The Nun 2, the sequel to Warner Bros.' smash hit horror film The Nun, has just begun filming, and producer James Wan has shared the first image from the film's set, teasing the next chapter of the Conjuring universe.
Set in Warner Bros.' Conjuring film universe, 2018's The Nun followed two Christian nuns as they investigate a mysterious death in a Romanian monastery. It turned out that the culprit is the demon Valak, one of the Conjuring universe's many terrifying villains, who first appeared as the antagonist of The Conjuring 2. When it was released, The Nun grossed a frighteningly large $356 million on a budget of $22 million, making it the most lucrative of the entire Conjuring franchise. Unsurprisingly Warner Bros. approved a sequel, hoping to scare up even more money.
The Nun 2, which is already scheduled to come out next September, has just begun filming. Producer Wan, who directed the terrifying original The Conjuring, posted a photo of the slate for the film's very first shot. Shared on Instagram, the photo includes a caption reading, “Photography has commenced on THE NUN 2 in France! With @michaelchaves performing the exorcism (directing) on this one.”
The Nun 2 is directed by Michael Chaves, who has directed two other films in the Conjuring universe: The Curse of La Llorona and The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. Before this, he directed the short film The Maiden, which won the Best Super Short Horror Film Award at the Los Angeles horror film festival Shriekfest in 2016. It is produced by Wan (Saw, The Conjuring) and Peter Safran (The Suicide Squad, Aquaman), and written by Akela Cooper (Malignant, M3gan). The roles of Sister Irene and Valak will be reprised by Taissa Farmiga (The Final Girls) and Bonnie Aarons (Mulholland Drive), respectively. Storm Reid (A Wrinkle in Time, Euphoria) is also set to star in an undisclosed role.
While The Nun 2 is guaranteed to collect tens or hundreds of millions for Warner Bros. given the success of its predecessor and the Conjuring universe in general, it's unlikely that the film will stand up to the better installments in the franchise. Even the original Nun received a less than thrilling 25% critical score on RottenTomatoes, and Chaves' previous directorial efforts received a 28% (The Curse of La Llorona) and 56% (The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It). Some have even argued that, nine films in, the Conjuring universe has run its course. However, there's always the chance that, like the Annabelle sequels, the later installments could actually outperform the earlier ones.
The Nun 2 is in production and is scheduled to release on September 8, 2023.
Source: James Wan/Instagram