The Conjuring franchise had so much going for it from the get-go.
Most influential of the lot being the continued involvement of director James Wan.
The presence of one James Wan
The successes of these franchises are further elevated when you consider his work in other prominent films of this century; most notably being, Aquaman (2018) and his turn as a director in one fast and the furious film.
Wan hasn’t just consistently delivered movie after movie, but he has managed to deliver blockbusters within the franchise for different franchises. A lot of what he has established does put him the good books of studio heads. Warner Brothers for one give him a lot of space in the creative process. Something that is quite absent in today’s era of filmmaking where directors are generally pawns in the paycheques of studio execs.
His successes aren’t no benefactors of sheer market luck…but, a testament of Wan’s sheer skill of churning movies worth watching.
Why The Conjuring Franchise Works?
Narrowing our focus onto The Conjuring franchise, much of the credit of the success should be attributed to the “True Story” ploy these films go for. After all, every film in the franchise does include the complete screen presence or at least mention of the real-life, Demonologist-Paranormal Investigator couple, the Warrens. Already famous before the franchise with a cult following, these brand of movies furthered their appeal to heightened commercial fandom. Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson playing the couple did everyone a favour because they are an absolute treat to watch on screen. Their chemistry and affable romance add gravitas to a role that would have been meh had they not been cast.
The Conjuring franchise also benefitted of creating and adapting characters that have surprisingly become household names. Anabelle (already a famous demon doll)), Bathseba, and the stunning Valak soon joined the ranks of horror movie icons of our time and before. The studio also milked everything possible out of each character. 3 Spin-offs for Anabelle and a few for Valak. And… more movies are in works!
The Marketing Genius that The Conjuring films are
The Marketing of the franchise is rad, even for a new film that might be several months away from its release. Wan is growing from strength to strength. The legends of the franchise are getting more ears to tell their stories, and of course, people including us are always willing to write a post on them.
To people who tell you that The Conjuring franchise reinvented storytelling and brought upon a new age in the horror genre – tell ‘em to buzz off!
The Conjuring is successful because it’s clever and the people behind it saw to its success. But that doesn’t make it a bad film.
The Conjuring is an amazing treat to watch and so are its sequels and prequels and all that. But original? That… the movie is not!
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