How and Where to Watch All the 'The Conjuring' Universe Movies in Order Before 'The Conjuring: Last Rites'
Stream The Conjuring, Annabelle and The Nun films, either by release date or as they happened.
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When you think of the biggest blockbuster movie franchises, the Marvel MCU or the Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings movies might be the first to come to mind. But secretly, quietly lurking in the shadows like so many unseen demons, the films in The Conjuring universe have been racking up fans. The franchise—which now has nine movies, three subseries (The Conjuring, The Nun movies and Annabelle), and one in-universe spin-off to its name—has made more than $2.1 billion worldwide, Deadline reports, making it one of the highest-grossing horror series of all time.
The next, and possibly final, film in the series comes to theaters on September 5. For anyone hoping to refresh their knowledge of the cases of Ed and Lorraine Warren before The Conjuring: Last Rites comes out, here's where and how to watch all of the movies in The Conjuring universe in order. It's presented in chronological order, starting with the earliest hauntings in the '50s and moving through the decades to the '80s. But for those who have never seen the films before, there's a release-date order at the end (which is the best way to watch for beginners). No matter which order is preferred, most of the movies can be found on HBO Max and Hulu, along with rental services like Prime Video and Apple TV. Just be sure to banish any creepy dolls from the room before the movies start.
The Nun (2018)
When you watch according to the in-franchise timeline, The Conjuring is not the first Conjuring movie, if that makes any sense. The first chronologically is The Nun, which starts in the '50s—1952 to be exact, before the Warrens started their demonologists-for-hire business. The bad news begins when two nuns in Romania die under suspicious circumstances. The Vatican calls upon Father Burke (Demián Bichir), who has his own haunted past, to investigate the incident alongside Sister Irene (Taissa Farmiga, sister of Vera Farmiga, who plays Lorraine Warren). What they discover is that a demon named Valak (Bonnie Aarons) is behind it all—and its work is far from over. (Sounds scary? It wasn't to a 2-year-old in Texas, who insisted on having a The Nun-themed birthday party when she turned 3.)
The Nun 2 (2023)
The Nun is not the last anyone's seen of Valak. It's now 1956, and Sister Irene has transferred to a convent in Italy. But when mysterious deaths start up again across Europe, the Church sends Irene to investigate and see if they're connected to their old nemesis. (And where do the Warrens fit in this time? Keep watching through the credits.)
Annabelle: Creation (2017)
In real life, the Warrens did have a supposedly haunted doll that they kept in a locked case in their Occult Museum in Monroe, Connecticut. But it looked nothing like the one we've come to know as Annabelle. It was actually a Raggedy Ann doll, one that's now owned by comedian Matt Rife. Annabelle's origins aren't quite so mass-produced. To show how she came to be, Annabelle: Creation heads to South Carolina in 1955. The film follows a doll maker named Samuel (Anthony LaPaglia) and his wife Esther (Miranda Otto). After the couple tragically loses their 7-year-old daughter, they open their home to Sister Charlotte (Stephanie Sigman) and a handful of orphan girls. But when one comes across an old porcelain doll in the closet, a demon gets unleashed and wreaks havoc.
Annabelle (2014)
The series moves from the '50s to the '60s with Annabelle. In 1967, a doctor, John Form (Ward Horton), gives a porcelain doll to his expectant wife, Mia (Annabelle Wallis) as a present. What could go wrong? Things turn south right away when the Forms are involved in a deadly home invasion, and then seemingly paranormal events begin to occur in their Pasadena home. Could they all be traced back to the doll?
The Conjuring (2013)
Finally—finally!—we get to the Warrens, and the film that kicked off the whole franchise. The series jumps forward in time again, to 1971, when Roger (Ron Livingston) and Carolyn Perron (Lili Taylor) move with their five daughters into an old farmhouse in Rhode Island. After experiencing several haunting paranormal events, they contact demonologists Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) to investigate. This film was directed by James Wan, who has made his mark on the horror genre with movies like Saw, Insidious, and Malignant.
Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
It's 1972, and Ed and Lorraine Warren have the infamous Annabelle locked away to keep the spirit within it from attacking others. But when the Warren's babysitter invites a friend over, Annabelle's case gets unlocked. Once again, evil spirits are unleashed and require the demonologists to shut them away again.
The Curse of La Llorona (2019)
This one is for the completists out there, because while it takes place in a universe where demons from The Conjuring exist, it's not an official part of the franchise. Tony Amendola returns as Father Perez, his role from Annabelle, and there are other references to the series for eagle-eyed viewers to spot, but according to the producers, that doesn't make it count as part of Conjuring universe. (It's also the only one without a sequel.) Think of the references as more like fan Easter eggs.
The Curse of La Llorona ("The Weeping Woman") takes place in Los Angeles in 1973, when a mother named Patricia (Patricia Alvarez) is blamed for the death of her two sons. (Or was she possessed?) Wanting her sons back, Patricia prays to La Llorona to kill the children of caseworker Anna Tate-Garcia (Linda Cardellini) in order to bring back her own.
The Conjuring 2 (2016)
It's now 1976, and we return to check in on the Warrens, who have been tapped to investigate the chilling events at the Amityville house. (Perhaps you've heard of that one?) While trying to figure out if a demon caused Ronald DeFeo Jr. to kill his entire family, Lorraine sees a terrifying vision of a demonic nun figure. (Yes, Valak is back.) She fears her vision of Ed getting injured will become a reality as they're called to interpret paranormal events happening with the Hodgson family in London. Like the Amityville case, the events of The Conjuring 2 are based on a real-life Warren investigation, The Enfield Poltergeist, though surely Hollywood has taken liberties.
The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021)
The next and as-of-yet final installment in the main Conjuring series takes place in 1981, revolving around the once again based-on-a-true-story trial of Arne Cheyenne Johnson, who claimed the devil made him kill his landlord. In the film, the Warrens discover that the curse stems from a witch's totem and was summoned by a satanic worshiper. After investigating a similar murder case, Lorraine and Ed discover the chilling backstory of the curse and what needs to be done in order to stop the demon from manipulating others.
The Conjuring: Last Rites (2025)
Does the phrase "last rites" imply that this is the end of the Conjuring universe? After star Vera Farmiga posted an emotional, farewell-esque caption on her Instagram account bidding adieu to her "fake marriage" to Patrick Wilson, all signs point to yes. Then again, you never know when demons are going to pop up.
No matter the future of the franchise, this film skips ahead to 1986. Once again, the inspiration was taken from a real-life case, this time the Smurl family haunting in West Pittson, Pensylvania. There, a family was plagued by seemingly supernatural occurrences—moving furniture, odd voices—that escalated in their severity over time. "“I thought these things only happen in movies," Jack Smurl, the family patriarch, famously said—a line so good they used real footage of him saying it in the trailer.
And the Release Order
If you're watching the movies for the first time, the order in which they were released is always best. That way, you find out information about the Warrens, the demons and all the connections in the same order that the filmmakers intended. In this case, here are all The Conjuring movies in release order.
- The Conjuring (2013)
- Annabelle (2014)
- The Conjuring 2 (2016)
- Annabelle: Creation (2017)
- The Nun (2018)
- The Curse of La Llorona (2019)
- Annabelle Comes Home (2019)
- The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021)
- The Nun 2 (2023)
- The Conjuring: Last Rites (2025)
Marisa (she/her) has covered all things parenting, from the postpartum period through the empty nest, for Good Housekeeping since 2018; previously, she wrote about parents and families at Parents and Working Mother. She lives with her toy-collecting husband and daughter in Brooklyn, where she can be found helping out her team at bar trivia or posting about movies on Twitter and Bluesky.
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