(Photo by Touchstone/courtesy Everett Collection)
All Conjuring Universe Movies Ranked
The first Conjuring movie descended with one of the great marketing hooks: That the MPAA had slapped it was an R rating for simply being too scary. And, for once, the movie itself lived up to the marketing hype: With nary any blood or boobs, The Conjuring jammed audiences into a non-stop claustrophobic horror thrill ride, as Ed and Lorraine Warren investigated paranormal activity in the ’70s. A Certified Fresh rating (a first for director James Wan) helps in securing a sequel, a $300 million worldwide box office haul all but guarantees it – and the Conjuring 2 was almost as scary as the original.
Years later, the Conjuring Universe is in full-swing, having now expanded into one direct sequel and many spinoffs that have whisked audiences to locales like London, Rome, and Mexico. A second direct sequel is currently filming, more from The Nun is in the works, and this Friday, the franchise’s central creepy doll, Annabelle, Comes Home. This all prompts a play date with the Conjuring Universe movies, all ranked by Tomatometer below! —Alex Vo
#7
Adjusted Score: 34855%
Critics Consensus: The Nun boasts strong performances, spooky atmospherics, and a couple decent set-pieces, but its sins include inconsistent logic and narrative slackness.
Synopsis: When a young nun at a cloistered abbey in Romania takes her own life, a priest with a haunted past...
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#6
Adjusted Score: 32862%
Critics Consensus: Annabelle borrows unabashedly from better horror films, content to leave viewers with a string of cheap jolts that fail to build on the far more effective The Conjuring.
Synopsis: John Form (Ward Horton) thinks he's found the perfect gift for his expectant wife, Mia (Annabelle Wallis) : a vintage...
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#5
Adjusted Score: 38170%
Critics Consensus: Content to coast on jump scares rather than tap into its story's creepy potential, The Curse of La Llorona arrives in theaters already broken.
Synopsis: In 1970s Los Angeles, the legendary ghost La Llorona is stalking the night -- and the children. Ignoring the eerie...
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#4
Adjusted Score: 75352%
Critics Consensus: Fun for fans even if it isn't as frightening as some of its predecessors, Annabelle Comes Home suggests there's still some life left in the Conjuring franchise.
Synopsis: Determined to keep Annabelle from wreaking more havoc, paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren lock the possessed doll in the...
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#3
Adjusted Score: 82980%
Critics Consensus: Annabelle: Creation adds another strong chapter to the Conjuring franchise - and offers further proof that freaky-looking dolls remain reliably terrifying.
Synopsis: Former toy maker Sam Mullins and his wife, Esther, are happy to welcome a nun and six orphaned girls into...
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#2
Adjusted Score: 94141%
Critics Consensus: The Conjuring 2 can't help but lose a bit of its predecessor's chilly sting through familiarity, but what remains is still a superior ghost story told with spine-tingling skill.
Synopsis: In 1977, paranormal investigators Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren come out of a self-imposed sabbatical to travel to Enfield,...
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#1
Adjusted Score: 94487%
Critics Consensus: Well-crafted and gleefully creepy, The Conjuring ratchets up dread through a series of effective old-school scares.
Synopsis: In 1970, paranormal investigators and demonologists Lorraine (Vera Farmiga) and Ed (Patrick Wilson) Warren are summoned to the home of...
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