Posted in: Horror, Movies, Warner Bros | Tagged: film, horror, The Conjuring, The Nun, the nun II

How The Nun II Filmmaker Approaches Franchise Films

The Nun II filmmaker is sharing how he manages to combine key pieces of The Conjuring universe with a unique standalone story.

When we first met The Nun's demonic presence in The Conjuring franchise just a few years ago, she became a clear standout character who needed an origin story. Then, of course, the first solo nun film proved itself at the box office despite lukewarm reviews, so naturally, a second entry followed with The Nun II, currently in theaters.

Though, considering that there's a lot of continuity to address in a separate film series, how does the team behind The Nun II manage to balance originality with familiarity? Here's what you need to know courtesy of The Nun II director Michael Chaves.

Linking The Nun to The Conjuring Universe

While talking to The Hollywood Reporter about participating in a franchise with a lot of converging timeline details, Chaves admits, "It's interesting. Whenever someone says, 'All three of your movies are in the Conjuring-verse,' it's easy to think that it's a kind of rinse and repeat, but making movies is like raising kids. Each one has their own personality, and they become their own person, and that's so true with movies."

Chaves then continues, "They just naturally do that. I'm such a fan of this series, and I'm such a fan of the universe that I actually like those connections. I like feeling that this really is part of a bigger story, and I like feeling the weight of that. It actually feels like something that is both building off of something and then building to something, so I always love having those little connections. So even though they do become their own movies — and I think that they are just naturally — I'm usually the one who's trying to bring those connections back in."

When discussing the franchise's timeline with SFX Magazine, the filmmaker noted, "This is set in the '50s, so we're still a ways off from [her fate in The Conjuring]. The events of what happens in between this starts to fill out that story a little bit more. There's other big ideas and big swings in there, and it's filled with a bunch of cool Easter eggs. Without giving anything away, it continues to fill out the picture and the bigger canvas."

The Nun II is out in theaters now, but there are still plenty of Conjuring universe shenanigans in the works if you're eager for more horror.

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