"The Nun II" sees the demon Valak go beyond the walls of the abbey into the French countryside to
wreak havoc. What will all the mayhem mean for the "Conjuring" universe as a whole?
Warning: Spoilers for "The Nun II" ahead!
As Sisters Irene and Debra investigate the inexplicable devastation that Valak has caused,
they come to realize what the demon is after. While possessing Irene's old friend Frenchie,
Valak has been searching for a powerful religious artifact known as the eyes of Saint Lucy,
the patron saint of the blind. Valak has been brutally killing Lucy's descendants
so that no one can stop her from gaining the eyes' incredible power.
"In the hands of a demon, it would be unthinkable."
Irene and Debra track down Frenchie, who has been acting as a handyman at an all-girls
school, where he's gotten close to a young teacher named Kate and her daughter Sophie.
When they arrive, Valak has already started to take full control of Frenchie and even
caused the arrival of another demon, an infernal goat. In all the chaos,
Irene ends up finding the eyes of Saint Lucy in the school's chapel. Unfortunately,
Frenchie storms in and nearly rips the eyes right out of Irene's hands. Sophie
grabs the eyes and runs toward a bell tower while the possessed Frenchie gives chase.
Sophie and Frenchie's cat-and-mouse game causes the bell tower to fall apart. Irene and Debra rush
in to try and save Sophie. Luckily, no one is hurt during the tower's collapse, but Frenchie is still
up and in pursuit of Sophie. Irene uses the power of the eyes to freeze Frenchie and weaken him. It
could ultimately kill him. This initially seems to be the case as Frenchie lies on the ground,
but then he reawakens to steal the eyes from Irene's hands, which gives Valak the power that
she's been craving. Her eyes turn yellow and she grows to a massive size, towering over everyone.
Irene and Debra then notice that the floor is covered in wine, which reminds Irene about the
power of faith. On a train ride earlier in the film, Debra tells Irene that she has doubts,
questioning what really makes communion wine the blood of Christ. Irene says that
it's faith that makes people believe, and they use that sense of faith to consecrate the wine,
ultimately defeating Valak by dousing her in it.
"I just hope you can find your faith when the time comes."
Once Valak is defeated and her dark presence over the school has lifted,
Irene is left a changed woman. During the final fight with Valak, Irene remembers a
time with her mother and connects it to what she's learned about the descendants of Saint Lucy. She
determines that she's likely one of Lucy's descendants. It's something that ultimately
gives her the power to beat Valak this time, and makes her realize that she's destined to defeat
Valak once and for all. This revelation makes Irene anything but gleeful, though.
She still knows that Frenchie is susceptible to Valak's power and doesn't think that he's
totally shaken Valak's control over him. Even with the lifting of the dark aura around the school,
Irene can feel that there is still a haunting presence around Frenchie himself. Yes,
he walks away with Kate and Sophie to likely start a better life,
but Irene knows that it won't be long until Valak gains control over him again.
Like the first "Nun" movie, "The Nun II" makes a direct connection to "Conjuring" franchise
protagonists Ed and Lorraine Warren decades later. Fans are treated to a mid-credits scene
that starts with the sound of a ringing phone. Both Ed and Lorraine come to answer the call,
and it seems like the person on the other end is asking for their help.
It's unlike the Warrens to simply refuse a request for their assistance, so they obviously seem like
they're ready to head somewhere new. But where are they going? Is this mid-credits scene simply
a tease for the upcoming fourth "Conjuring" film, or is it connected to the events of
"The Nun II," meaning that the Warrens could be facing off against Valak once again? The answer
is unclear for now, but the possibilities are very exciting for the future of the franchise.
While "The Nun II" could simply be seen as a filler story for Valak that sets the stage
for a bigger conflict in a future film, it does shed some interesting new light on the
demonic nun's intentions. Although Valak hasn't really seemed like a force with any motivations
aside from tormenting the people around her, this film shows the type of plans she can concoct. She
takes over Frenchie to not only become a dark plague across France, but to find Saint Lucy's
eyes. And she doesn't want to destroy these holy relics, but use the power for herself.
Valak clearly has bigger plans, and the way she's depicted in "The Nun
II" perhaps hints at a developing storyline for the antagonist that could play out in a
future movie. It doesn't seem like Valak is completely defeated by the end of the film,
and there's potential for her to be a major part of the next "Conjuring" movie. "The Nun
II" isn't just a simple return for Valak: it gives her intriguing motivations and
planning capabilities that could impact plenty of elements of the "Conjuring" series to come.
One of the overarching themes that fuels the debate between Irene and Debra is whether faith
is strong enough to make miracles happen. Debra tells Irene that she desperately wants to see
real-life miracles — which the Church believes Irene performed when she first defeated Valak.
"But in that abbey, sister, you performed a miracle. The church needs another."
After her mother died, Debra started to lose her faith, question Biblical stories, and doubt
that the miracles that Jesus performed were true. As mentioned earlier, Debra particularly
doubts transubstantiation, the belief that wine actually becomes Christ's blood during communion.
But then, in the end, Valak is actually defeated by a combination of communion wine
and the sisters' faith. Given that it works, the film highlights how a strong sense of faith can
empower people to go beyond themselves and do things they often would think are impossible,
maybe even miracles. Their strong belief allows them to tap into a power they
generally wouldn't see, and it's what enables Irene and Debra to defeat a monumental evil.
The revelation that Irene has a personal connection to Saint Lucy might seem a
little forced and unclear when it happens. As Valak's power grows and she wreaks havoc,
Irene remembers a conversation with her mother about having her eyes,
and she starts to put some things together. Although the film never confirms it concretely,
it's alluded that Irene is another descendent of Saint Lucy. While it feels a little too good
to be true, there are small clues throughout the film that do point to this conclusion.
For instance, during Irene's vision of Lucy losing her eyes, Lucy actually looks a bit like Irene,
perhaps a small hint about their familial connection. There are also some thematic
connections between Lucy and Irene. A key part of Lucy's story in Christianity is that she would
often deliver food to those in need in the dark, wearing a crown of candles or carrying a lantern
while she made deliveries in the middle of the night. That idea of being a beacon of light in
the darkness is undoubtedly true for Irene as well, in that she's tasked with keeping the light
of the Church alive in places that have been darkened and corrupted by Valak's presence. So
Irene's connections to Saint Lucy do make a little more sense given those thematic similarities.
No announcement has been made about another "Nun" movie going into development, but the
ending makes it pretty clear where the story is heading. Based on the mid-credits scene,
it seems like the Warrens are about to get involved in another clash with Valak — which
makes sense. The first film featured a scene that saw the Warrens performing
an exorcism on Frenchie, which led to Lorraine being connected with Valak,
as seen in "The Conjuring 2." So it does make sense that the Warrens would finally become
involved. But will we see that in the next mainline "Conjuring" entry, or somewhere else?
The Warrens don't solely appear in films with "Conjuring" in the title. The third
"Annabelle" film, "Annabelle Comes Home," was largely focused on the Warren family,
after all. There's nothing that says the Warrens can't be involved in a potential third "Nun" film.
There's no doubt that Valak is returning at some point, and it could be for another "Nun" movie.
Or maybe the events of "The Nun II" will play into the upcoming fourth "Conjuring" film. Yes,
the "Nun" films and the "Conjuring" movies are set decades apart,
but maybe there's a way to get sisters Taissa and Vera Farmiga on screen together.
The fourth "Conjuring" movie is titled "The Conjuring: Last Rites," which could
hint toward Valak being involved in some sort of grand finale that ties the entire
universe together. We still don't know much about the plot, but the inclusion
of the Warrens in the mid-credits scene of "The Nun II" opens lots of possibilities.
"It would be great to, uh, eventually bring it back full circle. Bring the
'Nun' story and tie it back into 'The Conjuring.'"
Despite Warner Bros. having some ambitious plans for The Conjuring Universe, it doesn't
matter what the studio has planned if the current Writer's Guild of America
and SAG-AFTRA actors' union strikes aren't resolved. As long as the strikes are ongoing,
Warner Bros. won't be able to start development on "The Conjuring: Last Rites," a potential "The
Nun III," or make any announcements about the future of The Conjuring Universe. Fans
could be waiting a while for a potential collaboration between the Farmiga sisters.
The box office performance of "The Nun II" could change things as well. A third "Nun"
film will likely depend on the second's box office performance. Plus, Warner Bros. is
currently in a legal battle with Bonnie Aarons, the actor who plays Valak, over fair compensation
for the use of her image on merchandise. The studio is facing obstacles on multiple fronts.
The end of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes seems nowhere in sight,
as tensions continue to rise between major studios, including Warner Bros., and writers
and actors looking for a fair deal. The enticing potential future of The Conjuring Universe that's
presented in "The Nun II" will likely stay at a standstill for at least a little while longer.