Michael Chaves, the director of The Conjuring: Last Rites, the reportedly final installment in the paranormal franchise, spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about how Logan (2017) inspired the franchise’s (most likely temporary) denouement.
Chaves Sought Inspiration from Wolverine
Chaves is no stranger to the franchise, having previously directed The Curse of La Llorona (2019), The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021), and The Nun II (2023). But when it came time to deliver the much-anticipated “last” chapter, he didn’t want to overload the franchise with too many Marvel-esque tie-ins. Perhaps surprisingly, Chaves’ watermark was James Mangold’s 2017 superhero finale, which marked the last time Hugh Jackman took on the role of Wolverine before last year’s Deadpool and Wolverine. A revisionist neo-western which largely eschewed superhero-movie trappings, Logan was lauded upon its release as a mature progression for the X-Men franchise.
“Going into the movie, one of the references that I kept on giving was Logan,” Chaves explained. “I’ve always loved how Logan wasn’t this big, sprawling movie where every villain is unleashed on Wolverine. It was actually the smallest, most intimate Wolverine story, and by being the most intimate Wolverine story, it’s such a beautiful final chapter because it’s big emotionally.”
Warner Bros.
“Ghostbusters Was Being Applied to The Conjuring“
Chaves continued: “When we were making Last Rites, these fan-made trailers would show up online, and every demon that the Warrens have ever trapped is unleashed. It was as if Ghostbusters was being applied to TheConjuring. So I saw that and thought it was awesome, but I was like, ‘I’m so glad we’re not doing that version of the movie.’ There’d be a lot of busyness [sic] from going through the family tree of demons and Lorraine’s connections. And ultimately, it would be a very hollow experience.”
But Last Rites May Not Be the End for the Warrens
As for whether or not Last Rites is in fact the last of the Conjuring movies, Chaves gave a winking answer. “Well, this is the final chapter. This is the last movie. We’re not going to make any more Conjuring,” he said before flashing “a tongue-in-cheek smile,” according to the outlet. “I don’t know. It’s been such a great journey, and I’ve loved being a part of it. So I would totally love to be called back.”
