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After more than a decade, eight exciting films, and countless demons, horror’s most successful franchise of all time, The Conjuring Universe, has largely wrapped with The Conjuring: Last Rites. It’s certainly been an incredible journey, one that has both enthralled fans, and racked up an impressive sum at the box office. Loosely based on the haunting of the 1970s haunting of the Peron family and the investigation of the alleged events conducted by Ed and Lorraine Warren (played on screen by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga, respectively), James Wan‘s horror classic, The Conjuring, had humble beginnings. But after an unexpected and impressive box office haul, it soon spawned the aforementioned cinematic universe that featured the likes of the infamous Annabelle doll and the Nun (Bonnie Aarons). For many, however, the heart of the series has always been the fictionalized version of the Warrens.
The alleged real-life inspirations behind the films, as well as the characters of Ed and Lorraine Warren themselves, have always given the titular franchise a depth that is not common for the genre and have elevated the movies to a level above their spin-offs. Of course, being a product of Hollywood, the series has taken a number of liberties when it comes to the supposed supernatural occurrences upon which they are based. In the interest of wrapping up the Warrens’ on-screen story, The Conjuring: Last Rites follows this pattern and, in doing so, presents a mostly fictionalized version of the Smurl family’s claims. So, what’s accurate and what was crafted? Fret not, we are here with the haunting answers.
The Smurl Haunting Is More Complex Than ‘The Conjuring: Last Rites’ Portrays
Wrapping up a massive franchise like the Conjuring Universe is not an easy task, and there was a lot riding on The Conjuring: Last Rites. While, as the film states, it is inspired by the alleged Smurl haunting, the picture is more focused on the cinematic universe’s larger story, and how that plays into the Warren’s fictional last chapter. In reality, the events that the Smurl family claimed to experience were more complex than what the film shows. Though the movie shows the haunting taking place over the course of a few months, beginning in 1986, the lead-up to the period portrayed was much longer.As stated in the book, The Haunted: One Family’s Nightmare (which was written by the Smurls along with Ed and Lorraine Warren and Robert Curran), the Smurls moved into the Chase Street duplex home in the fall of 1973, having lost their previous residents to a flood. Jack and Janet Smurl (Elliot Cowan and Rebecca Calder in the film) lived on one side of the house along with their daughters, while Jack’s parents (played by Peter Wight and Kate Fahy) on screen lived on the other side, though they moved in after the family. The first few years at the house were said to be relatively calm, with the supposed paranormal events beginning slowly. According to the book, the Smurls would occasionally hear things such as tapping on the walls, and there were occasional electrical issues.
As the years went on, however, things began to escalate. Per The Haunted, the issues the Smurls faced within the home began to become violent when, on an evening in 1985, Shannon Smurl was struck in the head by a falling ceiling light, similar to the jump scare shown in the film. The alleged occurrences really began to escalate over the next year and a half with events that apparently saw the family’s German Shepard thrown against a wall, disturbing smells began to fill the house, and, perhaps most horrific of all, Jack Smurl claimed he was sexually assaulted by a female-looking spirit. According to People, two exorcisms were performed in the house, but the Smurls said that they continued to experience supernatural activity. They decided to go public with their struggles, which created something of a media circus. Soon, the family’s perils were brought to the attention of Ed and Lorraine Warren.
The Warrens’ Real Involvement in the Smurl Case Was Much Different
While the Warrens were indeed involved in the Smurl’s haunting, the events that occurred were incredibly different from those portrayed in The Conjuring: Last Rites. Unlike what is shown at the film’s beginning, the demon that the Smurls and Warrens claimed to have encountered did not have a long-running vendetta with the Warrens. Likewise, Judy Warren (Mia Thomlinson in the picture) was not at all involved in the case, as she has repeatedly stated that she has avoided a career involving the supernatural. Her son, however, Chris McKinnell, was not only there but also the first to arrive at the Smurl home. McKinnell, who spent many years working with his grandparents (per the Warren Legacy Foundation), spent time with the Smurls and is said to have witnessed many of the occurrences that were disturbing the family, and, according to The Haunted, took copious notes about what was happening. These included strange noises, temperature drops, and unexplainable phenomena such as levitation. Chris reported the issues to the Warrens, who then came out to investigate.
As recounted by People, Ed Warren says he “[…] did not have to wait moments when the very thing I felt was a drop in temperature of at least 30-some degrees. Then, a dark mass formed about three feet in front of me. There was a sound in back of me; I could hear rattling around.” Somewhat similarly to the spirits portrayed in the film, Mrs. Warren did claim that she sensed three different spirits under the control of a demonic figure; however, the screen version does over dramatize the claims, as is evident by the picture’s finale. Per The Haunted, the Warrens spent a lot of time working on the case before Rev. Joseph Adonizio became involved, who claimed to help clear the home via “intense prayers.” There was no demonic mirror involved, as the one portrayed in the film somewhat resembles another artifact in the Warren’s Occult Museum. When all is said and done, the aftereffects of the investigation were far different from those portrayed in the picture.
What Happened to the Smurls and the Warrens After the Haunting?
The Conjuring: Last Rites certainly wraps the Conjuring Universe up, sending the Warrens off into a cameo-filled retirement, while the Smurl family’s troubles are brought to an end. However, like most of the film, this isn’t the case. Per the People, Janet Smurl claimed she continued to see shadowy figures and occasionally heard knocking before moving to Wilkes-Barre, PA, in 1988. Meanwhile, the Warrens continued to work following the events of the film. In fact, the Warrens and McKinnell began working on the Snedeker case, an occurrence that would go on to be the very loose inspiration for The Haunting in Connecticut, just a short time after their work with the Smurls. Following the 2017 passing of Jack Smurl, the Pocono Record spoke with one of the Smurl children, Carin Smurl, who now works as a paranormal investigator herself. The media attention that came with the apparent haunting caused the Smurls to face intense public scrutiny, something Carin had not forgotten, nor had her father. “We had such a hard time and nobody to turn to,” she said. “[Jack Smurl] was happy I was a voice out there for people who need help.” Following their departure from the house, Debra Owens moved into the duplex but never reported experiencing the same paranormal experiences that the Smurls claimed.
Though both Ed and Lorraine Warren have since passed on, McKinnell continues his grandparents’ work through the Warren Legacy Foundation. Likewise, the real Tony and Judy Spera currently run the New England Society for Psychic Research. An investigator himself, McKinnell recently hosted a live stream, where he discussed the nuances of the case and of his field in general. He proclaimed the importance of looking for the “rational explanation” before jumping to supernatural accounts, as well as reflected on the fictional portrayal of his grandparents. While a fan of Wan’s original classic, McKinnell was careful to explain that even though the movies got the “essence” of the Warrens right, they were still real people and weren’t the pseudo superheroes the movies often portray. It’s an important reminder to moviegoers that, despite the “Based on a true story” trope that the movies use to sell themselves, they are not documentaries, and The Conjuring: Last Rites is, certainly, no different.
The Conjuring: Last Rites
- Release Date
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September 5, 2025
- Runtime
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135 Minutes
- Director
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Michael Chaves
- Writers
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David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, Ian B. Goldberg, Richard Naing, Carey Hayes, Chad Hayes, James Wan
- Producers
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Peter Safran, James Wan
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