A gruesome possession is at the heart of HBO Max’s The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. Based on the case files of Ed and Lorraine Warren, real-life paranormal investigators, this movie is set to be the darkest of the bunch. And yes, we’re talking darker than Annabelle and The Nun combined, because this time around, and for the first time in U.S. history, a murder suspect claims demonic possession as a defense, and our favorite investigators get wrapped up in it.
Director Michael Chaves told IGN:
“In a lot of ways, this is the biggest Conjuring movie,” and “I showed the final cut to Vera [Farmiga] and her husband and they agreed, and they were like, ‘This is the darkest Conjuring movie.’ It digs into some really dark material. This is definitely a case where there’s real consequences, there’s real victims.”
After reading that and watching the trailer, I’m intrigued, spooked, and ready to see who these victims are and how they change the lives of Ed and Lorraine, played by Vera Farmiga and Partick Wilson. Because they’ve already been hit, over and over, by evil dolls and demons dressed as nuns. Making them go to court and testify seems like new territory, and I’m here for it.
I’m also here for things turning more witch-like. The first Conjuring dealt with the witch Bathsheba but never delved into the deal she was trying to make with the devil. In The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, it seems like Ed and Lorraine are coming face to face with occultists who want to cause harm, tear apart families, and haunt the living as much as possible.
There’s no way we can talk about The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It without mentioning John Noble. He’ll always have a soft spot in my heart for his role as Dr. Walter Bishop in Fringe, and it’s cool to see him back at it with a similar accent while trying to convince Ed that it will cost him everything to save the one possessed.
On a side note, I’m not here for being terrified by something as simple as a waterbed. That scene with Julian Hillard, Billy from WandaVision, and young Luke from The Haunting of Hill House just lying there in the bed before something demonic reaches out to him is the kind of stuff that leaves you with nightmares, and that shows that this director and crew know what they’re doing.
The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It is set to hit theaters and HBO Max on June 4, 2021.
(image: Ben Rothstein/New Line Cinema)
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