Ed and Lorraine Warrenare probably the most famous investigators in the world of the paranormal. Throughout their years of activity, this married couple, made up of a demonologist and a clairvoyant and medium handled, over 10,000 cases and used their unique abilities to help people break free from different evil spirits. The Warrens have been involved in some of the most famous paranormal cases in history, such as 1975’s Amityville Horror and the demonic possession of Arne Cheyenne Johnson, among many others. In many of their cases, they even collected haunted objects that became part of their Occult Museum, which for a long time operated in their family home in Monroe, Connecticut.
Although the Warrens have always enjoyed a certain popularity among fans of the paranormal, their fame skyrocketed in 2013 with the release ofThe Conjuring, a film that dramatized the Perron family’s encounter with dangerous paranormal entities. This movie by James Wan became an absolute hit with audiences and prompted the development ofThe Conjuring Universe, a franchise that over the years became the highest grossing one in the horror genre.
Currently,The Conjuringfranchisecomprises scary eight films, all of which are based on different cases and stories of the Warrens that took place during their working years. Reviews of these films have been quite diverse, and while some of them garnered widespread acclaim and several accolades, others greatly disappointed critics and audiences alike. But one thing is certain: each and every one of them became a box-office hit. Here are all the films inThe Conjuring Universeranked by box office gross.
8The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It — $206.4M
The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do Itis the sequel toThe ConjuringandThe Conjuring 2, and hit theaters in 2021 after being significantly delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. This production once again features Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga playing Ed and Lorraine Warren, and revolves around one of the most iconic cases in their career: the case of Arne Cheyenne Johnson, a young man who killed his landlord while pleading not guilty as he claimed to be possessed by a demon.
Ruairi O’Connor, Sarah Catherine Hook, and Julian Hilliard are some of the actors rounding out the cast of this film, which, despite a good performance at the box office, failed to achieve the acclaim of previous productions. This will not be the last installment inThe Conjuringseries: a new sequel, titledThe Conjuring: Last Rites, wasconfirmed to be in developmentback in 2022.
7Annabelle Comes Home — $231.2M
Annabelle Comes Homeis the third installment in this possessed doll’s film series, and the sixth entry inThe Conjuringfranchise. It marked the directorial debut of Gary Dauberman, who had already served as writer across several productions in this cinematic universe. This 2019 film stars Mckenna Grace, Madison Iseman, Katie Sarife, Vera Farmiga, and Patrick Wilson, and once again confronts the audience with Annabelle who, this time around, appears deadlier than ever.
Following the events of the previous films, Ed and Lorraine Warren resolve to take possession of the doll and lock her up in their own home to avoid further complications. But they don’t anticipate that Annabelle is so powerful that she will arouse all the evil spirits inhabiting the place, who will focus their attention on Judy, the couple’s daughter.
6The Nun II — $231.2M+
The Nun IIhit theaters last September propelled by the overwhelming box office performance of its predecessor back in 2018. This production, which became the eighth and most recent entry in the franchise, has Michael Chaves returning as director after helmingThe Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, and features Taissa Farmiga, Jonas Bloquet and Bonnie Aarons reprising their roles from the previous film joined by Anna Popplewell and Storm Reid.
The Nun IItakes place four years after the events depicted in the original film, and introduces a new quarrel between Sister Irene and Valak, the demonic entity who, this time around, seems to be after an ancient relic hidden in a boarding school. While the film did not perform as solidly as its predecessor, it managed to garner considerably better reviews. It’s still in theaters, and has currently grossed a solid $231.15 million (as of this writing), but with its digital release set for October 3, perCBR, that number is likely to plateau soon.
5Annabelle — $256.8M
When it comes to creepy dolls,Annabelleis probably one of the first ones that crosses our mind. This 2014 movie put cursed dolls back on the map, triggering nightmares in a massive part of the audience. Directed by John R. Leonetti from a script by Gary Dauberman, this film became the first spin-off withinThe Conjuring Universe, setting itself up as an absolute hit. And while it doesn’t feature the popular couple of paranormal investigators on screen, it is actually based on one of their cases, involving a vintage doll possessed by a demon that tortures all those who dare to let her into their homes.
Annabelle Wallis, Ward Horton, and Tony Amendola star in this production that kicked off its own film series with a solid performance at the box office. Still,Annabellefailed to win over critics, who considered it a huge disappointment compared toThe Conjuring.
4Annabelle: Creation — $306.5M
2017 marked the premiere ofAnnabelle: Creation, the sequel toAnnabelle,which, besides surpassing it at the box office, earned significantly better reviews than the original film. This production is directed by David F. Sandberg, and stars Stephanie Sigman, Talitha Bateman, Anthony LaPaglia, and Miranda Otto, among other actors.
It serves as a prequel to the 2014 film and features the origin of Annabelle, who was created by former toy maker Sam Mullins. Several years after losing his daughter, this man and his wife welcome a nun and a few orphaned girls into their home after the orphanage they lived in shuts down, something that arouses the interest of the demonic entity concealed in the doll.
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3The Conjuring — $320.4M
The Conjuringis the most important film in its entire cinematic universe, as it was responsible for kicking things off in the first place. This movie by Wan features Patrick Wilson andVera Farmiga playingthe roles of paranormal investigators for the first time, and revolves around the story of the Perron family, also known as “The Amityville Horror”.
In the film, the audience first meets Ed and Lorraine who, back in the 1970s, assist a Rhode Island family after their home is attacked by a disturbing supernatural presence. Joining the lead actors in the cast are Lili Taylor, Ron Livingston, Shanley Caswell, Joey King, and Mackenzie Foy. As of today,The Conjuringis the highest-rated film in this franchise, and after its release it scored a Saturn Award for Best Horror Film, as well as several other nominations and awards.
2The Conjuring 2 — $321.8M
The success ofThe Conjuringin 2013 was so immense that its producers immediately started working on a sequel. Three years later,The Conjuring 2hit theaters, with James Wan serving once again as director and Wilson and Farmiga leading the cast. This production was inspired by the 1977 Enfield poltergeist case, in which an English family was suddenly haunted by the presence of paranormal entities in their home that appeared to have a special connection to two of the younger members of the household.
The Conjuring 2became an even bigger box office hit than its predecessor, and it was also met with very good reviews. Among all the accolades it earned, it was nominated as Best Horror Film at both the Saturn Awards and the Empire Awards.
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1The Nun — $365.5M
Leading the ranking as the highest-grossing film inThe Conjuring UniverseisThe Nun, the 2018 production directed by Corin Hardy that became a smash hit with audiences. This film serves as a prequel toThe Conjuring 2, that two years earlier introduced the Demon Nun, one of the most frightening characters in the franchise. It stars Taissa Farmiga, a newcomer to the franchise that made her older sister Vera hugely popular, as well as Demián Bichir, Jonas Bloquet and Bonnie Aarons.
The Nuntakes the audience to a cloistered monastery in Romania during 1952, where a young nun takes her own life. This prompts the Vatican to send a priest and a gifted novice to investigate the circumstances of such death, unaware that in their mission they would encounter a demonic entity far more dangerous than any force they had ever met before. AlthoughThe Nunbecame a box-office hit, its reviews were not particularly favorable, and so far it isthe worst-reviewed filmin the entire cinematic universe.
