The Nun 2: Trailer, Release Date, Story & Everything We Know About Valak's Return (2024)

The Conjuring spinoffs are continuing with The Nun 2, and news around the demon Valak's return is arriving fast as The Nun 2 release date looms. Following the success of his directorial debut Saw in 2004, James Wan struggled with his follow-ups. While they've since developed cult followings, both Dead Silence and Death Sentence struggled at the box office. Wan went back to his roots with 2010's Insidious, proving himself a modern horror auteur, but it was his follow-up The Conjuring which — just like Saw — spawned a box-office smashing franchise. The Nun was the second IP to spin off from the Conjurverse after Annabelle, and the second movie to feature Valak looks set to propel the demon to the same levels of infamy as the Warren's possessed doll.

The Nun II is the latest movie in the Conjurverse. There are currently eight entries in The Conjuring saga. 2018's The Nun served as a prequel to the events of The Conjuring 2 and followed the origin of the demonic entity, Valak, whose forms include the titular Nun. Bonnie Aarons' Nun was a late addition to The Conjuring 2, with Valak originally portrayed as a more traditionally demonic-looking creature — and the last-minute change elevated Valak to a being capable of holding their own in a standalone spinoff. Now, in 2023, the demon returns for The Nun 2, this time set in France. The Nun itself received very mixed reviews but turned a healthy profit, which inevitably led to The Nun 2, and here is all the latest The Nun 2 news.

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The Latest The Nun 2 News

The most recent The Nun 2 news is the critical reviews and responses to early screenings, and they point to the new The Nun movie being a strong entry for the franchise. Most critics believe that The Nun 2 is better than its predecessor, and not just by a small margin. The new horror movie is being considered a monumental improvement of the original film, with the scares, the intensity, and the shocking third act getting seemingly endless praise. While The Nun 2 is being dubbed as the last movie in The Conjuring universe, critics have noted that The Nun 2 has a clever and significant impact on it.

While critics are still embargoed, meaning they're not allowed to speak about the movie details at length, many have tweeted about their reaction to The Nun 2. BJ Colangelo was slightly critical of The Nun 2 story, noting, "the story felt like three different films fighting for the main plot," but added, "scares had me jumping in my seat." Shannon McGrew was ecstatic about the movie, commenting that The Nun 2 "is so extra and goes so hard that I’m now instantly obsessed." Tessa Smith confirmed what everyone was hoping, revealing that The Nun 2 is "infinitely better than the first film... scarier and much more intense..."

The Nun 2 Release Date

Though The Nun 2 was announced as in development shortly after the release of the first movie in 2018, The Nun 2 release date wasn't immediately released. However, The Nun 2 release date is September 8, 2023, and will be exclusively in theaters. The Nun 2 release date is almost exactly five years after the first installment. During a chat with EW in 2019, The Conjuring franchise producer Peter Safran stated a sequel was being developed for The Nun 2, which will apparently have "a really fun storyline." He also stated for the potential follow-up, “I think there is an inevitability to another Nun movie."

The Nun 2 Cast

Many of the movies in The Conjuring movie universe feature new faces in each installment, as the different movies take place in different time periods and detail different hauntings or possessions of new characters. The Nun 2 cast will continue this trend to an extent. However, The Nun 2 will see cast members from The Nun return. Bonnie Aarons will return as the demon Valak’s nun form. Going up against Valak again in The Nun 2 will be Taissa Farmiga’s Sister Irene. Some fans theorize she is the younger Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga). Also returning for The Nun 2 is Jonas Bloquet, as revealed by producer James Wan sharing The Nun 2 cast news on social media.

There are at least three new faces in The Nun 2 cast. Storm Reid, who fans saw in the first season of The Last Of Us on HBO Max, is playing a lead role in The Nun 2. Fans have learned from The Nun 2 writer Akela Cooper that there is an effort being made in this movie to increase representation. The casting of Reid confirms Cooper is seeing through with his intent, but even before this, she pushed for representation in The Nun 2 script. According to Cooper, she told producers during a meeting for the movie, “I’m going to put a Black nun in this,” and no one objected. Reid spoke about her addition to The Nun 2 cast (via Collider) and how it spoke to her.

"I am not a big horror film person, so I was really apprehensive reading the script. I was like, 'If this is not how I move through the world; if this character doesn't align with who I am as a person, I'm not doing it. By my surprise, the character I play is incredible. I think she really adds some funkiness to the story."

Also joining The Nun 2 cast are Anna Popplewell (The Chronicles Of Narnia, Reign) and Katelyn Rose Downey (The Princess). Popplewell is playing the widowed mother of Downey’s character. No other cast members have been revealed yet.

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The Nun 2 Story

The most obvious The Nun 2 news is that the franchise moving locations, as the movie will take place in France. The Nun 2 story is also only set a few years after the events of the first movie, and about 15 years before the events of The Conjuring. The Nun 2 has a script written by Akela Cooper, who also wrote the scripts for Malignant and M3GAN. Michael Chaves is directing The Nun 2. Chaves also directed the last two The Conjuring spinoffs, The Curse Of La Llorona and The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It.

Producer James Wan, who gave more details about Frenchie in The Nun 2 story. James Wan commented on Frenchie's situation sets up The Nun 2 story, noting, "Frenchie has moved on from the first film and he is at a Catholic school as a groundskeeper-handyman." Wan also discussed Frenchie's friendship with Sister Irene, adding, "I love this platonic friendship that the two of them have. She cares very much for him, and she wants to do everything she can to help him." The Nun 2 will likely see Irene conflicted between her love for Frenchie and also knowing she has to fight the evil within him. Reportedly, a string of murders has taken place that seems to be perpetrated by the Nun. Now, a fully-ordained Sister Irene (Taissa Farmiga) will return in The Nun 2 to get rid of her.

The Nun 2 Trailer

Filming for The Nun 2 wrapped in late 2022 and a trailer was shown at CinemaCon, and now, The Nun 2 trailer has finally been released. The Nun 2 trailer follows a young girl who believes she's being haunted by a mysterious entity, and the footage then shows that, yet again, not even young children are safe from the Nun, as the entity violently grabs the girl's head. The priest then yells what's sure to be a classic line, "you send that thing back to hell!"

The first trailer for The Nun 2 isn't the only pre-released footage WB has shared. Plenty of The Nun 2 behind-the-scenes footage and featurettes have been put into circulation by the studio, including a breakdown of how Valak and The Nun were created for the big screen. With The Nun 2 release date not until September, another trailer will likely surface, revealing more of the story and characters.