The Conjuring: Last Rites is an upcoming American supernatural horror film directed by Michael Chaves, with a script written by Ian Goldberg, Richard Naing, and David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick. Based on the true-life investigations of the Warrens through an original story co-authored by James Wan and Johnson-McGoldrick, the film stars Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga, who reprise their roles as paranormal investigators and authors Ed and Lorraine Warren along with Mia Tomlinson and Ben Hardy. It is the sequel to The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021) and the ninth installment of The Conjuring Universe. Chaves returns as director from the previous film, and James Wan and Peter Safran return to produce.
CAST
- Vera Farmiga as Lorraine Warren, a clairvoyant and a trance medium
- Patrick Wilson as Ed Warren, a professed demonologist, author, and lecturer
- Mia Tomlinson as Judy Warren, Ed and Lorraine’s daughter
- Ben Hardy as Tony Spera, Judy’s boyfriend
- Steve Coulter as Father Gordon
- Rebecca Calder
- Elliot Cowan
- Kíla Lord Cassidy
- Beau Gadsdon
- John Brotherton
- Shannon Kook as Drew
Prior to the release of The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It in June 2021, director Michael Chaves commented in an interview with Empire on the possibility of future installments in The Conjuring series: “What [The Devil Made Me Do It] hopefully does is open up this new chapter for the Warrens. This has a very unique ending to The Conjuring films. I would be excited to see where it could go from here.”[2] Actors Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga also expressed interest in returning. “Oh my God, I’d love to [continue],” stated Farmiga. “It’s interesting, we have to up the fear in each one. Demonology is already so high-pitched and operatic.”[3] In October 2022, The Hollywood Reporter revealed that a fourth Conjuring film was in development with David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick writing the screenplay, and James Wan and Peter Safran returning as producers.[4]
Prior to the release of The Nun II in September 2023, Chaves stated that work on the script was likely to continue, stating that the project was intended to be seen as a “finale” of the stories in the franchise that had come before.[5] By February 2024, Chaves was hired to once again serve as director.[6] In September of the same year, it was announced that Ian Goldberg and Richard Naing were completing rewrites of Johnson-McGoldbrick’s draft of an original story co-authored by Wan and Johnson-McGoldbrick. Ben Hardy and Mia Tomlinson were added to the cast in supporting roles.[7]