Beginning with The Conjuring in 2013, the universe in the horror franchise is generally considered to be absolutely terrifying. Lorraine (Vera Farmiga) and Ed Warren (Patrick Wilson) look into paranormal experiences and try to help people rid the demons from their homes. While the movies have some truly chilling moments, it could be argued that the Annabelle doll is the best part.
Annabelle Comes Home was released in 2019 and was a huge success, grossing $231,252,591 worldwide. While there was another film in the Conjuring franchise, it would have made a lot of sense to end things on this scary and great note.
The conclusion of Annabelle Comes Home suggests that this could be the final film in the Conjuring universe and it would be completely fine. Judy Warren (McKenna Grace) is terrified when she realizes that the Annabelle doll is releasing all kinds of spirits and demons in her home. At the end of the movie, Judy puts Annabelle where she belongs: in her case.
While there are many movies in the Conjuring franchise, this one just might be the best and most interesting. Judy is an excellent main character as she's young, which makes her innocent and even more vulnerable to the kind of evil that Annabelle lets out into the world, and yet she stands strong throughout the whole film. Judy has been through it all thanks to her parents and she's determined to get rid of Annabelle's powers.
While another movie came out in 2021 called The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, it can be argued that this wasn't a necessary addition to the franchise and everything could have been wrapped up with Annabelle Comes Home. This is thanks to how exciting it is to watch Ed and Lorraine's daughter be the one in charge of the supernatural presence. Because Judy is Ed and Lorraine's daughter, she is all too aware of the power of Annabelle, and when Mary Ellen (Madison Iseman) babysits her, Mary Ellen realizes that this was definitely not the best job to take.
In an interview with Slash Film, the Annabelle Comes Home director Gary Dauberman praised McKenna Grace's work in the film, explaining, "McKenna Grace was such a joy to work with and such a professional and a huge enormous talent and just a great collaborator, so it was necessary to replace and I was very, very fortunate and very, very happy that I found McKenna." Grace's performance allows audiences to root for Judy and hope that she will be able to grow up and move on from the paranormal. While her parents have devoted their lives to helping others, it feels like Judy should be able to figure out her own path and stay far away from the supernatural, although she seems to have the same gut instincts and intelligence as her mom and dad.
Annabelle is one of the scariest The Conjuring villains and it would have made sense for the horror franchise to conclude with this film since the wide-eyed doll is the most recognizable part of the franchise. While it's interesting that Ed and Lorraine Warren were real people, they don't make for the most compelling main characters in a horror franchise and they don't have a lot of character development. Annabelle, on the other hand, is always totally effective. All the movies have to do is pan the camera onto her face and audiences are sufficiently freaked out. Her rosy checks definitely help as it's easy to think that nothing is wrong here.
If the Conjuring universe is all about evil that is unleashed into the world and the people who know a lot about it and try their best to stop it and save others, then there's nowhere else for the horror franchise to go. Judy is a strong-willed, smart, and entertaining character because it's easy to imagine that it has been wild and strange to grow up in the Warren household. She's a relatable entry point into this world. The prequel film Annabelle from 2014 has some solid scares, but Annabelle Creation (2017) is pretty boring, and Annabelle Comes Home definitely feels like the most well-crafted film out of the three.
In the 2021 film, Ed and Lorraine investigate yet another case of demonic possession, which has been seen so many times before that it's too bad that there wasn't another storyline. There don't need to be any more films in The Conjuring universe as Annabelle Comes Home wrapped everything up perfectly. If there are more films about Annabelle, it will feel like too much, as how many times can the doll escape from her case and cause problems and havoc?