Re-released and re-streamed countless times during the lockdowns of 2020-2021, the 2016 sequel proved something crucial: real scares don’t expire. Let’s rewind to 2016. After the runaway success of The Conjuring (2013), expectations were impossible. Instead of playing it safe, Wan doubled down on the most controversial case in paranormal history: the 1977 Enfield Poltergeist.
It’s the rare sequel that improves on the original. It gave us Vera Farmiga’s best scene (the vision of Ed on a spike), Patrick Wilson’s most heroic moment, and a demonic nun that—for one perfect film—was genuinely terrifying. The Conjuring 2 -2016 2021
By 2021, the horror landscape had changed. We had seen Hereditary ’s grief-stricken dread, A Quiet Place ’s gimmick-driven tension, and The Invisible Man ’s high-tech reinvention. But five years after its summer release, James Wan’s The Conjuring 2 didn’t just hold up—it towered over the franchise it spawned. Instead of playing it safe, Wan doubled down
The Crooked Man will thank you. And if you hear knocking from the walls tonight? Don’t answer. Just put on some Elvis. What’s your favorite scene from The Conjuring 2? Still scared of the Nun? Drop a comment below—just don’t say her name three times. By 2021, the horror landscape had changed