The most successful horror movie series of all time
Horror movies have long been a cornerstone of cinema, thrilling audiences with hair-raising tales of terror and dreams of the demonic. Some horror films stand out for their relentless commitment to shocking the audience with grisly gore or ghostly jump-scares. Others relish taking a slow-burning approach, employing an almost arthouse sensibility to gradually build tension and dive deep into the nightmarish psyche of their main characters. And then some make the eyes bulge – not just out of fear, but due to their incredible financial returns.
While many franchises have enjoyed their moments in the sun (or moonlight, as the genre would have it), one, in particular, has established itself as the undeniable king of the box office. The list of successful horror series’ are in the dozens, from the 13-title, decade-spanning Halloween series to the death-trap Saw franchise, which sees its tenth instalment hitting theatres this year. However, none of those claim the top place; another sets the record, having pulled in a whopping $2.1billion in just under ten years.
Beginning in 2013 under the masterful direction of James Wan, The Conjuring kickstarted what would become the most successful horror movie series of all time. Based on the investigations of real-life supernatural pioneers Ed and Lorraine Warren, the first film told a skin-crawling story of the Perron story, who, upon moving into an old house in Rhode Island, begin to experience the horrific hauntings of a malevolent, demonic spirit.
After identifying the insidious entity as a 19th-century witch called Bathsheba, an all-out battle for the eternal fate of the family’s souls ensues. Despite reaching out to the Catholic Church for an officially sanctioned exorcism, the Warrens have their request rejected by the Vatican based on the Perrons’ atheism, forcing Ed to conduct it himself – and ultimately save the family and banish Bathsheba back to Hell.
The genius of The Conjuring was that it married traditional, commercial horror with an elevated and artistic touch that included stellar cinematography and beautiful, authentic period costumes and production design. Beyond that, however, it took its cues from The Avengers the year before – subtly setting up many potential spin-off and sequel ideas in the final frame of the film, alluding to the countless number of cases the Warrens had worked on and the multitude of roaming demons still waiting to be exorcised.
Their gambit paid off. A year later, Annabelle was produced – a prequel that revisited a creepy, possessed doll used to introduce the Warrens at the beginning of The Conjuring. Two years later, an official sequel was released, and the beginning of what is now known as The Conjuring Universe began.
Since then, we’ve had multiple sub-brands emerge under the Conjuring banner, including The Curse of La Larona, two more Annabelle films and the Nun series, which will see its second instalment hit theatres in September this year. HBO has just announced a new spin-off series. Except for Marvel, of course, but perhaps even more so than Warner Bros DC universe, it is the most established shared cinematic universe of the 21st century. For a horror franchise, we’d say that’s particularly impressive.
