‘Conjuring’ Producer Doubts James Wan Will Direct Another Entry in the Franchise

After directing films like Saw and Insidious, James Wan proved himself as a compelling genre director who could tackle projects that would launch iconic franchises. In 2013, Wan delivered audiences The Conjuring, based on the case files of real-life paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, launching yet another successful franchise. The filmmaker helmed the two proper Conjuring films, yet handed directing duties on The Conjuring 3 over to Michael Chaves. Despite Wan remaining invested in the franchise he helped launch, frequent producing partner Peter Safran recently revealed that he doubts the filmmaker will return to the series to direct another entry into the shared universe.

“I don’t think he will. It’s just me. My instinct is that he won’t. I think that he really left everything out on the field with Conjuring 2,” Safran shared at an Annabelle Comes Home press event ComicBook.com attended. “Just being by his side as he made that movie, I feel like he put everything that he wanted up to that point into that film, from character development to scares to crafting sequences, just everything. I love the movie and I think that he felt like he did it. He really showed people exactly what he wanted to show them … His skills as a filmmaker telling a great story.”

What makes The Conjuring and Wan’s abilities so unique is that, rather than just inspiring countless sequels which ultimately repeat the same concept, the world has expanded with the Annabelle and The Nun series, which have begun establishing their own franchises. With the franchise continuing to expand, Safran isn’t ruling out Wan’s return somewhere down the line.

“I would be surprised if he ended up doing another one but, you never know. Guys like James produce scares. It’s in their blood,” the producer shared. “They need an outlet for it at some point. Maybe if he came in as a producer, you know? There is something very compelling about sitting there and just wanting to scare the shit outta people.”

After helping dominate the genre world, Wan then lent his talents to big-budget action films with Furious 7 and Aquaman, which both became major successes. An Aquaman sequel has already been confirmed, though it’s unclear if Wan will return to direct.

Annabelle Comes Home hits theaters on June 28th.

Are you hoping Wan returns to the horror world? Let us know in the comments below or hit up @TheWolfman on Twitter to talk all things horror and Star Wars!

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