The Conjuring: Last Rites Just Broke One Of Horror's Biggest Box Office Records

At a time when the box office is more unpredictable than it's ever been, we can generally count on horror to come through. It's the most bankable, reliable genre out there, save for the occasional high-profile flop. And "The Conjuring: Last Rites" is about as far from a flop as one can get. In fact, the latest entry in the long-running Conjuring Universe not only enjoyed a record-breaking debut at the box office, but it also now stands alone as the horror movie with the biggest opening weekend of all time. Yes, really.

Directed by Michael Chaves, "Last Rites" made $84 million domestically to go with an astounding $110 million internationally for a grand total of $194 million worldwide. Mind you, for a film with a reported $55 million budget, that would be a damn fine final number, let alone an opening weekend. More importantly though, that massive opening now ensures this movie's place in the cinema history books, as it has overtaken 2017's "It" to snag the biggest global box office bow ever for a horror film.

"It," for the record, opened to $190 million on its way to a $700 million total worldwide gross. On top of that, director Andy Muschietti's adaptation of Stephen King's beloved novel remains the highest-grossing horror movie ever globally. Needless to say, that's great company to be in, regardless of how "Last Rites" fares from this point on. Interestingly, "It" was also an early September release hailing from Warner Bros., just like this year's "Conjuring" sequel.

Aside from those similarities, though, what the latest "Conjuring" film managed to do is quite staggering. At the time, "It" felt like it was being marketed like wild, taking off in the broader cultural sphere. Not to diminish anything, but it feels like "Last Rites" managed to coast to this record-breaking number without nearly as much pre-release build up. That's downright remarkable.

To that end, the fourth solo "Conjuring" movie had been tracking in the $40 million range domestically just two weeks ago, with those estimates growing to north of $50 million ahead of the film's release. Ultimately, however, it decimated those expectations. It also did so in spite of middling reviews from critics, signaling just how much general audiences have come to love Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga as the paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren. Chaves, for what it's worth, has similarly proven to be a great shepherd for the property, having previously directed "The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It" and "The Nun II" as well.

It all goes back to director James Wan's "The Conjuring" in 2013, which made $319 million worldwide, becoming an unexpected smash hit. That, in turn, paved the way for a string of spin-offs and sequels, which we now know as The Conjuring Universe. Across 10 movies spanning 12 years, not a single one of them has flopped commercially. Rather, they have all delivered on audience expectations, even if critics haven't always agreed. The opening for "Last Rites" only cements that as an immovable truth.

With "Last Rites," The Conjuring Universe has now generated more than $2.5 billion at the global box office. That total includes the gross for Chaves' "The Curse of La Llorona," which isn't technically a "Conjuring" movie, depending on who you ask. But that's another conversation entirely. Regardless, what this horror franchise has accomplished is beyond impressive.

As for the future? This new movie was billed as a send off of sorts for Wilson and Farmiga, meaning that their versions of the Warrens are retired for the time being. Of course, Warner Bros. is very unlikely to let the franchise go to bed forever. That means we're probably getting more spin-offs. Maybe "The Crooked Man" will finally happen. Maybe "Annabelle 4" and/or "The Nun 3" are in the cards too. For now, even if (against all odds) it turns out "Last Rites" really is the end, the (fictional) Warrens will get to go out on top in just about every meaningful sense.

"The Conjuring: Last Rites" is in theaters now.