe it. It’s a fun, action-paced film with scenes that are so packed with violence that it’ll almost make you laugh but damn, do I love watching it.

• Stream The Boondock Saints on Max.

Fun For The Whole Family

These are great for the parents and the kids!

Flow (2024)

The Director: Glints Zilbalodis

The Cast: N/A

What It's About: A cat tries to survive alongside its animal companions in a world where the water level is rising and no one is there to help them.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: This film is honestly one of the best of 2024. It won the 2025 Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and comes from one of the few independent film studios to ever do so. It’s incredibly well-animated and the fact that it tells a story so well without any dialogue is fascinating.

• Stream Flow on Max.

Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)

The Director: Chris Columbus

The Cast: Robin Williams, Sally Field, Pierce Brosnan, Harvey Fiernstein, Robert Prosky

What It's About: When a divorced dad wants to see his kids, he decides to disguise himself as a female nanny and housekeeper and work in his old home undercover.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: When you’re talking about Robin Williams’ best movies, Mrs. Doubtfire is always high on that list for his hilarious comedic timing and the heartwarming story that comes from it. Definitely check it out if you haven’t ever seen it.

• Stream Mrs. Doubtfire on Max.

Ghostbusters (1984)

The Director: Ivan Reitman

The Cast: Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, Harold Ramis, Rick Moranis

What It's About: A group of men work as parapsychologists and begin a ghost-catching business in New York City to take on the paranormal problem.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters! As someone who did watch this film as a kid, it’s fully safe for the whole family and is a ton of fun. And I’m sure that after, you’ll end up watching every Ghostbusters movie after.

• Stream Ghostbusters on Max.

Matilda (1996)

The Director: Danny DeVito

The Cast: Mara Wilson, Danny DeVito, Rhea Pearlman, Embeth Davidtz, Pam Ferris

What It's About: Based on the novel of the same name, Matilda follows the story of a young girl with psychokinetic abilities who uses them to not only deal with her family but with the bad principal of her school.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Matilda is probably one of the most classic kids films that you could see. The magic is fun, the acting is enjoyable, and of course, Mara Wilson is adorable as Matilda.

• Stream Matilda on Max.

Barbie (2023)

The Director: Greta Gerwig

The Cast: Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, America Ferrera

What It's About: Barbie follows everyone’s favorite doll as she enters the human world to find the girl she is connected to in order to help her. If she doesn’t, Barbie will turn more human-like by the day.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Considered one of the best movies of 2023, Barbie inspires a celebration of girlhood, love, and the beautiful life that we all take for granted most days.

• Stream Barbie on Max.

Hayao Miyazaki Movies

All of the films you see below were directed by legendary anime film director, Hayao Miyazaki. All of which are great for parents and for kids. Personally, my favorites have been Spirited Away and Howl’s Moving Castle for a long time, both featuring beautiful stories, but the 2023 Academy Award-winning The Boy and the Heron is a must-watch as well.

• Stream Howl’s Moving Castle on Max.
• Stream Spirited Away on Max.
• Stream The Boy and the Heron on Max.

Megamind (2010)

The Director: Tom McGrath

The Cast: Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, Jonah Hill, David Cross, Brad Pitt

What It's About: When a villain beats his nemesis, he decides to create a new hero to fight, but when the hero ends up becoming worse than he could ever imagine, it’s up to Megamind to stop him.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: You know, I think Megamind was ahead of its time. It was successful back then but has only become more of a cult classic now, and people love to look back on it with fond memories.

• Stream Megamind on Max.

Paddington (2014)

The Director: Paul King

The Cast: Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Julie Walters, Jim Broadbent, Peter Capaldi, Nicole Kidman, Ben Whishaw

What It's About: Based on the fictional character of the same name, Paddington follows a bear who migrates to London and is adopted by a family there, while a taxidermist looks to add him to her collection and will stop at nothing to achieve it.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Paddington has always been praised as one of the best family films out there for a reason. It’s emotional, funny, and teaches good lessons, and is quite successful, with a sequel and a third movie releasing soon.

• Stream Paddington on Max.

Mamma Mia! (2008)

The Director: Phyllida Lloyd

The Cast: Meryl Streep, Amanda Seyfried, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgard

What It's About: Mamma Mia! is a jukebox musical comedy that is based on the Broadway musical of the same name and uses ABBA music to tell the story of Sophie. You see, Sophie is getting married, but she’s never met her biological dad, so she has no one to walk her down the aisle.To do this, she decides to invite all three possible choices and figure out who it is for herself.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: The premise itself is hysterical, but truthfully, this film is the perfect one to watch to get yourself up on your feet and dancing while also swooning at all of the romance.

• Stream Mamma Mia! on Max.

Sherlock Holmes (2009)

The Director: Guy Ritchie

The Cast: Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Rachel McAdams

What It's About: Based on the iconic fictional character of the same name, Sherlock Holmes tells the story of Holmes and his partner, Watson, as they investigate the crimes of someone who was thought to be dead.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: While these films can get a little action-packed, I watched this with my entire family and it was a heck of a fun time, and who doesn’t want to see Holmes kick some butt?

• Stream Sherlock Holmes on Max.

How To Train Your Dragon (2010)

The Director: Chris Sanders, Dean DeBlois

The Cast: Jay Baruchel, Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera

What It's About: This animated DreamWorks masterpiece follows the story of Hiccup, a Viking, who is somehow able to tame – and learn to ride – the most vicious dragon after he injures it, in a world where Vikings slay dragons.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: A new live-action version of How To Train Your Dragon is releasing in 2025, so you might as well check out what made the original trilogy such a great one.

• Stream How To Train Your Dragon on Max.

Thrilling, Twisty, And Exciting Sci-Fi

Sci-fi that will truly make you question everything and anything:

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024)

The Director: Adam Wingard

The Cast: Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Dan Stevens, Keylee Hottle, Alex Ferns, Fala Chen

What It's About: In this sequel to Godzilla vs. Kong, King Kong must unite with Godzilla in order to prevent even bigger monsters, the Skar King and Shimo, from invading Earth.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: I mean, it’s Godzilla and King Kong. You can’t really get more sci-fi than these two. Is it a big CGI monster fun-fest? Of course it is – but that’s what you sign up for with these epic films, and it’s fun as heck.

• Stream Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire on Max.

Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)

The Director: Daniel Kwan, Daneil Scheinert

The Cast: Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu, Ke Huy Quan, Jamie Lee Curtis

What It's About: The movie, starring Michelle Yeoh, follows the story of a Chinese-American immigrant who goes on a wild ride when parallel universe versions of herself say that she is the answer to stopping a powerful being from taking over – and destroying – the multiverse.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: The premise is silly, but the film swept at the Academy Awards and won Best Picture, and personally, it’s one of my favorites.

• Stream Everything Everywhere All At Once on Max.

The Martian (2015)

The Director: Ridley Scott

The Cast: Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig, Jeff Daniels

What It's About: The Martian, based on the novel of the same name and directed by Ridley Scott, follows the story of an astronaut who is left behind on Mars, while also simultaneously following the people whose task is to get him back safely.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: The Martian cast is insanely talented, but Matt Damon knocks it out of the park with this one. Truly a great space movie.

• Stream The Martian on Max.

Men In Black (1997)

The Director: Barry Sonnenfeld

The Cast: Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, Linda Fiorentino, Vincent D’Onofrio, Rip Torn

What It's About: Two MIB agents, one a veteran and one a newbie, investigate a series of criminal incidents related to space creatures that have been invading Earth, all of which are finding ways to live among the people. All of them lead to one major alien that is causing a lot more harm than good.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: I feel like any time you think of Will Smith, his role in Men In Black is always one of the first you think of. He’s hilarious in the movie and, with three films in the franchise with the actor a part of it, it’s seriously one of his best roles.

• Stream Men In Black on Max.

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

The Director: Stanley Kubrick

The Cast: Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood

What It's About: 2001: A Space Odyssey is probably one of the most iconic movies of all time. The film follows a group of space explorers consisting of astronauts and scientists in order to look into an alien monolith, but the adventure isn’t as seamless as you would expect.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: While the film itself can be a little confusing, it’s considered one of the best movies of all time, so I’d highly suggest checking it out.

• Stream 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Fantasy Spectaculars

When you just want to escape to a magic world:

Dune And Dune: Part 2 (2021, 2024)

The Director: Denis Villeneuve

The Cast: Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Dave Bautista

What It's About: In this 2021 adaptation of the famous science-fiction novel, Dune stars an amazing ensemble cast and tells the story of Paul Atreidas (Timothée Chalamet), who sets out on a dangerous journey in order to find a way to save his family and his people, with Part 2 continuing the epic saga and taking the audience members on a journey unlike any other.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: The new Dune movies truly took over the world when they came out and introduced plenty of people to this fantasy world. Such fun films.

• Stream Dune on Max.
• Stream Dune: Part 2 on Max.

The Harry Potter Films (2001 – 2011)

The Director: Chris Columbus, Alfonso Cuaron, Mike Newell, David Yates

The Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson

What It's About: For those who don’t know (which would be pretty shocking but either way), the Harry Potter film franchise is based on the novels of the same name and follows a boy wizard named Harry Potter and his adventures at a magical school named Hogwarts, where he trains to use magic and, eventually, take on the Dark Lord himself, Voldemort.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Harry Potter is a franchise that is still going to this day, but the original eight films raised an entire generation of Potterheads and make us all feel like going home when we hear the word ‘Hogwarts.’

• Stream the Harry Potter films on Max.

The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy (2001 - 2003)

The Director: Peter Jackson

The Cast: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett

What It's About: An unsuspecting Hobbit embarks upon a perilous journey to hell on earth to destroy the One Ring, an incredibly dangerous instrument that grants its bearer great power while also corrupting their mind and body.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy remains a landmark cinematic experience even 24 years after it first took audiences to Middle Earth at the turn of the 21st century.

• Stream The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring on Max.
• Stream The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers on Max.
• Stream The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King on Max.

The Lord Of The Rings: The War Of The Rohirrim (2024)

The Director: Kenji Kamiyama

The Cast: Brian Cox, Gaia Wise, Luke Pasqualino, Laurence Ubong Williams, Lorraine Ashborne, Miranda Otto

What It's About: Set before the Lord of the Rings movies, this film documents the story of King Helm Hammerhand, and how he begins a war by unintentionally killing the leader of an opposing faction, leading to bloodshed.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Look, if you like The Lord of the Rings movies, you’re going to like this one. The animation is utterly beautiful, with an anime style that is perfected so wonderfully it’ll make you want to watch more anime after. Plus, there’s much more to love about the film, and I would fully suggest watching it, even if you’re not fully aware of all the fantasy aspects.

• Stream The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim on Max.

Wonka (2023)

The Director: Paul King

The Cast: Timothée Chalamet, Calah Lane, Keegan-Michael Key, Paterson Joseph, Matt Lucas

What It's About: Based on the fictional character of the same name, Wonka is the origin story of Willy Wonka, the famous chocolatier, and how he struggles to get his passion project up and running in the face of the Chocolate Mafia.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: Yes, I know that premise sounds wacky but this film is honestly a fun time. Chalamet gives a hilarious but sweet performance, the music mixes well with the fantasy, and it has a lot of heart – and yes, you will be craving chocolate after.

• Stream Wonka on Max.

The Wizard of Oz (1939)

The Director: Victor Fleming

The Cast: Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Bert Lahr, Jack Haley

What It's About: A young girl is transported from a dusty farm in Kansas to the technicolor dreamland of Oz where she must defeat a wicked witch if she wants to ever see home again.

Why It's One Of The Best Movies On Max: To this day, The Wizard of Oz remains one of the most fantastical cinematic experiences and continues to enchant audiences of all ages.

• Stream The Wizard of Oz on Max.

All of these movies and more are available to anyone with a Max subscription. This list will change as the months go by so make sure to bookmark this page and check back for all future updates.

No, The Conjuring universe is not dead yet. Over nearly a decade, James Wan’s horror franchise has produced success after success, and now a fourth Conjuring movie has been green lit at New Line. The Conjuring 4 is happening, and the creatives behind the movie series have signed on as well. 

David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick has been hired to write The Conjuring 4 following the writer previously penning the last two Conjuring movies, 2016’s The Conjuring 2 and 2021’s The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, per The Hollywood Reporter. Additionally, James Wan and Peter Safran will produce the project, as they have with every movie in the Conjuring universe thus far. 

And what about Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga’s Ed and Lorraine Warren? Per the report, the actors are “expected to reprise their roles” but no official deals have been made yet. The actors have been the stars of every Conjuring movie thus far, along with one of the franchise’s spinoffs, 2019’s Annabelle Comes Home. The Warrens were real American paranormal investigators with a host of cases that are ample stories for great horror movies. 

The original 2013 film portrayed the Warrens' investigation of the Enfield poltergeist case, while the second movie was about the Amityville haunting. The most recent Conjuring movie was about the murder trial of Arne Cheyenne Johnson, which was the first American murder trial to claim demonic possession as a defense in court. 

For the fourth film, it has not been revealed what the next subject matter will be, but if it’s centered on Ed and Lorraine Warren, there’s still a few cases the movies have yet to dramatize for our entertainment. As news of The Conjuring 4 is announced, the sequel to The Nun starring Vera Farmiga’s sister, Taissa Farmiga is reportedly shooting in France ahead of a release date set for September 8, 2023 under director Michael Chaves, who helmed The Curse of La Llorona and The Devil Made Me Do It. 

With that in mind, The Conjuring 4 will be the tenth entry into the universe that James Wan crafted starting with 2013’s first Conjuring movie. The franchise has been a major original property for Warner Bros over the years, grossing over $2 billion at the worldwide box office. Although James Wan has stepped away from directing The Conjuring films after the second film, the franchise has generally kept its quality across its films. 

With spooky season in full swing, it’s great news to hear a popular horror franchise has more scares in store for us with The Conjuring 4. The movie has yet to be given a release date and looks to be in its early stages of development, but we’ll update you with all the upcoming horror movies on the way here on CinemaBlend. 

Horror movie fans surely know that Max is one of the best streaming services to subscribe to when you are in the mood to watch something spooky. That being said, as we are now in the Halloween season, this is a great time to have a Max subscription. Just see for yourself as I present my picks for the best horror movies on Max right now.

A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984)

Director: Wes Craven

Starring: Robert Englund, Heather Langenkamp

What it’s about: A teenage girl and her friends fall prey to a badly burned boogeyman with the ability to kill his victims in their dreams.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: One of Robert Englund’s best performances (and the most iconic) is as Freddy Krueger in A Nightmare on Elm Street – a classic supernatural slasher.

• Stream A Nightmare on Elm Street on Max

Bodies Bodies Bodies (2022)

Director: Halina Reijn

Starring: Amandla Stenberg, Maria Bakalova

What it’s about: A simple party game among a group of friends turns far too real when people begin to turn up dead.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: One of the best horror movies from a female director in recent memory is A24’s Bodies Bodies Bodies – a clever send-up of modern youth culture disguised as a bloody whodunnit.

• Stream Bodies Bodies Bodies on Max

The Shining (1980)

Director: Stanley Kubrick

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall

What it’s about: A novelist slowly begins to lose his mind while he, his wife, and his young son serve as the caretaker for a Colorado hotel harboring dark secrets.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: Despite a cold reception from the author, Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of Stephen King’s The Shining is widely considered one of the most terrifying and captivatingly mysterious films of all time.

• Stream The Shining on Max

Doctor Sleep (2019)

Director: Mike Flanagan

Starring: Ewan McGregor, Rebecca Ferguson, Kyleigh Curran

What it’s about: A telepath recovering from addiction and a terrible childhood tragedy must confront his past to protect a younger and more powerful psychic from a vicious gang of immortals.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: As both a faithful interpretation of the novel and an honorable sequel to Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, Mike Flanagan’s stirring adaptation of Stephen King’s Doctor Sleep actually helped the author come to terms with his issues with the 1980 classic.

• Stream Doctor Sleep on Max

Gremlins (1984)

Director: Joe Dante

Starring: Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates

What it’s about: After three important rules are accidentally broken, a young man’s unique, furry new pet spawns duplicates that transform into mischievous, reptilian creatures.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: In addition to being one of the best Christmas horror movies, producer Steven Spielberg’s Gremlins is so effectively creepy and cartoonishly uproarious, that a fan can enjoy it any time.

• Stream Gremlins on Max

I Saw The TV Glow (2024)

Director: Jane Schoenbrun

Starring: Justice Smith, Brigette Lundy-Paine

What it’s about: Two teens bond over a strange late-night TV show that alters their lives forever.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: The unsettling, subversive recent A24 movie, I Saw the TV Glow is Jane Schoenbrun’s acclaimed follow-up to We’re All Going to the World’s Fair.

• Stream I Saw the TV Glow on Max

It And It Chapter Two (2017, 2019)

Director: Andy Muschietti

Starring: Bill Skarsgård, Jaeden Martell

What they’re about: In the 1980s, a group of preteens battle a shape-shifting, fear-feeding demon and reunite decades later to destroy him once and for all.

Why they are some of the best horror movies on Max: The two-part, big-screen adaptation of Stephen King’s It had a profound effect on the creepy clown movie subgenre, thanks to Bill Skarsgård’s chilling performance as Pennywise.

• Stream It and It Chapter Two on Max

Poltergeist (1982)

Director: Tobe Hooper

Starring: JoBeth Williams, Craig T. Nelson

What it’s about: A suburban family struggles to rescue their youngest daughter from malevolent spirits that have invaded their home and kidnapped her into the netherworld.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: Even without acknowledging the alleged curse connected to Poltergeist, producer Steven Spielberg’s ghost story is a truly haunting masterpiece, bearing the soul of a family drama and the pulse of a thriller.

• Stream Poltergeist on Max

The Exorcist (1973)

Director: William Friedkin

Starring: Ellen Burstyn, Linda Blair

What it’s about: An actor believes she has no choice but to call on the help of a priest after her 12-year-old daughter exhibits upsetting behavior.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: Hollywood’s obsession with demonic possession movies can be traced back to the critical and commercial success of The Exorcist – a startling, Oscar-nominated adaptation of William Peter Blatty’s novel, which was inspired by allegedly true events.

• Stream The Exorcist on Max

Trick ‘R Treat (2007)

Director: Michael Dougherty

Starring: Quinn Lord, Dylan Baker, Anna Paquin

What it’s about: A school principal with a dark secret, a young woman trying to find a date for a costume party, a reclusive, elderly curmudgeon, and others experience an All Hallows’ Eve unlike any other.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: The mischievous trick-or-treater Sam serves as the main connective tissue for each tale told in Trick ‘r Treat – a funny horror anthology movie that gained a cult following for its passionate celebration of Halloween.

• Stream Trick ‘r Treat on Max

Beetlejuice (1988)

Director: Tim Burton

Starring: Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Michael Keaton

What it’s about: After an eccentric new family takes over their home, the lingering spirits of a recently deceased couple regrettably enlist a malicious ghost to help drive them out.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: The quintessential Tim Burton movie might be Beetlejuice, which is one of the most unique horror-comedy films of all time for its surreal production design and Keaton’s high-energy performance.

• Stream Beetlejuice on Max

Saw (2004)

Director: James Wan

Starring: Cary Elwes, Leigh Whannell

What it’s about: Victims of a sadistic kidnapper recall what led to their captivity while trying to figure out a safe way to escape.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: Some audiences assume the Saw movies are just a series of torturous scenes, but the original is lighter on carnage than it is on suspense.

• Stream Saw on Max

The Dead Don’t Die (2019)

Director: Jim Jarmusch

Starring: Bill Murray, Adam Driver

What it’s about: Citizens of an already strange small town encounter an even stranger situation when reanimated corpses rise from their graves.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: A ridiculously large cast of actors – also including Tilda Swinton, Selena Gomez, Steve Buscemi, and more – star in the ridiculously absurd, but also vastly underrated, zombie movie, The Dead Don’t Die.

• Stream The Dead Don’t Die on Max

Scream (1996)

Director: Wes Craven

Starring: Neve Campbell, David Arquette, Courteney Cox

What it’s about: A group of California teens are stalked by a masked assailant with a knack for scary movie trivia.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: The slasher movie genre was revived in the 1990s with the frightening and clever first installment of the Scream movies, which have a seventh installment in the works with Neve Campbell returning as Sidney Prescott.

• Stream Scream on Max

Evil Dead (2013)

Director: Fede Álvarez

Starring: Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez

What it’s about: A recovering drug addict who falls prey to sinister, possessive forces after her friends bring her to a remote cabin.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: Alongside producers Sam Raimi, Bruce Campbell, and Rob Tapert, Fede Alvarez crafts a reboot worthy of being called one of the all-time best Evil Dead movies with his more earnest, clever, and relentlessly brutal reimagining of the 1981 classic.

• Stream Evil Dead on Max

Fright Night (1985)

Director: Tom Holland

Starring: William Ragsdale, Chris Sarandon, Roddy McDowell

What it’s about: A teenage boy enlists the help of his friends and a TV horror host when he suspects his new neighbor is a creature of the night.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: While its 2011 remake was well-received, most fans believe the original Fright Night is the better vampire movie and one of the most fun horror films of its time.

• Stream Fright Night on Max

Sinister (2012)

Director: Scott Derrickson

Starring: Ethan Hawke, Juliet Rylance

What it’s about: True crime author Ellison Oswalt moves his family into the site of a grisly murder as research for his next book, only to uncover a much stranger and more unsettling mystery than he could have imagined.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: The film that cemented Ethan Hawke as a modern Scream King is the chilling modern haunted house movie masterpiece, Sinister.

• Stream Sinister on Max

Midsommar (2019)

Director: Ari Aster

Starring: Florence Pugh, Jack Reynor

What it’s about: A cultural festival in Sweden proves to be too much to handle for the grieving Dani, her emotionally distant boyfriend, Christian, and their friends.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: Hereditary creator Ari Aster proves he has the talent to unsettle audiences to their core even in a bright, idyllic setting with his sophomore feature-length effort, and one of the best A24 horror movies yet, Midsommar.

• Stream Midsommar on Max

It Comes At Night (2017)

Director: Trey Edward Schults

Starring: Joel Edgerton, Carmen Ejogo, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Christopher Abbott, Riley Keough

What it’s about: A family of three breaks one of their rules for surviving a cataclysmic virus by taking in another couple and their young son.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: It Comes at Night is not quite the horror film that its marketing led some to believe but its devastating commentary on human nature in the wake of catastrophe makes it one of the best A24 movies yet.

• Stream It Comes at Night on Max

The Amityville Horror (1979)

Director: Stuart Rosenberg

Starring: James Brolin, Margot Kidder

What it’s about: George and Kathy Lutz move into a seemingly perfect home with their children that turns out to be the site of a brutal murder and soon proves to be a living nightmare.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: Just about all the most essential haunted house movie tropes can be traced back to the classic, original adaptation of Jay Anson’s book, The Amityville Horror, which is allegedly inspired by terrifying true events.

• Stream The Amityville Horror on Max

Evil Dead Rise (2023)

Director: Lee Cronin

Starring: Lily Sullivan, Alyssa Sutherland

What it’s about: A woman must protect her nephew and nieces from their own mother after possessive forces invade their L.A. apartment building.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: Some say the Evil Dead movies make up the greatest horror franchise ever and the latest gruesome installment, Evil Dead Rise – which brings the action out of the woods – only continues to further that claim.

• Stream Evil Dead Rise on Max

Paranormal Activity (2009)

Director: Oren Peli

Starring: Katie Featherston, Micah Sloat

What it’s about: Micah tries to capture evidence to back up claims from his girlfriend, Katie, that they are being haunted.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: One of the first films to bring the found-footage thriller genre to the mainstream is the first installment of the Paranormal Activity movies – a low-budget, partially improvised, and overall terrifying instant classic.

• Stream Paranormal Activity on Max

Night Of The Living Dead (1968)

Director: George A. Romero

Starring: Duane Jones, Judith O’Dea

What it’s about: Seven people who find themselves trapped in a rural farmhouse, in a deadly battle against zombies.

Why it is one of the best horror movies on Max: No horror movie list is complete without a George A. Romero selection, such as Night of the Living Dead – the terrifying apocalyptic thriller that ushered in a new wave of horror movie filmmaking and made the zombie movie genre what it is today.

No matter what time of the year, this leading streaming service always has movies that are scary to the Max.

Did you know The Conjuring universe is a family affair? The core franchise’s Lorraine Warren is played by Vera Farmiga, whilst 2018’s The Nun star Taissa Farmiga, who played Sister Irene in the earliest film in The Conjuring chronological timeline, is Vera’s younger sister. Now that it’s been announced that Taissa is returning for The Nun 2, I wonder if this real-life connection can also bring them together on screen this time around? 

After The Nun 2 previously found its director in Michael Chaves, who recently also directed 2021’s The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It with Vera Farmiga, Taissa Farmiga has signed on to star in the upcoming horror movie alongside Euphoria’s Storm Reid. Per Deadline, Taissa will play Sister Irene once again in The Nun 2. 

Now, in the Conjuring universe, the sisters’ characters are not related as of yet. Vera depicts Lorraine Warren, who was a real paranormal investigator alongside her husband Ed. Their investigations are dramatized by many movies in the horror franchise and take place in the 1970s and 1980s. The Nun, however, takes place in 1952 Romania, and follows Sister Irene, a young nun who aids in an investigation of a nun who died by suicide after a lifetime of having unique visions. 

The Conjuring 2 sees Lorraine encountering a demonic nun figure, which The Nun explores further as a prequel, sharing her origins. Perhaps in The Nun 2, especially with Sister Irene officially part of the story, the sisters can find some kind of connection. Since Lorraine also has psychic gifts like Irene, it's possible it could be revealed that Lorraine is a descendant of Irene. 

Since Irene is a nun and sworn to chastity, it’s unlikely she’d be revealed as Lorraine’s mother. Plus, the real Irene was born in 1927 and would be in her 20s during the events of The Nun, and far away from Romania considering she grew up in Connecticut. Also, with Lorraine Warren having been a real person who existed, the filmmakers may not want to make this kind of connection and fictionalize the Warren’s too much. 

However, once The Nun 2 hits theaters as part of 2023’s movie releases, it will be a decade since 2013’s The Conjuring, the movie that started it all. Maybe The Nun will provide some path for the franchise of horror movies to close out its run. Connecting the prequel to the main films further would be an intriguing way to do it. How about through a vision where one of them sees the other, or what if they have a shared vision? Or the Farmiga sisters both being in the Conjuring movies could just remain a coincidence. 

The Nun 2 is set for a theatrical release date on September 8, 2023. While we wait for the horror sequel, check out our ranked list of all the Conjuring movies so far. 

Pitting The Predator — the titular, extra-terrestrial antagonist from one of cinema’s greatest monster movies — against a Native American tribe in the 18th Century is such a brilliant idea, I am surprised that Hulu’s acclaimed new thriller, Prey, did not happen sooner. In fact, I am surprised more popular movie franchises have not tried giving their properties a fresh spin with a prequel set decades (even centuries) prior to their originals. I actually have several series in mind, starting with another headlined by Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Terminator

To prevent John Connor’s birth by killing his mother, Sarah (Linda Hamilton), in 1984’s The Terminator, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s T-800 was sent back to the year 1984. With the exception of the post-apocalyptic Terminator: Salvation, all sequels to James Cameron’s original sci-fi classic took place not long after the year of their release, and I think that might be why Skynet, usually, continues to fail at their mission. To raise the stakes and, hopefully, improve the story for the next Terminator sequel, I would recommend tracing the Connors’ lineage even further back in the past and, in particular, to an era with more primitive weaponry to make sure whatever cybernetic killing machine sent this time is even harder to stop.

Mission: Impossible

Hollywood has been tracing the history of the Impossible Mission Force from when the original Mission: Impossible TV show first aired in the mid-1960s all the way to the present with Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible movies, which are still churning out more adventures as we speak. However, we have never seen a cinematic installment or an episode of the original series that shows us how the IMF came to be and why it was founded. I think a prequel set around the independent espionage organization’s conception — executed with the same high-wire thrills and featuring another daredevil protagonist like Ethan Hunt — could, hopefully, be a more successful spy origin than The King’s Man turned out to be.

National Treasure

I think Disney struck gold using historical fact to craft some exciting fiction out of its National Treasure movies, which would later inspire an upcoming Disney+-exclusive spin-off series, but has yet to officially dig its long-awaited third installment out of development hell. I actually think a fun way to revitalize the franchise for the big screen would be to go backwards and tell a story about people looking for the Templar Treasure long before Nicolas Cage’s character, Benjamin Gates, did. Maybe this one could take place in the 1930s or 1940s as a tribute of sorts to one of the franchises that inspired it in the first place: the Indiana Jones movies.

Beetlejuice

I have always been curious about what kind of person Michael Keaton’s titular antagonist of Tim Burton’s 1989 classic, Beetlejuice (one of the all-time greatest horror-comedy movies), might have been like when he was still living. However, I admittedly would rather be kept as in the dark about the hilariously spooky bio-exorcist’s origin as possible, but we do know from some of the film’s most memorable quotes that he “lived through the Black Plague and had a pretty good time during that” and has been around for, at least, a “millennium.” Thus, it is possible that someone in the last several centuries tried to conjure Betelgeuse (the true spelling of his name) by saying it thrice, and I would love to see how something that crazy would play out.

It

When I heard Bill Skarsgård announce that a third movie based on Stephen King’s It had been discussed, I wasn’t too keen on the idea, as I am not sure where else you could take this horrifying metaphor of innocence lost past the moment the Losers Club officially defeats their clownish enemy. That was until I remembered that Pennywise is not just a creepy ass clown, but a shapeshifting, otherworldly entity that has existed on earth for an unspecified amount of time. That kind of makes me curious to see what other nightmares he may have conjured for other people over the years (or centuries) prior to taking up residence in Derry, Maine.

The Conjuring Universe

James Wan’s instant classic of the haunted house movie subgenre, 2013’s The Conjuring, has spawned a shared universe unlike any other in how each of its installments are inspired by allegedly real supernatural phenomena. However, the earliest era explored in the Conjuring Universe timeline thus far is the early 1950s, with 2018’s The Nun, but I would like to see the franchise tackle a “true” haunting that predates even the 20th Century. Maybe Wan and co. could research some spooky reportings from the Victorian Era or even see if they can find some really old and really strange event that is still somehow related to the case files of Ed and Lorraine Warren (played by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga in the franchise). 

The Evil Dead

Now, I understand that I am technically cheating here because the Evil Dead movies already have seen some “primitive screwheads” get possessed with its third installment, 1992’s Army of Darkness, but what I have mind is something entirely different from that wacky time travel adventure. As much as I do love director Sam Raimi’s cartoonishly macabre sensibilities and star Bruce Campbell’s comedic timing, I would like to see something more in line with the 1981 original and the 2013 reboot that earnestly depicts the grueling terror that one of the most beloved horror franchises is most famous for. As for the what time period I would choose: I am thinking that the Deadites would feel right at home turning a village of devoted Puritans upside down during the Salem Witch Trials.

John Wick

There are many secrets hiding in plan sight and with little explanation in the John Wick movies, and that’s what keeps this world filled to the brim with master assassins interesting. However, one could infer that the Continental Hotel and its many international subsidiaries has been around for quite a while and could house many intriguing stories that span decades. I would very much be interested in seeing a spin-off set in 1920s Chicago, 1940s New York, or any time or place before “Baba Yaga’s” prime, as long as the action is badass.

Might the success of Prey see the beginning of a new trend of more action-packed or scary blockbusters set before modern times? Could these period thrillers be canon to the beloved franchises above? I suppose only time will tell.

How cool is it that Vera Farmiga is now a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe since appearing in Disney+’s Hawkeye cast? The Academy Award nominated actress has already worked with legends like Martin Scorsese, has reigned supremely as a scream queen for years since starring in The Conjuring movies (among other films and TV shows), and now we might get her in more upcoming Marvel movies, potentially. 

There are plenty more titles we consider to be among the best Vera Farmiga movies and TV shows that are also available now on streaming or for digital rental. However, let’s get things started with her debut comic book adaptation role in one of the coolest Marvel TV shows on Disney+. 

Hawkeye (2021)

Looking to finally settle down and retire from being an Avenger (for the last time), Clint Barton (Academy Award nominee Jeremy Renner) must partner-up with a young, aspiring archer (Academy Award nominee Hailee Steinfeld) to help him take on a nefarious foe and get back home to his family in time for Christmas.

Why it’s a great Vera Farmiga show: As Eleanor Bishop - the wealthy CEO of Bishop Security and mother of Hailee Steinfeld’s character, Kate Bishop - Vera Farmiga is one of several Oscar nominees in the cast of Hawkeye - the latest of Disney+’s action-packed MCU-canon TV series, and its most festive yet.  

Stream Hawkeye on Disney+.

The Conjuring (2013)

A distraught family enlists the help of married paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga) to rid the old farm house they recently moved into of its malevolvent, demonic inhabitants in early 1970s Rhode Island.

Why it’s a great Vera Farmiga movie: While Vera Farmiga was already known for a few notable horror titles (which we will get to soon), she started to became a modern icon of the genre after starring in director James Wan’s The Conjuring - one of the best haunted house movies in recent years - as real-life demonologist Lorraine Warren, whom she would reprise in four more films, so far.

Stream The Conjuring on Netflix.
Stream The Conjuring on HBO Max.
Rent/buy The Conjuring digitally on Amazon.

Orphan (2009)

After suffering a recent tragedy, a woman (Vera Farmiga) and her husband (Peter Sarsgaard) take in a precocious 9-year-old girl (Isabelle Fuhrmann) whom they are, at first, completely charmed by, until a darker side to her personality begins to emerge, leading the couple to question if there is more to their new daughter than meets than eye.

Why it’s a great Vera Farmiga movie: One of Vera Farmiga’s first and best horror movies was Orphan - a strange and more frighteningly believable thriller than some of the actresses’ other contributions to the genre, from director Jaume Collet-Sera, which is often noted for its killer twist reveal.

Rent/buy Orphan digitally on Amazon.

Bates Motel (2013-2017)

As teenager Norman Bates (Freddie Highmore) begins to grow closer to his mother (Vera Farmiga), his own psyche begins to unravel and reveal dark, deep-seated tendencies.

Why it’s a great Vera Farmiga show: In the same year The Conjuring made her a horror movie icon, Vera Farmiga resurrected one of horror’s most iconic characters with an Emmy-nominated performance as Norma Bates on Bates Motel - A&E’s arresting and disturbing hit series, which serves as a modernized prequel to Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho.

Stream Bates Motel on Peacock.
Stream Bates Motel on IMDbTV.
Buy Bates Motel digitally on Amazon.

The Many Saints Of Newark (2021)

As young Tony Soprano (Michael Gandolfini) begins to grow closer to his uncle (Alessandro Nivola), a violent clash between rival Italian-American gangs emerges in New Jersey.

Why it’s a great Vera Farmiga movie: Vera Farmiga resurrected one of cable TV’s most iconic characters with an inspired performance as Livia Soprano in The Many of Saints of Newark - a gritty, old school mafia picture that serves as a prequel to creator David Chase’s acclaimed HBO original series, The Sopranos.

The Many Saints Of Newark is currently available for Premium Digital Ownership at Amazon.

Up In The Air (2009)

An expert in corporate downsizing (Academy Award winner George Clooney) begins to question if his solitary life of constant air travel is what he really wants, when he meets a fellow frequent traveler (Vera Farmiga).

Why it’s a great Vera Farmiga movie: Vera Farmiga brought back George Clooney’s faith in humanity with an Oscar-nominated performance as Alex Goran in this adaptation of Walter Kirn’s novel, Up in the Air - one of the funniest and most inspiring dramedies from director Jason Reitman.

Stream Up In The Air on HBO Max.
Rent/buy Up In The Air digitally on Amazon.

The Departed (2006)

A young cop (Leonardo DiCaprio) endures an exhausting infiltration of South Boston’s Irish mafia, led by a ruthless criminal (Jack Nicholson), while a high-ranking detective (Matt Damon) struggles to keep his involvement in the same crew a secret.  

Why it’s a great Vera Farmiga movie: Vera Farmiga plays a psychiatrist who cannot help but fall for two men secretly hiding on opposite sides of the law in the 2007 Best Picture Oscar winner, The Departed - a thrilling English-language adaptation of the Chinese crime thriller Infernal Affairs, that also finally earned Martin Scorsese his first win for Best Director.

Stream The Departed on HBO Max.
Rent/buy The Departed digitally on Amazon.

The Commuter (2018)

On the same train that he has taken back and forth to work everyday for the past decade, a former cop turned insurance salesman (Liam Neeson) must wield the skills he used on the force when a stranger (Vera Farmiga) asks him to identify a certain passenger of interest, or this train ride could be his last.

Why it’s a great Vera Farmiga movie: Reuniting with Orphan director Jaume Collet-Sera, and her fellow Conjuring cast member Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga had a brief but pivotal and memorably ominous role in The Commuter, which is a fun guilty pleasure for audiences who love to watch Liam Neeson do what he does best.

Rent/buy The Commuter digitally on Amazon.

The Front Runner (2018)

Colorado-based U.S. Senator Gary Hart (Academy Award nominee Hugh Jackman) sees his promising presidential campaign go up in flames after evidence of his extramarital affair with a young woman (Sara Paxton) evolves into a media frenzy.

Why it’s a great Vera Farmiga movie: Reuniting with Up in the Air director Jason Reitman, and co-star J.K. Simmons, Vera Farmiga plays Oletha “Lee” Hart, the burdened wife of an adulterous politician, in The Front Runner, which tells the true story of one of the first highly publicized and most damaging political scandals in history.

Rent/buy The Front Runner digitally on Amazon.

Iron Jawed Angels (2004)

A group of young, ambitious activists (including Academy Award winner Hilary Swank) work tirelessly and not without costly sacrifices to secure the right for women to vote and run for office in early 1900s America.

Why it’s a great Vera Farmiga movie: Speaking of true stories in groundbreaking political history, Vera Farmiga plays Polish-American suffragist and dedicated National Women’s Party member Rusa Wenclawska in the HBO original movie, Iron Jawed Angels - an inspiring, stylistically unique, Emmy-nominated retelling one of the most important movements in the name of social justice.

Stream Iron Jawed Angels on HBO Max.

When They See Us (2019)

A group of five, racially diverse men from Harlem spend a quarter of a century fighting to prove their innocence after, as teenagers, they become wrongfully accused of brutally and sexually assaulting a white woman in New York City’s Central Park in 1989.

Why it’s a great Vera Farmiga show: Speaking of social justice, Vera Farmiga plays Elizabeth Lederer (a former New York assistant DA who led the prosecution in the Central Park Five case) in one of 2019's best Netflix original shows, When They See Us - creator and director Ava DuVernay’s heart-wrenching, Emmy-winning retelling of one of the most infamous cases in American history.

Stream When They See Us on Netflix.

The Boy In The Striped Pajamas (2008)

After moving from Berlin, Germany, to a European countryside, an 8-year-old boy (Asa Butterfield) starts a friendship with a boy his age who lives on the side of a fence surrounding a Nazi concentration camp, which his father (David Thewlis) happens to be the commandant for.

Why it’s a great Vera Farmiga movie: Speaking of infamous history, Vera Farmiga plays the mother of a young boy who learns about the horrifying events of the Holocaust from an inside source in The Boy in the Striped Pajamas - writer and director Mark Herman’s captivating and heartbreaking adaptation of John Boyne’s historical fiction novel.

Rent/buy The Boy In The Striped Pajamas digitally on Amazon.

Source Code (2011)

An Army captain (Academy Award nominee Jake Gyllenhaal) is selected to participate in a special program that inserts him into the body of a terrorist-bombing victim just minutes before his death, in order to gather information about the culprit.

Why it’s a great Vera Farmiga movie: Vera Farmiga plays an Air Force captain who communicates with Jake Gyllenhaal’s character about his special task in Source Code - the sophomore effort from Moon director Duncan Jones, and one of the most clever and entertaining sci-fi movies of its time.

Stream Source Code on Showtime.
Rent/buy Source Code digitally on Amazon.

As far as I am concerned, Vera Farmiga is one of the most talented and versatile actors of our time. We just provided you 13 examples of evidence to back up that claim. 

Everything that I ever needed to know about house hunting, I learned from some of the best haunted house movies of all time. More specifically, films like the Conjuring movies, for instance, taught me to never move into (let alone step foot inside) the site of any previous deaths or satanic rituals, the former location of a cemetery, or anything else that will significantly lower the market value. 

Of course, the characters in most great horror movies of this kind are not so faithful to those rules. See if you turn out to be more receptive to the valuable lessons from the best haunted house movies by watching them on streaming, digital, or physical media with our following guide. 

The Changeling (1980)

Academy Award winner George C. Scott plays a music professor who, after losing his wife and daughter in an accident, moves into a secluded estate where he begins receiving pleading messages from the spirit inhabiting it.

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: With its mysterious narrative, intensely creepy moments, and powerful themes of grief, The Changeling is an underrated classic of the subgenre.

Stream The Changeling on Peacock.
Stream The Changeling on Tubi.
Rent or buy The Changeling on Amazon.
Buy The Changeling on Blu-ray on Amazon.

Skinamarink (2022)

A young boy (played by Lucas Paul) and his sister (played by Dali Rose Tetreault) wake up in the middle of the night to find that their parents and all means to an exit in their house have mysteriously vanished.

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: First-time writer and director Kyle Edward Ball’s atmospheric, non-traditional approach to the haunted house genre — also available with a Shudder subscription — might not be for everybody, but watching Skinamarink alone in the dark will leave those who appreciate experimental horror feeling uneasy whenever they pass a dark corner in their own home.

Stream Skinamarink on Hulu.
Rent or buy Skinamarink on Amazon.
Buy Skinamarink on Blu-ray on Amazon.

Hausu (1977)

A teenage girl and her friends leave to spend the summer at her aunt’s idyllic estate, only to find that the house is hiding an evil presence.

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: Also titled House in the States, Hausu is not quite the scariest Japanese horror film, but is easily one of the most visually stunning and amusingly eccentric thrillers you will ever see, regardless of its country of origin.

Stream Hausu on Max.
Rent or buy Hausu on Amazon.
Buy Hausu on Blu-ray on Amazon.

The Houses October Built (2014)

A group of friends chronicle their search for the scariest haunts in the country, which becomes plagued by a series of unusual encounters.

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: There are no actual buildings inhabited by lingering spirits to be found in The Houses October Built, but the way this found footage horror favorite explores America’s fascination with haunted attractions is often more disturbing than some ghost stories.

Rent or buy The Houses October Built on Amazon.
Buy The Houses October Built on Blu-ray on Amazon.

Haunted Mansion (2023)

LaKeith Stanfield, Rosario Dawson, and others play a group of people struggling to figure out how to escape the manipulative influence of a creepy estate.

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: With great performances from the Haunted Mansion cast and deliciously spooky visuals, director Justin Simien’s cinematic adaptation of the classic Disney World attraction is a good entry point for young newcomers to the genre.

Stream Haunted Mansion on Disney+.
Rent or buy Haunted Mansion on Amazon.
Buy Haunted Mansion on Blu-ray on Amazon.

The Conjuring (2013)

A family of five calls on the help of married paranormal researchers Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Academy Award nominee Vera Farmiga) to help them rid their new Rhode Island home of the incessant and seemingly evil presence tormenting them in the early 1970s.  

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: While the validity of the Warrens’ paranormal investigations remains up for debate, their case files inspired director James Wan’s The Conjuring, which saw something of a revival for the old school haunted house genre and the birth of one of Hollywood’s most enduring horror movie franchises today.

Stream The Conjuring on Netflix.
Rent or buy The Conjuring on Amazon.
Buy The Conjuring on Blu-ray on Amazon.

The Amityville Horror (1979)

George Lutz (James Brolin), his new wife, Kathy (Margot Kidder), and their three children move into a large Long Island estate despite its deadly history, believing it is the home of their dreams, only to find themselves living a nightmare.

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: One of the Warrens’ most famous cases involved the true events that inspired Jay Anson’s book The Amityville Horror, which director Stuart Rosenberg adapted into one the most essential and influential examples of the modern haunted house film and one of the best horror movies based on a true story, allegedly.

Stream The Amityville Horror on Max.
Rent or buy The Amityville Horror on Amazon.
Buy The Amityville Horror on Blu-ray on Amazon.

Poltergeist (1982)

Craig T. Nelson and JoBeth Williams play a married couple with three children who suddenly find themselves living a nightmare as malevolent spirits invade their longtime home and kidnap their youngest daughter, Carol Anne (the late Heather O’Rourke).

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: Producer and co-writer Steven Spielberg and director Tobe Hooper looked to their own personal fears as inspiration for 1982’s Poltergeist - a masterpiece in supernatural terror grounded by its authentic performances and also infamous for its unnerving behind-the-scenes legacy.

Rent or buy Poltergeist on Amazon.
Buy Poltergeist on Blu-ray on Amazon.

The Haunting (1963)

A psychologist invites an insecure loner, a provocative clairvoyant, and a young skeptic to stay with him inside a large, luxurious New England estate in the hope of proving whether or not it truly does house spirits.

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: None of these films might have existed without the influence of director Robert Wise’s chilling, gothic, psychological thriller The Haunting – the earliest of adaptation of Shirley Jackson’s iconic novel that would later serve as a loose inspiration for Mike Flanagan’s acclaimed Netflix miniseries, The Haunting of Hill House.

Stream The Haunting on Tubi.
Rent or buy The Haunting on Amazon.
Buy The Haunting on Blu-ray on Amazon.

Paranormal Activity (2009)

A man (played by Micah Sloat) sets up cameras where he and his girlfriend (played by Katie Featherston) live in the hope of disproving her suspicions that their home does have spirits, only to find evidence of the opposite.

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: The trend of found footage thrillers might not have become as popular if not for the success of the Paranormal Activity movies – the first of which cleverly taps into common paranoid thoughts before curdling into more extreme horrors, all with the use of atmospheric tension and a shoestring budget.

Stream Paranormal Activity on Max.
Rent or buy Paranormal Activity on Amazon.
Buy Paranormal Activity on Blu-ray on Amazon.

Hell House LLC (2015)

The young owners of a business specializing in scares are unwittingly in for the scare of their lives when they begin to suspect that the abandoned hotel they chose for their latest haunted house attraction is an actual haunted house.

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: A sorely underrated found footage movie is writer and director Stephen Cognetti’s Hell House LLC – an inventive blend of amateur-style footage with professional documentary-style cinematography that results in a frightening exercise in slow-building, thoroughly engrossing dread.

Stream Hell House LLC on Amazon Prime.
Stream Hell House LLC on Tubi.
Buy Hell House LLC on DVD on Amazon.

The Orphanage (2007)

A woman (played by Belén Rueda) returns with her husband (played by Fernando Cayo) to the former home for orphaned children where she used to live to raise their adopted son (played by Roger Príncep), but his claims of making a new friend and other unexplainable occurrences lead her to suspect that they are not alone.

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: From A Monster Calls director J.A. Bayona and producer Guillermo del Toro, The Orphanage is a gothic, Spanish-language supernatural tale that will stick with you long after the credits roll, especially if the creepy kids trope still manages to get under your skin.

Rent or buy The Orphanage on Amazon.
Buy The Orphanage on Blu-ray on Amazon.

Sinister (2012)

Academy Award nominee Ethan Hawke plays a washed-up true crime writer desperate to put out another bestseller who moves his family into the site of a horrifying murder.

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: The creepy kid trope is also used to great effect in Sinister – perhaps co-writer and director Scott Derrickson’s most terrifying film yet that also saw the beginning of Hawke’s reign as a modern horror movie icon.

Stream Sinister on Max.
Rent or buy Sinister on Amazon.
Buy Sinister on Blu-ray on Amazon.

The Shining (1980)

Hoping to find the solitude, a writer and recovering alcoholic (played by Academy Award winner Jack Nicholson) moves his family into a luxurious Colorado hotel to act as caretakers for the winter, but the seclusion proves to have a violent effect on the author as his uniquely gifted son experiences foreboding visions.

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: What makes writer and director Stanley Kubrick’s iconic adaptation of Stephen King’s 1977 novel, The Shining, a classic is Nicholson’s unbelievably grim performance and the dizzying, surreal, and paralyzing imagery that continues to puzzle fans to this day.

Rent or buy The Shining on Amazon.
Buy The Shining on Blu-ray on Amazon.

Insidious (2011)

Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne play a couple whose family begins to fall prey to a series of startling and strange intrusions after their oldest son (played by Ty Simpkins) suddenly falls into a mysterious coma.

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: The aforementioned The Conjuring may be the more popular James Wan flick and Saw may be his most iconic collaboration with writer Leigh Whannell, but Insidious boasts indelible, otherworldly visuals and a clever twist on the subgenre, being that the house itself is not what is haunted.

Rent or buy Insidious on Amazon.
Buy Insidious on Blu-ray on Amazon.

Monster House (2006)

Three children (voiced by Mitchell Musso, Sam Lerner, and Spencer Locke) try to save their neighborhood from the creepy house across the street after it somehow comes to life following the supposed death of its cantankerous owner (voiced by Steve Buscemi).

Why it is one of the best haunted house movies: A not-so-scary horror film perfect for younger audiences to check out is the animated, Academy Award-nominated hit Monster House, from executive producers Steven Spielberg and Robert Zemeckis, which offers another clever twist on the haunted house genre, being that it is not the house that is haunted, but that the house itself is haunting.

Stream Monster House on Netflix.
Rent or buy Monster House on Amazon.
Buy Monster House on Blu-ray on Amazon.

Monster House actually raises an interesting question of what is scarier: a house inhabited by spirits that are a danger to anyone who enters it or a house possessed by a spirit that is a danger to anyone merely standing nearby? Hopefully, watching these classics will be the only way you will need to find out the answer for yourself.

Some of the best horror movies to me have always been the supernatural kind, the ones that get under your skin and create crazy, unexplainable moments that will have anyone jumping in fear. One of the films that has best defined that is The Conjuring, a supernatural horror movie that came out in 2013. 

While The Conjuring spawned a whole entire The Conjuring universe, the first film, to me, will always be the best, with some of the best cast. But now, eight years after the original film released, where is The Conjuring cast, including Vera Farmiga? Look no further, because we have the answers you’ve been looking for right here. 

Vera Farmiga (Lorraine Warren) 

Playing the real-life Lorraine Warren in The Conjuring can be a heavy cross to bear with how much she did for the supernatural community, but Vera Farmiga rocked the role and created a memorable horror character that stands out to this day. Since The Conjuring, Farmiga has been active in Hollywood pretty consistently. 

For film, she reprised the role of Lorraine Warren several times in The Conjuring universe, including the latest, The Devil Made Me Do It. But, other than her adventures into horror, Vera Farmiga has appeared in the monster movie, Godzilla: King of Monsters, The Judge, The Front Runner, and the HBO Max film, The Many Saints of Newark. 

With TV, Farmiga received acclaim for her role as Norma Bates, the mother of Norman Bates, in Bates Hotel. She also portrayed a lawyer in the Netflix miniseries, When They See Us, earning her further acclaim, and appeared in a guest role in Halston. Coming up, she will appear in the Disney+ original series, Hawkeye, and has a role in the upcoming miniseries called Five Days at Memorial, so keep an eye out for this talented actress. 

Patrick Wilson (Ed Warren) 

The husband of Lorraine Warren, Ed Warren was just as important to the story as she was in The Conjuring, and Patrick Wilson portrayed the second half of the famous supernatural team. Since The Conjuring, Patrick Wilson has appeared in both TV and film. 

Wilson returned to horror after The Conjuring, appearing in the Insidious franchise (also directed by James Wan). But, besides scary movies, Wilson also appeared in Stretch, Zipper, Bone Tomahawk, The Founder, the DCU movie, Aquaman, the Netflix original film, In The Tall Grass, the war film, Midway, and many others. 

Patrick Wilson has also made strides in TV, appearing in the HBO series Girls in a guest role, and played the part of Lou Solverson in Fargo. In the next couple of years, he will again be reprising his role in Aquaman: The Lost Kingdom, and appear in a film called Moonfall. 

Lili Taylor (Carolyn Perron)

The matriarch of the Perron family, Carolyn Perron had to put up with a lot of crap in that house to try and keep her family alive, and I have to give her credit where credit is due. Carolyn was played by Lili Taylor in The Conjuring, and she's kept active in both TV and film since her role. 

Taylor had a role in the Dylan O’Brien-led movie, Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials, Leatherface, Eli, The Evening Hour and many others, but television is really where she shined. Lili Taylor had a major role in the horror series, Hemlock Grove, Almost Human, and had a starring role in the anthology series, American Crime. She also appeared in Chambers and Perry Mason in 2020.

Ron Livingston (Roger Perron) 

Roger Perron was the patriarch of the family, and was the aid to Carolyn in keeping their family alive despite the terrifying haunting that was happening. Ron Livingston has had plenty of success after his role in The Conjuring. 

Livingston has appeared in several films, including Parkland, the comedy, Vacation, Digging for Fire, the sci-fi film, The 5th Wave, The Professor and more. Television has also been huge for him, appearing in a big role in the HBO original show, Boardwalk Empire, as well as Search Party, he holds a lead role in Loudermilk currently, and a recurring role in A Million Little Things. He also had a supporting role in Holly Slept Over. 

Ron Livingston is also going to be entering the DC universe soon, portraying Henry Allen in the upcoming The Flash, so be sure to check that out when it releases in 2022. 

Shanley Caswell (Andrea Perron)

One of the many children in the Perron family, Shanley Caswell was one of the eldest, played by Andrea Perron. Caswell has had some success in film, with a couple of short movies released as well as a role in the horror movie, Haunting of Fraternity Row. However, television is really where she showed off her skills. 

Her biggest role thus far was a recurring stint on NCIS: New Orleans, starting in 2014, one that she kept for several years. She’s also appeared in shows like Vegas, The Night Shift, The Resident, and others. Currently, she’s part of the main cast of Power Book III: Raising Kanan. 

Hayley McFarland (Nancy Perron)

Another one of the children, Hayley McFarland played Nancy Perron, and has had major success in television since her role in The Conjuring. 

She’s appeared in the film Agnes, but had a guest part in Mad Men, a recurring role in the FX drama, Sons of Anarchy, and a guest stint on the medical drama, Grey’s Anatomy. Soon, she’s going to appear in a new film called Out of Exile as Dawn Russell, so hopefully it won’t be long before you get to see her up on movie screens again. 

Joey King (Christine Perron)

Third child is up for the Perron family, this time being Christine Perron, played by Joey King. Arguably, Joey King has had the most success out of all her sisters in the Perron family in The Conjuring, appearing in not only several TV shows but movies as well. 

With television, King appeared in shows like Fargo and The Haunting House: The Series, and even had guest appearances on shows like The Simpsons and Nailed It!, but her biggest television role was playing Gypsy Blanchard in the Hulu original series, The Act, a role she received critical acclaim for. 

King has also appeared in a variety of films, including, but not limited to, the stop-motion film, The Boxcar Children, the sci-fi film, Independence Day: Resurgence, and the action film, White House Down. She also made a return to horror with The Slender Man. However, King’s biggest role in film has been playing Elle Evans in the The Kissing Booth series, most recently as part of The Kissing Booth 3 cast. Soon, she’ll be in Bullet Train, alongside Brad Pitt, in 2022, so it won’t be long before she’s on movie screens again. 

Mackenzie Foy (Cindy Perron)

Next up we have Mackenzie Foy, who played Cindy Perron in The Conjuring. Foy has appeared in a couple of parts on television, in two made for TV movies called The Cookie Mobster and Jesse Stone: Lost in Paradise, but has mainly stuck to the big screen. 

Foy had a role in the Matthew McConaughey movie, Interstellar, a voice role in The Little Prince, had the starring role in the fantasy film, The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, appeared in the Disney+ original film, Black Beauty, and many others. I’m sure with how talented this young actress is, we’ll be seeing her again real soon. 

Kyla Deaver (April Perron)

The last of the Perron children, Kyla Deaver played April Perron, and has had a nice career in television since her role in The Conjuring. She appeared in Drop Dead Diva, Masters of Sex, and a couple of other shows. 

Deaver has popped up in movies, as well, appearing in Before I Wake, Tell Me Your Name, and a couple of others. 

Shannon Kook (Drew Thomas)

Drew Thomas is another character that regularly makes appearances in The Conjuring universe, played by the talented Shannon Kook. 

Kook has had success in film since his first appearance in The Conjuring, having roles in The Dependables, Dark Places, Goliath, and a couple of others, but he’s really shined in a few of his television roles. Kook had a recurring role in the series, Carmilla, appeared in Shadowhunters, and portrayed Jordan Green on the CW show The 100 for two seasons. 

In 2021, he’s appeared in Nancy Drew, portraying Grant for a few episodes, and reprised his role from The Conjuring again (after The Conjuring 2), in The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, so I have a feeling this won’t be the last we see of Shannon Kook any time soon. 

John Brotherton (Brad Hamilton)

Playing Brad Hamilton in The Conjuring, John Brotherton has appeared in a variety of film and television shows. For movies, he had a minor appearance in Guardians of the Galaxy, and had a role in the movie, Precious Cargo. 

With television, he’s had plenty of guest appearances, including sitcoms like 2 Broke Girls and Modern Family, and even an appearance on the Hulu original show, American Horror Stories. He also had a recurring role as Matt Harmon in the Netflix original series, Fuller House, a spinoff of the comedy, Full House. 

Sterling Jerins (Judy Warren)

Lastly, we take a look at Judy Warren, the daughter of the Warrens, played by Sterling Jerins, who has had a successful career post The Conjuring. Like her onscreen parents, Sterling Jerins has appeared in several of The Conjuring films after the original, but has also had roles in movies like the zombie film, World War Z, No Escape, and more. 

In terms of television, Jerins also had a main role in the HBO series, Divorce, alongside Sarah Jessica Parker. She also had a recurring role in the series Deception, and in the drama series, Almost Family. Keep an eye out for this teen actor, because I have a feeling we’ll be seeing a lot more of her in the future. 

Just talking about The Conjuring has me excited for all the upcoming horror movies that are coming our way. I’m eager for some scares and for popcorn to go flying - just as it made mine go flying back in 2013 when the movie first came out.

When it comes to scary movies, there’s been one horror universe that has been taking over the genre for nearly a decade now, and that is The Conjuring universe, tales of spooky ghost stories, haunting demons, and terrifying true experiences. From the moment The Conjuring was released in theaters, it opened a path for sequel after sequel, spinoff after spinoff, and has created a whole entire universe full of horror tales.

However, which one of these is the best? Is it The Conjuring films? Or The Annabelle films? Or something completely different? While we wait for The Nun 2, we've ranked all the Conjuring Universe movies so far

8. The Curse Of La Llorona (2019)

Following an old Latin American folktale, The Curse of La Llorona tells the story of a mother in 1973 Los Angeles, who has to save her children from a malevolent spirit, who is trying to steal them from her.

Look, I grew up in a Latino family. I’ve read the horror story of La Llorona several times. When this film was first announced, I was excited to see it be brought to life on the big screen and in The Conjuring universe. But to be completely 100% honest – this movie was a letdown from start to finish. The original folktale has so much lore and potential, but The Curse of La Llorona only caters to fans of jump-scares and cheap terror – something no one likes in a horror film. Plus, it barely ties into The Conjuring films. It’s just bad.

7. Annabelle (2014)

In Annabelle, we go over the origin story of the doll featured originally in The Conjuring, which is named by Ed and Lorrain Warren, and how she got the reputation that this demonic doll is known for.

Annabelle was the first spin-off of The Conjuring due to how popular it became, and to be honest, it’s one of the worst. Like The Curse of La Llorona, the scares aren’t the best and the story could have been better expanded on, especially for a doll that is so well-known in the horror community now. But that’s why its successors are higher on this list – because those dive into the story, as we’ll see.

6. The Nun (2018)

Moving into more religious territory now, we look at The Nun, another spinoff of The Conjuring. A young nun at a cloistered abbey in Romania takes her own life, a pair with their own issues is sent to investigate her death, but discover the order’s unholy secrets

Again, I had so much hope for this film. I've always really enjoyed stories that involved religion in the horror world because there’s always so much you can do with demons, ghosts, and more. But The Nun falls flat in the regard. While I do like some of its scares more than the previous two on this list, it’s just not on par with what a movie like this should have been. When I think of a religious horror movie, I think of The Exorcist or The Omen, but this felt nothing like that.

5. The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021)

The third film in the actual The Conjuring franchise within this universe is titled The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. In this recent film, Ed and Lorraine Warren are witnessing an exorcism of a young boy, but the demon ends up entering the body of Arne Johnson, a man that used demonic possession as a defense during a murder trial in 1981.

While The Devil Made Me Do It is definitely the least-best The Conjuring film, it’s certainly a lot more entertaining than its predecessors. The idea of a court case driven by demonic possession is something that is so rare and strange that it turned this film into a very entertaining one, creating some great scares, eerie moments, and amazing acting from both Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson. While it’s not my favorite The Conjuring film, it’s a good one to still re-watch and leaves plenty of questions.

4. Annabelle Comes Home (2019)

Annabelle Comes Home is the third film in the Annabelle franchise and the sequel to Annabelle. In this film, the Warrens have now locked Annabelle in their Artifacts Room, where she can no longer hurt anyone. However, she somehow awakens the evil within the room and sets its sights on their daughter, and her babysitter, and her friend, torturing them.

I think what makes this such a better sequel than the original Annabelle is that we really get to focus in on the Warrens. While a lot of these other films are focused on main characters that feel like they’re just there for shocks, we get to hear about the history of the Warrens, learning about true cases, and seeing their family and what it was like to live with all these scary items and presences in their home. Plus, Annabelle Comes Home is really the first Annabelle film I genuinely felt creeped out during. But one other Annabelle movie comes before this.

3. Annabelle: Creation (2017)

Annabelle: Creation is the second film in the Annabelle franchise, and serves as a prequel to Annabelle. In this horror movie, a dollmaker and his wife lost their little girl twelve years ago, and decide to welcome in a nun and several girls from a shuttered orphanage into their home. But soon, they are all tortured by the dollmaker's possessed creation, Annabelle.

I loved Annabelle: Creation because we actually got a legit story in this one. We got to learn the lore of Annabelle, where she came from, and how she became the horror tale that she is now. While we all know that the real Annabelle is actually just an old Raggedy-Ann doll, Annabelle: Creation still uses those stories from the past and creates a truly frightful experience. Definitely the best Annabelle in the franchise thus far.

2. The Conjuring 2 (2016)

The sequel to the original film, The Conjuring 2, follows the story of the Warrens traveling to the United Kingdom to assist the Hodgson family, who are experiencing ghostly activity in their home in 1977, which later was referred to as the Enfield poltergeist.

The Conjuring 2 is a great continuation of the first film. There are some amazing scares, the same eerie and creepy plot, and again, the fabulous acting from both Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson, except this time we get to travel all the way across the world. I feel like that added aspect really makes this film tick because it’s like we know that this sort of haunting could happen anywhere, and still create horrible rippling effects on families' lives. However, of course, only one film can beat this.

1. The Conjuring (2013)

In the original The Conjuring, the Warrens attempt to help a family who is terrorized by a dark presence within their homes, where the terror only seems to grow more and more by the day.

There’s a reason why the original The Conjuring is first on this list. No one can quite beat this film. The story is fantastic, the atmosphere set perfectly, great acting performances – the movie is wonderful all-around. And for the first time in this franchise, I walked out of the theater of this one with a genuine sense of unease and felt myself checking my closets before I went to bed. It’s an awesomely scary movie, and one horror fans all need to see if they haven't.

While some of these may be some of the best horror movies ever, and some might not be, there’s no denying the impact The Conjuring franchise has had on the horror movie universe. With all these scary films, it gets me wondering about the upcoming horror movies coming out soon. Now if only they could make a film about The Crooked Man. That would be something I’d like to see.

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I love horror stories, whether that be through television or movies, or video games. This is why when it was announced that American Horror Story producer, Ryan Murphy, was making a whole new spinoff of his famous show, called American Horror Stories, I was excited.

That show has premiered now, made exclusively as an FX on Hulu original series, but I can’t help but wonder what else there is to watch for fans of this new anthology series while we’re waiting weekly for new episodes to drop. Well, look no further than here, because there’s plenty of movies and shows just like American Horror Stories, from the best movies on Amazon Prime to the best movies on Netflix.

The Fear Street Movies (Netflix)

In the Fear Street movie trilogy, we follow a group of teenagers in the town of Shadyside, who have to somehow combat an ancient evil when a series of brutal murders begins to take over their lives, something that has been happening in their town for centuries.

For fans of American Horror Stories, you’ll like the Fear Street movies because of the characters. I feel like a lot of the stories in American Horror Stories are driven by the very characters that experience them, and that’s the exact same with Fear Street. You’ll find yourself rooting for these guys to somehow beat the crazy sorcery they are experiencing, and with how many amazing horror callbacks there are to classic horror films, you’ll find even more movies to watch after.

Stream the Fear Street movies on Netflix.

Friday the 13th (Starz)

A classic horror film, Friday the 13th is a movie every film buff should see. At Camp Crystal Lake, we follow a group of teenage camp counselors who are killed off by an unknown murderer, while attempting to re-open an abandoned summer camp.

American Horror Stories often has callbacks to some of the iconic horror films of years before, just like this one, but even in Episode 2, there with all the teenagers having sex at a drive-in theater – that’s a classic horror trope right there, something that Friday the 13th does exceptionally well.

Stream Friday the 13th on Starz.

Rent Friday the 13th on Amazon.

Black Mirror (Netflix)

Black Mirror isn’t horror, per se, but it’s definitely one of the most interesting Netflix original shows out there right now. Set in a world that’s not that far from our own, each episode of Black Mirror covers how the use of modern technology can backfire against its makers, with each episode focusing on a different story and different characters.

For fans of American Horror Stories, you’ll like this because it’s an anthology series. Every single episode is new, with an interesting storyline, a talented list of actors, and plenty of twists and turns. It’s an amazing show and deserves all the praise it has been getting over the last couple of years. I just wish another season would come out.

Stream Black Mirror on Netflix.

Rent Black Mirror on Amazon.

Penny Dreadful (Netflix)

Now if we’re looking for a horror series, Penny Dreadful is the way to go. In this psychological thriller, we are sent tales of dark mystery, filled with vampires, evil spirits, beasts, and so much more.

American Horror Stories is one of the premiere horror series right now in my opinion, with plenty of dark stories that I’m sure are going to be told very soon, which is why Penny Dreadful is perfect for you. The first episode of the new anthology, with how much murder and crime is involved, is enough to make me want to watch Penny Dreadful for all the scary stories they have there.

Stream Penny Dreadful on Netflix.

Rent Penny Dreadful on Amazon.

Channel Zero (Shudder)

In this anthology TV series, each season focuses on different horror stories, from the tale of one man’s obsessions over children’s programming from the '80s to stories of hidden doors to several others.

Channel Zero is the perfect series for fans of American Horror Stories, and even more so, American Horror Story, the original series American Horror Stories is based on. Every season features a new cast, a new tale, and so much intrigue with each story they explore. I almost don’t want to give away too much because it’s one of those shows you want to go in blind to. It’s a shame there were only four seasons.

Stream Channel Zero on Shudder.

Rent Channel Zero on Amazon.

The Conjuring (HBO Max)

Who said ghosts can’t hurt you? The Conjuring, which spawned a whole Conjuring universe after it was released back in 2013, is based on the real-life paranormal investigators, Ed and Lorraine Warren. In this film, they attempt to help a family who is terrorized by a dark presence in their home, creating terrorizing situations in their own home.

American Horror Stories fans will love this film because it almost reminds me of the first episode of the series, where it is entirely based in the Murder House. It’s all about literal demons/spirits in a home, trying to harm the people inside – exactly like "Rubber(wo)Man." Plus, what makes this even creepier is that The Conjuring is based on a true story – talk about a chilling tale.

Stream The Conjuring on HBO Max.

Rent The Conjuring on Amazon.

The Haunting of Hill House (Netflix)

I adore The Haunting of Hill House and even like the series that came after it, The Haunting of Bly Manor, but the first season of this anthology series will always take the cake. In this Netflix original show, we alternate between two timelines, the past and the future, showing the paranormal experiences of a group of siblings in their home, and how they must now return to it, decades later, after tragedy strikes the family.

Something that makes me like this series for American Horror Stories fans is purely how scary it is. This isn’t one of those series that are full of jump scares all around and there are no genuine creepy moments. When you watch the horror in The Haunting of Hill House, you’ll genuinely feel this sense of unease take over you. It's honestly one of the best TV horrors out there right now, in my opinion.

Stream The Haunting of Hill House on Netflix.

Rent The Haunting of Hill House on Amazon.

Trick ‘r Treat (HBO Max)

Halloween is my favorite time of year – if you couldn’t tell by how much I love horror – which is why Trick ‘r Treat is next on this list. This story follows five interwoven stories on the scariest day of the year, with a common element – a strange child who is trick or treating in shabby, orange footie pajamas, and a burlap sack over his head.

What I love about Trick ‘r Treat for American Horror Stories fans is almost its campiness mixed in with horror. There’s a lot of comedy involved, with plenty of jokes told throughout the film, mixed in with some great horror aspects as well. Plus, who doesn’t love creepy kids? It’s almost one of the driving forces of horror movies, in my opinion. And with a star-studded cast that includes Dylan Baker, Anna Paquin, and more, you can’t go wrong.

Stream Trick ‘r Treat on HBO Max.

Rent Trick ‘r Treat on Amazon.

The Twilight Zone (Paramount+)

Another amazing anthology series, except this one has been around for decades and has had several reincarnations. Today, we’ll be talking about the most recent adaptation of The Twilight Zone, hosted by Get Out director, Jordan Peele. In this anthology series, we follow stories of the strange and unusual, in a world we call “the twilight zone,” a universe not that far from ours.

For fans of American Horror Stories, the new The Twilight Zone is another case of an awesome anthology series, with different stories each episode, and it covers a wide variety of topics, just as American Horror Stories has done so far. From aliens to zombies to murders to everything else you can think of in the horror/mystery genre. So many guest stars have appeared on this show, like Minari’s Steven Yeun, Silicon Valley’s Kumail Nanjiani, and plenty of others.

Stream The Twilight Zone on Paramount+.

Rent The Twilight Zone on Amazon.

Creepshow (AMC+)

George A. Romero is known to be a king of horror, with hits like Night of the Living Dead, The Crazies, and more, but one of his best, in my opinion, is Creepshow, the beginning of an anthology series, with the screenplay written by the legendary horror writer, Stephen King. In this horror anthology film, we follow five short stories, all with their own plots and twists, and plenty of scares and jokes.

Creepshow is one of those films that I feel American Horror Stories takes a direct reference from for some of their scares because there’s truly nothing like this movie. It’s so unique in its premise, and with two other films that came due to the popularity Creepshow received, you already know that others love it as well. Without giving too much away, this film will spook and delight you. Give it a shot if you haven’t already seen it.

Stream Creepshow on AMC+ through Amazon.

Rent Creepshow on Amazon.

Dawn Of The Dead (Amazon Rental)

When I watched Episode 2 of American Horror Stories, all I thought about were zombies, and mainly the ones in Dawn of the Dead. This Zack Snyder film follows a group of survivors, who take refuge in an upscale shopping mall when a zombie outbreak occurs.

Dawn of the Dead is a wonderful zombie remake and a great inspiration for American Horror Stories, especially with how everyone just instantly turns into mindless zombies during the film screening in Episode 2. There’s just something about Dawn of the Dead, from the usage of makeup to the jokes to the setting, that makes it one of the best zombie movies out there. If you’re going to watch a film about the living dead, give Dawn of the Dead a shot. You won’t regret it.

Rent Dawn of the Dead on Amazon.

I for one can not wait for the upcoming horror movies that will be releasing soon enough, and hopefully, all of these picks can be enough to hold me over.

American Horror Story Season 10 will be coming out soon, and with episodes of American Horror Stories releasing each week, I have a feeling that no matter what, my craving for scary movies and TV will be fulfilled. Now if Halloween Kills could just hurry up, that would be great.

Most people have a hard time staying in a haunted house for an hour. Some of us even have trouble with haunted houses in theme parks (I like, barely cried). But one film crew recently stayed in the house that inspired James Wan's The Conjuring for two weeks to make the documentary The Sleepless Unrest. That kinda thing can take a toll on a person. Let the record show that it most definitely did.

The crew of The Sleepless Unrest has done a lot of shoots in the past, but this one was different, with the impacts long-lasting. I had a chance to speak with directors Kendall Whelpton and Vera Whelpton about their experience at the film's recent premiere and their stories were enough to shake even the most hardcore ghost hunter or Horror fan.

That sounds unsettling as hell. I thought being locked inside my own apartment alone for most of 2020 took a toll on my mental health, but after hearing how their extended stay with roommates who are beyond the veil impacted them even weeks after filming wrapped, I think I'd prefer quarantine with my cat. This news was especially startling when I learned that the directors are not just your average thrill seekers or filmmakers- they actually met on the set of A&E’s Ghost Hunters and jumped at the chance to document their stay at the location that spawned a Horror franchise that just keeps growing.

Luckily for both paranormal fans and skeptics alike, you can see some of that creepiness for yourself. No doubt this documentary will play well with the morbid curious like me, but it'll also play well for fans of The Conjuring universe, too. Here's what the director told me about why The Conjuring fans should see it.

The Sleepless Unrest opens in select theaters and is available on digital and cable VOD July 16th. You can also pre-order the film on iTunes, if you're brave enough.

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The entertainment industry has been in the midst of a horror renaissance for a number of years now. Many of the modern classics have come out of Blumhouse, including James Wan’s original Conjuring movie. Since then it’s grown into a massive franchise, with the latest installment being The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. Although director Michael Chaves recently explained why he was terrified to get behind the camera.

The Conjuring franchise was started by horror legend James Wan, who helmed the first two installment of the property and served as a producer for the spinoffs. Michael Chaves made his franchise debut in The Curse of la Llorona, before helming The Devil Made Me Do It. And Chaves described his nervousness ahead of filming by saying:

It sounds like The Conjuring franchise found the right person to helm The Devil Made Me Do It. Because not only did Michael Chaves understand the weight of the property, but he’s also a giant fan of James Wan’s filmmaking sensibility. He was certainly qualified to continue the story… it just took some nerve.

Michael Chaves’ comments to Comic Book highlights the immense pressure the filmmaker felt about directing The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. Said pressure came not only from the many fans of the franchise, but also from Chaves himself. After all, he had some major shoes to fill thanks to the acclaimed work of James Wan.

The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It is available for a limited on HBO Max as well as theaters. You can use this link to sign up for the streaming service.

The concerns that Michael Chaves felt about The Conjuring 3 is likely shared by other horror directors. James Wan was also the original filmmaker behind Saw and Insidious, before eventually passing the torch over to another director. Wan has a unique sensibility and talent for scares, so it’s no doubt difficult to get to his level.

Ahead of its release, The Devil Made Me Do It was being billed as the final chapter in the main Conjuring franchise. But there are a number of spinoffs still presumably in development, including The Crooked Man and a sequel for The Nun. We’ll just have to wait and see what filmmaker are ultimately brought in to tell these scary stories.

The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It is available in theaters and HBO Max now. Be sure to check out the 2021 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.

Just in time for the gradual return of the box office, The Conjuring 3: The Devil Made Me Do It released to theaters this past Friday. Fans are loving the new installment in the supernatural franchise, and the Warrens sure have their work cut out for them in the film. However, it looks like the demon-hunting couple’s load was lightened slightly due to a cut that was made to the third film, and director Michael Chaves has revealed why he and the creative team chose to remove an entire demonic side character from the film’s final cut.

Apparently, there was a pretty awesome character we’ll be missing out on in The Conjuring 3. Director Michael Chaves recently spoke with our own ReelBlend Podcast on cutting a well-received character and, based on his comments, it sounds like it was a difficult decision. Still, Chaves also explained that he had a good reason for the character being eliminated. Here’s what he says, exactly:

Don’t worry, no demon babies were harmed in the making of The Conjuring 3. Michael Chaves just means that sometimes to make a project the best that it can be, you have to get rid of some ideas, even if they are really amazing ideas. Considering the fact that fans seem to be loving the film so far, I would say that Chaves made a pretty good decision by cutting out a character that could have complicated the story. You can check out the full ReelBlend podcast episode with Michael Chaves below:

If you’re disappointed to hear about the omission of an otherwise pretty awesome-sounding character, it doesn’t seem like all hope is lost when it comes to seeing him in the future. And for those who may be concerned don’t worry, the deletion of the character hasn’t made the film any less horrifying.

The Conjuring 3: The Devil Made Me Do It is now playing in theaters if you haven’t already seen it or, if you don’t feel like venturing back out to see it on the big screen yet, you can catch the movie at home by streaming it on HBO Max.

While the main draw of the movies in the Conjuring Universe may be the demon-centric scares, what makes the franchise exceptional is the presence of Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga. As Ed and Lorraine Warren, the two actors have spectacular chemistry – their characters’ work as paranormal investigators being a regular demonstration of love conquering evil – and that has been a key component to the series standing out during what has been a terrific era for the horror genre. They make it look effortless… and it turns out the reason for that is because it really is.

As featured in the video at the top of this article, I had the pleasure of interviewing Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga recently during the virtual press day for The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. This now being the fourth time that they’ve played the Warrens on screen, I asked them about the conversations that they have about their characters’ relationships while preparing for filming, and the short answer is that they don’t really have any. As Farmiga explained,

Following up on Vera Farmiga’s comments, Patrick Wilson acknowledged that there is a special quality to the relationship between Ed and Lorraine Warren on screen in the Conjuring movies, and a lot of that comes from little moments and gestures shared between the two characters. Some of them come right from the script, and others come from ideas conceived on set, but Wilson says that they aren’t accidental:

Anyone who has seen a Conjuring movie can attest that Ed and Lorraine Warren have seen their relationship tested by evil and death, but, as Patrick Wilson continued to explain, their bond isn’t simply forged in crisis. There are more dimensions to it, and that’s something that is not only important to have in a romance at the heart of a horror movie, but any romance in any story. Said Wilson,

Fans of Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga will be able to see the two stars back in action as Ed and Lorraine Warren, as Michael Chaves’ The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It will be arriving in theaters nationwide and streaming on HBO Max starting tomorrow, June 4. This time around the two protagonists won’t be creeping around another haunted house, but instead will be on an investigation, and it is arguably the darkest chapter in the franchise yet.

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Years in the making, the third main title and eighth overall in the Conjuring universe finally opens in theaters Friday, June 4, becoming the latest in a recent series of horror movies bringing audiences back to their local theater. But for some who still don’t have access to cinema or don’t quite feel comfortable returning to a crowded theater, there is a way in which you can watch The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It streaming from the comfort of your home, even if it is haunted by an unknown evil that keeps possessing your family members.

So, if you want to watch Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) get to the bottom of a case involving a murder suspect attempting to use demonic possession as a defense look no further as we have everything you need to know to watch the supernatural horror film and the rest of The Conjuring movies…

Where To Watch The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It Streaming

Thanks to the groundbreaking decision made on the part of Warner Bros. to release all of its 2021 movies in theaters and on HBO Max simultaneously, everyone with a subscription to the streaming service (which celebrated its first birthday in May 2021) can watch The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It on Friday, June 4. Don’t worry about any additional fees beyond your regular subscription because watching the latest Conjuring movie is as easy as opening the HBO Max app and pressing play once you see the title on your screen. Now there’s nothing stopping you from watching the darkest Warren case yet.

Watch the trailer for The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It over on HBO Max.

If you're not an HBO Max subscriber, you can sign up here.

How To Watch Previous Movies In The Conjuring Universe Streaming

While you’re waiting to watch The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, now is the perfect time to revisit the first seven entries in the series. With the first two Conjuring movies streaming on Netflix and the spinoff titles centered on Annabelle and other characters available through other streaming services, it has never been easier to get all caught up with the exhilarating and terrifying Conjuring universe:

Stream The Conjuring on Netflix.

Rent/Buy Annabelle on Amazon.

Stream The Conjuring 2 on Netflix.

Stream Annabelle: Creation on HBO Max.

Rent/Buy The Nun on Amazon.

Rent/Buy The Curse of La Llorona on Amazon.

Stream Annabelle Comes Home on HBO Max.

Upcoming Conjuring Movies

Since The Conjuring opened in theaters in July 2013, the franchise has brought in $1.9 billion worldwide at the box office according to The Numbers, so it’s safe to say the franchise isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. There are two films in the Conjuring universe that are currently in various stages of development including a yet-to-be titled sequel to The Nun as well as The Crooked Man, which producer Peter Safran described as a “very interesting and different story” when speaking with CinemaBlend about the movie back in 2018.

Like all of the other 2021 movies being released by Warner Bros. Studios, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It will give fans the chance to see the next chapter of the franchise unfold in a dark theater or on the comfort of your home when premieres Friday, June 4.

The third Conjuring film is almost here, and it promises to be the darkest chapter of the franchise yet. The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It reveals a chilling story of terror, murder and unknown evil that shocked even experienced real-life paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren. One of the most sensational cases from their files, it starts with a fight for the soul of a young boy, then takes them beyond anything they’d ever seen before, to mark the first time in U.S. history that a murder suspect would claim demonic possession as a defense. Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga return to their roles as the Warrens, while Ruairi O'Connor, John Noble, Sarah Catherine Hook, and Julian Hilliard round out the cast.

The horror film releases in theaters and simultaneously on HBO Max on June 4 and has already screened for some critics. They’ve started to share their thoughts on social media, so let’s check them out.

Let's start with the home team. Our very own Eric Eisenberg saw the supernatural movie, and considers it a "solid" installment in the franchise. Though he does outline some issues in the storytelling, he enjoyed the scares and thought it was great to see the investigating duo of the Warrens do their, well, investigating. Eisenberg says:

Erik Davis of Fandango really enjoyed The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. He calls it "freakishly demonic" and "bone-chilling," which is exactly what you want to hear. He also especially praises the opening sequence and waterbed scene, arguing that the latter rivals any creepy moment we've seen in this franchise so far. I am personally getting pretty hyped for the movie as a result. Overall, Davis says:

Critics sure seem to be enjoying the terror that this horror flick offers. Jenna Busch of Vital Thrills even had to sleep with the light on after watching The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. She praises the emotional aspects of the film, saying:

Chris Evangelista praises the "spooktacular" horror aspects of the movie, and shouts out Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga specifically. It would seem that he enjoys their performances. Evangelista says:

The spooky aspects of The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It are not being highly praised across the board. Courtney Howard, with credits from Variety, notes that there are some spooky sequences, but that it doesn't live up to its predecessors. She argues that the movie struggles to keep viewers' attention. Howard does, however, praise the lead duo of Farmiga and Wilson, saying:

Well, there you have it, folks. Critics mostly seem to be really impressed with the scary aspects of the horror flick (makes sense, right?). We'll have to wait until The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It releases in theaters and on HBO Max on June 4 to see if viewers jump out of of their seats, hearts pounding, or remain calmly seated with popcorn in hand.

In the meantime, check out the rest of the summer movie releases with our release guide.

Since 2013, The Conjuring Universe has emerged as one of modern pop culture's best and most popular horror franchises – and while our wait for the third chapter of the main series has been long, it's finally almost over. Directed by Michael Chaves, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It was originally going to be a 2020 release, but now it is all set to deliver some big scares during the summer 2021 blockbuster season. Now it's only a few months away, and only getting us more excited for the film is the brand new trailer that has just dropped.

Like the first two movies in the series, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It is based on a story taken straight from the case files of demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren (Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga) and center around the true case of Arne Cheyenne Johnson. In 1981, Johnson was put on trial for the death of his landlord, and it was the first case in United States history where an individual claimed demonic possession as a defense for committing a crime.

As far as the film goes, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It feels like it's a culmination of everything that the James Wan universe has been building up towards. In particular, the recurring storyline of Lorraine Warren and her increasingly complicated battles with the paranormal is pretty heavily featured in this first footage. While we've seen her make her way out of tight situations in both previous Conjuring films, it feels like this might be the most perilous battle yet for both her, and her husband Ed.

2020 was the first year since 2015 that horror fans didn't get to see a new chapter in the Conjuring Universe franchise, and it's great to see the tap turned back on again. While it was originally going to come out last fall, which is a nice season for the genre thanks to Halloween, it feels right that the movie is going to be coming out during the summer, as that was the case for both James Wan's The Conjuring (which came out on July 19, 2013) and Wan's The Conjuring 2 (which came out on June 10, 2016).

The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It marks the fourth time that Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga have played Ed and Lorraine Warren, having last appeared in writer/director Gary Dauberman's fantastic Annabelle Comes Home in 2019. Irish actor Ruairi O'Connor is playing Arne Cheyenne Johnson, while the rest of the supporting cast includes Julian Hilliard, Charlene Amoia, Sarah Catherine Hook, Paul Wilson, and Ronnie Gene Blevins. After having co-written The Conjuring 2 with Chad Hayes, Carey W. Hayes, and James Wan, David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick is getting a solo screenplay credit on the new film, after having developed the story with James Wan. And while Wan isn't sitting in the director's chair for the sequel, he is producing, and he has handed the reins off to a filmmaker with in-universe experience, as Michael Chaves previously directed The Curse Of La Llorona.

Like all of the other films on Warner Bros.' theatrical film slate in 2021, The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It will be getting a simultaneous premiere on the big screen and on HBO Max – but personally speaking, I'm really hoping that this is a film that people will be able to experience in a mostly filled auditorium, as there's nothing like watching a great scary movie with a crowd. Especially when it's got a waterbed scare that looks absolutely frightening to behold! We'll just have to wait and see what our options are when the film is released on June 4. To see what else is coming up on the release schedule, be sure to check out our 2021 Release Calendar feature.

As far as I am concerned, if there's one thing that modern horror movie franchises are in dire need of these days, it's pure imagination. Just look at 2009's Friday the 13th – technically a remake of the first film, but also not – and take note of the ceaseless sex, drugs, booby traps, and other uninspired beat-for-beat slasher tropes that are shamelessly checked off one-by-one. Fortunately, there is the slightest of chances that Jason Voorhees would truly be resurrected (again) for a new audience, with horror icon Stephen King as the man to do it.

Some gorehounds may recall that the celebrated mastermind of terrifying literature revealed over Twitter in June 2020 that he had an idea for a Friday the 13th spin-off novel. For reasons I will get into soon, King's idea sounded to me like the perfect lightning bolt of originality needed to the boost that ever-popular series back to life. In fact, it is such a refreshing concept that I'm not only unusually excited for the potential of Jason Voorhees being rebooted by Stephen King, but I am also curious what other horror movie franchises could be revived by his vast influence.

Of course, an author of his prowess and experience would probably rather stick to his own stories while leaving other famous properties to their originators’ control, which is something I have great respect for. However, the amount of creative potential wasted on some of the most popular spooky movie series in recent memory has been too much to bear and for too long. So if Stephen King’s brain may be the key to end (or, more accurately, prolong) the madness, I'll take it. To help give the genre master some inspiration, the following includes six horror movie franchises that I believe he could bring back to their prime, starting with the one he already laid down the framework for.

Friday The 13th

Other than his dirty hockey mask, bloody machete, and serious mommy issues, Jason Voorhees is perhaps most famous for his seeming inability to die no matter how many ways Crystal Lake campers have tried stopping his murderous rampages. This often ridiculed characteristic is actually the spark for Stephen King’s idea of a novel from the slasher icon’s perspective that would detail his torture from undergoing repeated deathly experiences. The author added in his tweet that sharing the nearly unprecedented concept of an orphaned, immortal psychopath’s existential dread (which he would call I, Jason) will probably never happen, mostly for legal reasons. But I, for one, cannot think of a better idea for a new Friday the 13th movie, especially because it would actually be something truly new for once.

A Nightmare On Elm Street

Admittedly, Jason Voorhees’ rivalry with Robert Englund’s burned-up boogeyman in 2003's Freddy vs. Jason was a fun, refreshing romp, but not as much as was Wes Craven’s 1994 franchise return with the cleverly meta New Nightmare, which resurrected the late filmmaker’s more dark, earnest intentions for Freddy Krueger. Dark and earnest storytelling is Stephen King's speciality, albeit with some notably (and sometimes unintentionally) hilarious exceptions, such as Creepshow, Maximum Overdrive and others. Though fans relishing in the Elm Street franchise’s morbid humor, a child murderer invading teenagers’ dreams with gross-out puns is no longer such a smooth concept. As someone who brilliantly understands how the darkest corners of our subconscious minds affect our reality, King could give us a grounded Freddy who could haunt us far beyond our nightmares, while hopefully washing the bitter taste of the 2010 remake from our mouths.

Final Destination

Speaking of, morbid humor also became the lifeblood of the more recent Final Destination franchise, in which death itself is the “slasher” that cursed youths struggle to evade, only to inevitably fall prey to increasingly inventive (and ridiculous) fatal “accidents” as the series goes on. To be honest, if Stephen King were to step in and help extend the Final Destination movies past its current total of five and counting, I am not sure if I would rather see him take it into a darker, more sophisticated direction or up the ante on its grisly black comedy because either one sounds appealing to me. (Never forget Under the Dome's woodchuck.) Perhaps if he can manage a decent balance between heart-wrenching, character-driven drama with laughably elaborate death scenes – which sounds awfully challenging to say the least – it could be best move the franchise ever made.

Hellraiser

The character-driven drama of Clive Barker’s Hellraiser is often forgotten by those who associate it with Doug Bradley's flagship character Pinhead. The nail-faced sadist isn't even the 1987 original’s true antagonist, but an otherwise haunting supernatural obstacle in the central plot of a collegian (Ashley Laurence) who discovers her stepmother (Clare Higgins) is going to horrifying lengths to reunite with her dead lover (Sean Chapman). While I love Pinhead, I feel his popularity led to more typical slasher schlock in subsequent installments – I will never get over Hellraiser III's ludicrous CD – instead of the unique and grimly relatable themes of the first film, for which Stephen King himself praised Barker as “the future of horror.” This convinces me that, perhaps, King and Barker should team-up on a revival that would make the Cenobite leader a more mysterious and subtle presence again, paving the way for something as painfully refreshing as the original.

Paranormal Activity

While originality was never the big appeal of Oren Peli’s creepy instant classic that made all kinds of money in 2009, its mostly uninspired sequels made it all too clear to me and others how tired the found footage-style haunted house movie gimmick had become. (At least the third film tried to take things in a batshit-crazy direction, for better or worse.) Of course, Stephen King is a master at making otherwise familiar ideas compelling and scary again, such as clowns in It, vampires in Salem’s Lot, dogs with Cujo, and haunted houses with… well, many more of his works. As such, he might be able to do the Paranormal Activity franchise justice again if he would get invested either in the next installment or for a new project. Plus, I cannot be the only one intrigued by the idea of King making a found footage movie, can I?

The Conjuring Universe

Another revived Hollywood trend with a few creative hiccups is the shared cinematic universe concept, which is what unexpectedly happened with James Wan’s fact-based haunted house flick The Conjuring. The initial film has been followed by sequels and spin-offs that, with a few debatable exceptions, only declined over time regarding believability and genuine suspense. Believe it or not, many Stephen King stories were inspired by actual people, places, and events that he morphed into horrifying fantasies, such as Colorado's Stanley Hotel that sparked the idea for The Shining, or serial killer John Wayne Gacy inspiring Pennywise’s clownish appearance in It. Maybe instead of aiming to recreate the paranormal careers of Ed and Lorraine Warren, King would be able to craft wholly original horror tales that only thematically tie into real-world situations, which would potentially open up a whole new world of creative freedom for the future of the Conjuring Universe.

What do you think? Should future Conjuring spinoffs ditch the “based on a true story” gimmick for a “loosely inspired by reality” structure, or would you rather Stephen King continue to create those kinds of stories without a connection to same franchise that brought you The Curse of La Llorona? Let us know in the comments and be sure to check back for additional information and updates on the prolific author, as well as even more of our own hypothetical suggestions to improve the entertainment industry, here on CinemaBlend.

2020 has been a bummer, and this is thanks in large part due to a worldwide pandemic, resulting in social distancing and isolating. While a lot of things that have been disappointing, there is a bright side to all this that we all must remember to look at when things feel dark: we could all live in a world where the scariest horror franchises are actually real, which would make this whole situation suck a hell of a lot more.

That's not to say the reality of this year hasn't been scary enough, but I can't act like it wouldn't be worse with ghosts and deranged serial killers pursuing me. On that note, here are the horror franchises I've pondered and would definitely be worse in a pandemic scenario, for various reasons I never really thought about until 2020.

Halloween

Being targeted by the evil Michael Myers would be bad enough, and there are few people who truly stand a chance against the serial killer. Escaping Michael Myers is a monumental task on its own, so what would you do if you didn't have a lot of areas in which to get away from him? Limited access to areas due to city shutdowns would immediately hamper someone's ability to evade him and essentially make you a sitting duck. Unless your house is booby-trapped like Laurie Strode, the odds of survival won't be good.

Plus, let's just state some facts here. Out of all the iconic slasher villains in Hollywood, which one looks like he washes his hands the least? Michael Myers is always out here slicing throats and looking filthy, so you know even coming in contact with him during a pandemic would be a bad situation even if you survive. Plus, this guy always has a high body count and has fluids flying over him. There's no way he wouldn't catch whatever's going around in a short amount of time.

Final Destination

The general premise of Final Destination is terrifying enough, in that those who cheat death then have death pursue them. Now imagine cheating death, but then a stay at home order being issued and having to quarantine. Sure, you'd avoid getting your head lopped off by a log that falls off a semi, but what about all the things you interact with every day that can kill you?

I shudder to even put this idea out in the universe, but perhaps the scariest Final Destination of them all would be the one that gives me a phobia of all the ways I could die in the comfort of my own home. I'm already shaky around barbed wire, so the last thing I need to do is worry about a garage door spring cutting straight through my body, or the grease from my morning bacon scalding me and then causing me to crash through a window and bleed to death. That's stuff I already think about, so imagine what a Hollywood screenwriter would come up with.

A Nightmare On Elm Street

Obviously any type of sickness is scary enough to the general population during a pandemic, but just think for a moment about the side effects of COVID-19 during A Nightmare On Elm Street. One of them is extreme fatigue and exhaustion, and obviously, that means you're going to sleep a good deal more than you usually do. Victims in these movies typically suffer enough trying to escape Freddy, but imagine having to do that frequently over the course of a couple of weeks.

Plus, let's just discuss in general how difficult it has been to avoid a midday nap during the height of these work-from-home times. I guess having a supernatural mass murderer hunting me would better help me avoid that urge, but even then, only a little. The real bummer would be how much harder it would be to track the fact Freddy is picking people off, due to people being found randomly dead in their homes and likely limiting contact with one another.

The Conjuring

To be entirely honest, I don't think The Conjuring would be as terrifying in a pandemic as some of these other franchises, but it's only because the premise doesn't get much more terrifying. Dealing with active malevolent spirits in the midst of a pandemic would be a nightmare, especially when there's no real reprieve from them during a shutdown. Oh, the crazy ghost in your house that won't stop rocking in the creaky rocking chair? Too bad, you can't leave the house.

Which is one of the few times the subjects of The Conjuring get any real break from the hauntings and all that. Plus, are Ed and Lorraine Warren going to be so willing to travel across the country and help exorcise this spirit when there's a virus going around? These are the answers we just don't know, and if I can't get them in my corner for some supernatural haunting, I might as well start posting pamphlets for paranormal social distancing in hopes of teaching these guys some responsibility.

The Ring

The lore of The Ring is rather simple. You watch this disturbing video that looks like an art student's college project, and then someone calls you on the phone and announces you have seven days until you die. Overall, it's a weird process, and even in supernatural terms, it's hard to understand why they need to call a phone to deliver that message. But I'm not here to dissect and criticize the rules Samara Osorio-Morgan adheres to as a ghost of vengeance.

The biggest hangup with The Ring in quarantine is that your only chance of surviving is by unraveling the whole mystery behind the video and figuring out how to make it right. That takes research, lots of travel and conversations that likely wouldn't be happening in the midst of a shutdown. Sure, maybe you could video conference with a few people, but at that point you'd probably be so rattled by what you saw on television that you'd rather not be on a screen for a while. Overall, it's just a bad situation made worse by the fact that boredom in quarantine would certainly be the time it's most tempting to watch an unmarked VHS.

Do you have any other ideas for horror franchises that would be made that much worse by a pandemic? Let us know in the comments what you think, and as always, be sure to stick with CinemaBlend to stay in the loop on all the latest things happening in movies and television.

What did we ever do to be lucky enough to have James Wan in our lives? The Australian director exploded on the scene with the original Saw and has pretty much been this generation’s Wes Craven when it comes to bringing thrilling, original horror movies to the big screen. But James Wan movies can really be anything, as he’s also dipped his toe into long-running franchises, as well as a big-budget superhero movie. What can’t the man do?

I don’t know, but of his nine major movies, a majority of them are horror flicks, so that really seems to be his strong suit and passion. And with his next movie, Malignant, which was supposed to come out this month --but you know, Covid-19-- being yet another horror movie, it looks like the director of the billion dollar grossing, Aquaman, still has his heart in the blight place. (What do you want? I’m a Dad. I like puns!). So, what are his very best movies? You’re about to find out.

9. Death Sentence (2007)

Starring Kevin Bacon, this vigilante film definitely shows strong hints of Wan’s horror side since it’s super violent, but that doesn’t mean it’s as good as his horror films. It’s about a man named Nick Hume (Kevin Bacon) who witnesses an assault on his son (with a machete!). But when the court system doesn’t punish the man who harmed Nick’s son, this sends Nick on a quest for revenge to take the law into his own hands. But Nick gets himself in way over his head with his vigilantism, and the rest of his family is at risk.

Death Sentence definitely has its moments, but it gets kind of ridiculous in the lengths Kevin Bacon’s character goes to. It’s really bloody, and that’s fine with me, but I’ve seen much better revenge films in my day, and it’s kind of lacking Wan’s charm as a director. An okay film, sure, but just okay.

8. Dead Silence (2007)

Are you scared of dolls? No? Then you will get utterly nothing out of Dead Silence, which is a kind of limpid movie in the killer doll sub-genre. The story concerns an old legend about a ventriloquist named Mary Shaw (played by Judith Anna Roberts) who met a fatal end and then came back as a doll that wants tongues. So you better not scream!

Honestly, the only reason I’m putting Dead Silence over Death Sentence, which came out the same year, is because it’s not often that you see killer ventriloquist dummies in the killer doll sub-genre. I didn’t get any frights out of this movie, but I appreciate that James Wan showed restraint when he could have pushed the violence much further and made it even more ridiculous, so that’s appreciated.

7. Insidious: Chapter 2 (2013)

Going much further into the astral projection angle than its predecessor (much to its detriment, in my opinion), Insidious: Chapter 2 again concerns Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, and Ty Simpkins as the Lambert family, as they learn even more about the backstory of the various ghosts (this time, we get one called “The Bride in Black”, which is kind of creepy) that continue to haunt them.

I know Insidious: Chapter 2 has its fans, but I just find it to be a much lesser movie that the original. This is not to discredit Wan, who still had enough tense scares to make it a worthwhile sequel. But when the original movie is so good, then the sequel has to be either better or at least somewhat on par. Unfortunately, it’s neither. But A-plus for effort.

6. Aquaman (2018)

There are some people who have called Aquaman, Black Panther underwater, and they’re not entirely off. Both Atlantis and Wakanda share the same sense of overall wonder with their hidden worlds. But I actually think the world of Atlantis is a lot more vibrant than Wakanda, if not exactly as interesting. Starring Jason Momoa, Willem Dafoe, Amber Heard, and Wan’s MVP, Patrick Wilson, Aquaman is about the title character trying to stop a war between the seven underwater kingdoms and the people on land. It’s a fun movie, and one that even beat Batman vs. Superman at the box office!

Who would have thought that Aquaman of all characters would be the D.C. character to bring in the most bucks? James Wan took a silly premise and made it into an underwater, sci-fi adventure with an octopus that plays the drums and an underwater world like no other. The film is silly and enjoyable enough, and a far cry from the dour Zack Snyder movies in the DCEU. And if they had started with this playful tone, then maybe the DCEU might even be in a better place right now. Just saying.

5. The Conjuring 2 (2016)

Another sequel, The Conjuring 2 fares better than Insidious: Chapter 2 for a number of reasons. 1) It really just sticks to the same, successful formula that the first movie did, but in a new location (North London this time). 2) being rated R, James Wan, who is great with atmospheric horror, manages to still not go overboard, but also still push the R-rating far enough to be both suspenseful and scary. And three, I just think we don’t get enough period piece horror, and this is one of the better ones.

We again follow the Warrens (played by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga) on another case. This installment dials up the creepiness, but it’s lacking the freshness of the original, which is why it's at this place on the list.

4. Furious 7 (2015)

The highest grossing film in the franchise, Fast and Furious 7 is James Wan’s other billion dollar picture. Starring pretty much everybody (and Paul Walker’s last Fast and Furious movie), Furious 7 ramps up the action and strips away even more of the racing that made the franchise what it is today. This one features Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham), out for revenge against the Toretto family. It’s a flashy, bombastic movie, and one of the very best in the series.

After the rather humdrum fourth Fast & Furious movie, Five and Six upped the ante, and Furious 7 shot it right into the stratosphere. There are a lot of moving pieces in Furious 7, but Wan handles all of them well and this movie fits right into the series as if Wan had always been there. More action movies, please.

3. The Conjuring (2013)

Despite being older than The Conjuring 2, the first movie just feels fresher and darker than the sequel. This is the first time we’re introduced to Ed and Lorraine Warren, and they already look tired from all the people calling them in to investigate every little bump in the night. But when they finally come upon a family at a farmhouse that’s really being terrorized by spirits, they have a real case on their hands. The Conjuring is definitely one of the scariest movies of the past 20 years, no question.

I don’t know what it is about James Wan, but he really knows how to take his time and build suspense with a scene. There will be long stretches of almost utter silence, and then something terrifying will happen, but it won’t feel cheap. The first Conjuring is just loaded with these moments, making it one of his most memorable movies to date. I’ll never hear two claps the same way ever again.

2. Saw (2004)

In the film that would go on to spawn one of modern horror’s premier franchises, James Wan’s first major film, Saw, is pretty much as bare bones as it gets. Starring Cary Elwes, Tobin Bell, and Danny Glover, Saw, is about two people (three people?) trapped in a room who are taunted and told by a serial killer that they will need to dismember themselves if they want to escape. Horror and paranoia ensues.

Saw blew everybody away when it first came out and helped spawn the whole “torture porn” genre. But the first film is incredibly subdued and tense compared to what would come later in the franchise. But that subdued approach is what makes the first one so memorable, and it works in its favor. Looking forward to the next time that it’s time to play a game.

1. Insidious (2010)

Insidious is James Wan’s scariest film, bar none. The story of a family trying to rescue their child from the astral plane (though, it’s called the Further in this series), Insidious is a PG-13 movie that seriously never lets up. Honestly, it is the perfect horror film, and the fact that there are so many sequels is a little disheartening, since it kind of demystifies everything that made the original so good.

It’s the old mixed with the modern though that makes the tone of this film so creepy. As mentioned before, James Wan is an expert at perfect pacing, and he has the ability to get underneath your skin before you even realize what he's doing. And Insidious is his best effort in that regard, because by the time the really scary stuff starts happening, you’re already much more spooked than you even realized. And that’s why it’s so effective and James Wan’s best film to date.

James Wan is still one of the 2000s most interesting and terrifying directors. Whether he’s making popcorn flicks or movies to make you hide underneath your covers, it’s hard to find a more fascinating director than James Wan.

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Sophie Turner grew up on one of the most popular television series of all-time. Being on Game of Thrones likely took up a lot of her time, which may have prevented her from branching out into other film and television worlds. However, Sophie Turner did manage to join one of the biggest franchises with Marvel’s X-Men.

Last summer, Turner once again took on the role of Jean Grey in the Dark Phoenix movie. Appearing in X-Men movies and on Game of Thrones has helped establish Turner as an actress who can handle the pressures of starring in big franchises. Now that Game of Thrones is over, Turner has a lot more opportunities to make appearances on major hit films and movies, and I would love to see her test her acting skills in other film projects.

I composed a list of some film franchises and TV series that I think Sophie Turner could really add her unique talents to and bring a new dynamic to the project.

Fantastic Beasts/Harry Potter

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald kind of played fast and loose with the canon Harry Potter storylines, so that opened the world up to do basically whatever with the future of the Harry Potter movies and the Fantastic Beasts world. Sophie Turner could play a Weasley, a family member of Lily Evans, and even a third Scamander sibling. There was only mention of Theseus Scamander (Callum Turner), but maybe down the line a surprise sister will appear in the form of Sophie Turner. There are so many ginger Harry Potter character possibilities with Turner, but she could also play a non-ginger role.

Fantastic Beasts is still finding itself, and that leaves room for a wide wizarding world of opportunities. Sophie Turner is best known for her dramatic roles, but in Fantastic Beasts could allow her to portray a more colorful character. She could easily take on a quirky wizard role and give the role a bit of drama, lots of flare, and some razzle-dazzle. We also never know if J.K Rowling may decide to expand the Harry Potter world to include more prequels or sequels set far in the future. Sophie Turner could really flourish as a magical being in the Fantastic Beasts and Harry Potter world.

The Hunger Games

Jennifer Lawrence shot to super stardom from her role as Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games movies. She played the brooding hero well, and Sophie Turner could play a role in Suzanne Collins' universe just as well. There is an upcoming Hunger Games prequel book called The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes that focuses on a teen President Coriolanus Snow, played by Donald Sutherland in the original Hunger Games movies. It was recently announced that the prequel book will become a movie.

The book follows Snow as a mentor to a girl from District 12. You know who would be great to play this girl? Sophie Turner. Well actually, we don’t know much about the character yet, but if we had to guess, she’ll probably be a lot like Katniss, which means a dark personality, intelligent, and resourceful. These are traits that Turner portrays very well on screen.

Disney Live Action Remakes

I think most of us can agree that we’ve been underwhelmed by Disney’s live adaptations of their animated films. However, they made the house that Mickey Mouse built tons of money. They’re not going anywhere. We’ve already had remakes of Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella,and an upcoming Little Mermaid movie. It’s time for a Sleeping Beauty remake with Sophie Turner.

Honestly, there is a reason why there are these Maleficent movies and not a Princess Aurora one, and it’s because Aurora isn’t the most fascinating princess, but this can all change with some reinvention. I’m just spitballing, but turn Aurora into a badass warrior who just happens to prick her hand while fighting a dragon? I don’t know, completely changing the story worked for Snow White and the Huntsman, right?

Killing Eve

I would love to see Sophie Turner play an assassin rival for Villanelle (Jodie Comer). Sansa Stark grew into a semi-dark character due to the circumstances and violence that she had to undergo throughout Game of Thrones.I would like to see Turner play a dark character by design. She could play a sociopath that has no remorse in Killing Eve.

Sophie Turner, Jodie Comer, and Sandra Oh could be one stylish and intriguing group. One minute Turner’s character could seem sweet and innocent, then wham, slit your throat. It could be a very fun character to watch.

Batman

Hear me out before you list the hundred and one reasons why I’m wrong about having Sophie Turner join the Batman franchise as either Poison Ivy or Batgirl. Batgirl is a natural fit for Sophie Turner because she has an earnest quality to her acting that could work well for a character that’s a young woman trying to figure out what it means to be a superhero.

Poison Ivy is a very sexy character that may not fit Sophie Turner’s current on-screen reputation, but with the right direction, she could be a great foil to Robert Pattinson’s Batman in a future movie and a very sexy villain.

The Conjuring

Sophie Turner isn’t a stranger to the horror film genre. She appeared in Another Me, a horror thriller about doppelgangers. Because Sophie Turner has some experience in the scary movie genre, she might be a good fit for The Conjuring series.

The Conjuring movies have been expanding beyond the original movies to include a few spin-off series like the Annabelle movies. I would love to see Sophie Turner appear in another Conjuring sequel or one of the spin-off movies. Something tells me that Turner could excel at playing an emotionally depleted character who finds her strength to combat monsters.

The Boys

Some of the superheroes that The Boys parody are the X-Men characters. In The Boys comics, they’re called the G-Men. There is a character called Silver Kincaid that’s a parody of Jean Grey and Emma Frost. How cool would it be if Turner played a parody version of her Jean Grey character in The Boys.

It would be a great inside joke and just fun stunt casting. I would love to see her have fun with the crash and burning of The Dark Phoenix.

It would be a great inside joke and just fun stunt casting. I would love to see her have fun with the crash and burning of The Dark Phoenix.

Jumanji

One of the best things about the Jumanji world is that it lets the main actors play hyper exaggerated characters. I could easily see Sophie Turner playing some wacky, evil scientist character in a future Jumanji movie.

It might also be nice for her to get to appear in a movie with her brother-in-law Nick Jonas. Jumanji is a franchise that has a lot of fun, so this would be a role that let’s Turner explore her comedic side.

If you can’t wait to see more of Sophie Turner, she currently appears in the Quibi series Survive.

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From London to a galaxy far, far away, Daisy Ridley seemed to come right out of nowhere and straight into stardom after playing in the lead in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Now that she has (supposedly) hung up the yellow lightsaber and retired as Rey, the abandoned Jakku scavenger-turned-heroic Jedi, we cannot help but wonder what cinematic franchise she is destined to lend her talents to next. A role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, perhaps?

Of course, the 28-year-old actress had a role in 2017’s Murder on the Orient Express, which reignited franchise potential for Agatha Christie’s renowned literary detective Hercule Poirot, and played “Cotton-Tail” in the first of two James Corden-led Peter Rabbit movies. Yet, both of those were unusually small roles for an actress of Daisy Ridley’s current magnitude. Being a fan of her performance in the new Star Wars trilogy, I really want to see if Daisy Ridley has what it takes to be the next to crossover from one blockbuster series to the next effortlessly.

Marvel is just one of a good handful of powerful, ongoing movie franchises that I think Daisy Ridley would shine in. I have five in mind, to be exact. This is why…

Marvel Cinematic Universe

Now admittedly, it does seem almost a little too natural of a thing to assume that Daisy Ridley could be one of the next celebrities to join the MCU. In addition to the fact that the Star Wars star is already employed by Disney, she has also made friends with Captain Marvel, co-starred alongside Tom Holland in the upcoming dystopian thriller Chaos Walking and (if she really, really needed it) she could nab a few extra tips from her Murder on the Orient Express director Kenneth Branagh, who helmed the first Thor movie.

However, I honestly do believe she has proven herself as more than capable of playing a superhero (and pretty much already has if you can count a Jedi as such), considering her emotional range, physicality and how fans have already pointed out she would make a great Jessica Drew (better known as Spider-Woman) if the MCU were to find a way to bring her into the proceedings. Not to mention, this would not be Ridley's first comic book-related role either, technically. If you don't believe me, look up a little thriller from 2015 called Scrawl about a boy whose comic book creation become horrifying realities.

Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them

You know, I bet that there is an alternate reality in which, instead of Star Wars, Daisy Ridley's big break was in the Harry Potter franchise, as was the case for many, many other fellow British actors. Of course, we do not live in whatever reality that is, so Daisy's last chance to be a part of the Wizarding World is to join the cast of the prequel series, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

While the films, inspired by Harry Potter scribe J.K. Rowling's fictional textbook of the same name, have already cast a good majority of pre-existing characters, there remain a few that can still be reincorporated as younger iterations. Daisy Ridley could bring a new aura to, for instance, Hogwarts professor Bathilda Bagshot, who is known to have been previously close to Lily Potter and for introducing Albus Dumbledore to Gellert Grindelwald. Even if there was only enough room for her in a flashback, that would still be a role, other than being hard to resist, that Ridley could make especially memorable.

The Conjuring Universe

While I personally feel that the strange events that took place in Enfield, England, have inspired better films than The Conjuring 2 (see Ghostwatch, if you can find it), I do applaud the 2016 sequel for bringing a well-known paranormal hot spot from overseas under its spotlight. In fact, I think the series could benefit from continuing to explore famous haunts from across the globe and, if it was to return to the United Kingdom, why not cast Daisy Ridley?

Any of the typical roles in a supernatural horror thriller are prime real estate for Daisy Ridley to easily claim. She could channel Rey's telepathic Jedi skills into a portrayal of a medium tasked with communicating with spirits, or use her villainous debut role in Scrawl to inspire a performance as a victim of a nasty possession. She could even put herself in the same mindset of the several horror shorts she starred in during the early years of her career to play a woman scared out of her wits by whatever is "living" in her house. Ridley would give Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson a run for their money.

Mission: Impossible

I love seeing Ethan Hunt's team of IMF agents expanding. It all started with Tom Cruise getting the spotlight for the first three entries before Brad Bird's fourth Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol emphasized that the latest assignment would be more of a team effort, which has been a tradition of the franchise since. Well, I hope there is enough room for another spy to join in on the fun, because I recommend Daisy Ridley.

If for some reason Marvel decided to go with a different Star Wars alum or Daisy Ridley had reason to pass on the superhero gig, she should at least be willing to consider saving the world in a more (somewhat) grounded way. In fact, I would even vouch for her as a worthy successor to Tom Cruise once he decides to hang up the gloves and spelunking rope, if those epic flips she did in The Rise of Skywalker are good evidence. On the other hand, to really test Daisy Ridley's range, perhaps she should consider playing the opposite side of the world of espionage...

James Bond

By a show of hands, who remembers the last time 007 faced off with a female villain? Now, by another show of hands, who would have been more satisfied with Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker had Rey been the one to turn to the Dark Side by the end? Well, the solution to both of these completely unrelated issues would be to cast Daisy Ridley in a future installment, not as the Bond girl, but as the Bond villain.

To once again reference her much overlooked (for a reason) debut in Scrawl and her mysterious character in Murder on the Orient Express, Daisy Ridley knows how to play a character with sinister intent. Yet, since she hit the A-list, she has not been given the chance to really prove what a convincingly villainous spirit she can conjure out from behind that million dollar smile. Besides, what a way to introduce the next generation's James Bond this would prove to be?

What do you think? Does Daisy Ridley have the magic touch to breathe new life into these franchises, or does she deserve better? Let us know in the comments and be sure to check back for more information and updates on the veteran Star Wars actress here on CinemaBlend.

A shared universe of supernatural thrillers inspired by actual paranormal case files sounds too insane to be true, but James Wan made it work with his 2013 hit The Conjuring and its subsequent spin-offs. Now, with the upcoming The Conjuring 3, which possesses the chilling subtitle The Devil Made Me Do It, Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga’s fictionalized iterations of Ed and Lorraine Warren are in for another spooky investigation, this time, apparently, set up as a courtroom drama.

A courtroom drama in the Conjuring Universe? Sounds like quite a novel idea given the previous films, all of which involve either household hauntings, exorcisms, cursed inanimate objects, or all of the above. Yet, if you ask me, a franchise as successful as this would creatively benefit from continuing to delve into some previously unexplored territory.

In fact, there are numerous subcategories in the horror genre alone that either do not get the love that they used to or the Conjuring Universe has yet to try out that I believe would be a fun way to mix things up without sacrificing the traditional “based on real events” methodology of the series. I have five subgenres in mind and suggestions of how forthcoming films in this franchise could be the next best example of each.

Slasher

Movies about innocents stalked by masked killers have seen their ups and downs, enough so that a semi-parodic deconstruction of the subgenre (1996’s Scream) was needed to bring it back to life. Lately, it seems that a majority of slasher movies must have some gimmick attached to them, such as Groundhog Day-style time warps or deadly traps or the killer being death itself. However, what made John Carpenter’s genre-pioneering Halloween so scary was that its killer had no gimmick, but the very believable sole intention of taking lives in cold blood.

That sense of shocking realism is exactly what the subgenre needs more of these days and the Conjuring Universe could benefit from as well, especially considering its “true story” roots. With countless documented accounts of grisly murders to take inspiration from, James Wan and company could whip up a truly scary slasher to add to the series’ overarching timeline. Not to mention, with true crime more popular than ever these days, I cannot think of a better time to take advantage of the concept.

Zombie

Hear me out… Admittedly, there have not been too many films in the genre pioneered by George A. Romero that are inspired by true events, considering how those films are, typically, a depiction of the end of days, which has yet to happen. It should be understood, however, that Romero’s definition of “zombie,” referring to flesh-eating corpses, is not the original definition of the word which, indeed, does have an intriguing fact-based history.

According to Haitian voodoo lore, the term “zombie” refers to people brought back from the dead as soulless, mindless slaves to the ones who resurrected them. This phenomena has been depicted on film most notably in the 1932 Bela Lugosi classic White Zombie and in Wes Craven’s Haiti-set The Serpent and the Rainbow, but rarely elsewhere. The Conjuring Universe has a wonderful opportunity to bring this side of the history undead back into the mainstream. May I recommend looking into the profile of someone named Marie Laveau?

Found Footage

You could argue that there are enough (or perhaps more than enough) horror films that attempt to trick its audience into believing that someone actually captured a horrifying incident on camera. Yet, from the intense Cloverfield to lesser-known gems like Hell House LLC, the found footage subgenre can make for some very convincing scares if put in the right hands. In the hands of the Conjuring Universe, I believe the subgenre could see its most believable project yet, especially if the film were set in the '80s or later, when video cameras were more readily available.

With the exception of Barry Levinson’s The Bay (inspired by real parasitic contaminants affecting the Chesapeake), found footage films rarely go further than playing an elaborate game of pretend without even attempting to base their plots on reality (even the folklore at the center of The Blair Witch Project is a fabrication by the film’s creators). To break tradition, all the masterminds behind the Conjuring Universe have to do is pick out another alleged paranormal event, present the story through the literally lens of a hand held recording device, and it’s happy haunting from there. They could even go as far as using those “ghosts caught on camera” clips that float around the internet, which could easily be hoaxes, but are not a bad place to start.

Sci-Fi Horror

Even those who have trouble buying into paranormal researchers are less inclined to argue with scientific findings. Of course, scientifically proven phenomena is not likely to inspire a good scary movie (unless you count Contagion), but unproven phenomena certainly is. In that regard, you can never go wrong with aliens.

From the memoirs of alleged abductee Travis Walton as depicted in 1993’s Fire in the Sky and countless other “true” flying saucer flicks, Hollywood has had quite a love affair with reported sightings of contact from otherworldly visitors. That being said, I am actually surprised that the Conjuring Universe has not attempted their own take on the case files of notable UFO researchers like Jerome Clark or even the mysterious events that took place in Roswell, New Mexico, in 1947. Adding aliens into the mix could also help the franchise gain a whole new audience.

Horror-comedy

Once again, hear me out… The crossbreeding of horror with humor, albeit proving very successful on numerous occasions, would result in, not only a drastic change in tone, but a huge challenge to pull off appropriately for the Conjuring Universe. That is specifically why I would recommend they gave it a shot.

First of all, plenty of filmmakers have managed to depict true stories that seem unlikely for comedy through a humorous lens and in an admirably tasteful manner, such as Martin Scorsese’s Jordan Belfort biopic The Wolf of Wall Street or Richard Linklater’s Bernie starring Jack Black as a real-life convicted murderer, but I have yet to see a filmmaker make this same attempt with a film that tries to be both funny and scary. It is a bold and potentially dangerous endeavor, but that is just what makes the idea so exciting. If the makers of the Conjuring Universe choose the right story and the right person with the right the vision, they may be able to come out with a truly revolutionary horror-comedy classic.

So, what do you think? Are these horror subgenres just what the Conjuring Universe needs, or are these ideas already horrific enough? Let us know in the comments and be sure to check back for more updates on this shared-universe of “fact-based” thrillers here on CinemaBlend.

It has been about four years since the release of James Wan’s The Conjuring 2, and while the series’ franchise has been very active in the time since, with releases including The Nun, two Annabelle titles, and The Curse of La Llorona, our anticipation has been building and building for the movie’s direct follow-up. Soon the wait will be over thanks to the forthcoming release of The Conjuring 3 a.k.a. The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, but there is one slight hitch that has been kind of bugging us: we know very little about what to expect from the movie.

With the production playing things close to the vest, there hasn’t been a great deal of information about the film released to the public, and as a result there are a lot of questions about it that are currently unanswered. It’s with that in mind that we have put together this feature, presenting all of our biggest curiosities about The Conjuring 3 prior to its release later this fall:

Will The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It have the same feel as the previous Conjuring movies?

The Conjuring Universe has become one of the most successful active horror franchises in recent years, but there are two significant changes that are being made with The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. For starters, there is the fact that it is mixing things up genre-wise and operating as a courtroom drama instead of a haunted house story, but there is also the fact that this will be the first title in the main series not directed by James Wan.

There are obviously a number of things that are remaining exactly the same, including having both Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga back in the lead roles, but the change in approach and behind-the-scenes personnel makes us wonder if The Conjuring 3 will feel like an entirely new creation compared to its predecessors. There are plenty of pros and cons either way, so it will be interesting to learn if the movie will be an entirely new experience, or still feel wholly like an extension of the pre-existing films.

How close will The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It follow the actual case it’s based on?

Part of the charm of the Conjuring films is the fact that they are loosely based on real cases investigated by Ed and Lorainne Warren, and part of the charm of The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It is the fact that it will be keeping that tradition alive while also exploring a new subgenre. Specifically, the film will be about the trial of Arne Cheyenne Johnson, who is best known for being the first defendant to argue their innocence on the basis of demonic possession.

It’s a rather wild case, with Johnson claiming that he was driven to kill his landlord because of a demon living in the body of David Glatzel, an 11-year-old neighbor, and it’s noteworthy that the production has acst actors to play the roles of real individuals in the case. What we don’t know is how far screenwriter David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick will go as far as changing facts to create a more compelling narrative. For example, one can expect that The Conjuring 3 will make the defendant’s demon very real, and that fact could easily change the way things happened in the trial. And on that note...