Horror fans all over the Philippines braved the witching hour on September 3 to catch the very first showing of The Conjuring: Last Rites, setting a new record for highest-grossing midnight screening for any movie in the country – a fitting tribute to Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga, who are back on the big screen for one last time as real-life paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren.
Rated R-16, Last Rites has also broken the record for biggest opening for an R-16 movie, previously held by Final Destination Bloodlines. This latest installment in the Conjuring franchise now also holds the record for biggest opening day for a horror film of all time in the Philippines, and currently has the second highest-grossing opening day for any movie this year.
The Conjuring: Last Rites is the ninth entry in the more than $2 billion theatrical Conjuring universe and is the farewell installment in the fan-favorite horror movie series. Directed by franchise veteran Michael Chaves and produced by franchise architects James Wan and Peter Safran, Last Rites delivers another thrilling chapter of the iconic Conjuring cinematic universe, based on real events. Farmiga and Wilson reunite for one last case as Ed and Lorraine Warren in a powerful and spine-chilling addition to the global box office juggernaut.
Filmmakers Wan, Safran and Chaves are all in agreement that Farmiga and Wilson are a big reason that fans keep coming back to the Conjuring universe. “Vera and Patrick have always been the center of these movies,” says Wan, who directed The Conjuring 1 and 2, and has been a producer since the second film in the universe. “They have such a great relationship, onscreen and off – they’re such good friends. I think that really comes across and the audience sees how authentic it is… I have always said, ‘They come for the fright and the scares, but they really stick around for Vera and Patrick.’”
Adds producer Safran, “I think the success of the universe has really hinged on the Warrens as a family. That’s why people keep coming back to see the next adventure, the next investigation, the next stage in their lives – it’s because they’ve fallen in love with Ed and Lorraine as portrayed by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga.”
Director Chaves says it best: “Vera and Patrick have always been our secret weapon. They’re the heart and soul of these films, and it’s their talent and who they are as people that have shaped these movies from the start.”
Wilson, who has been portraying Ed Warren since the first Conjuring in 2013, can’t help feeling nostalgic. “Going back to the first film, I remember thinking, ‘What a gift to be able to do this.’”
Farmiga, who, like Wilson, is a much beloved figure in the horror genre, is looking back as well. “It’s been really fun to grow up through the decades and explore all these sensational cases,” she shares, but adds: “This story is the last act for these two.”
Don’t miss your chance to say farewell to Ed and Lorraine Warren, and to the franchise that has been haunting moviegoers over the years. The Conjuring: Last Rites is now showing in cinemas.
Watch the trailer here: https://youtu.be/Nt6-4QdDRqE
Photo & Video Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures
