The Conjuring Universe: The 10 Scariest Moments, Ranked

Somehow, The Conjuring came out of nowhere in 2013 and has spawned the second highest-grossing horror franchise of all time through its eight films (with four confirmed to be on the horizon). The series takes a look at the escapades of famous, real-life ghost hunters Ed and Lorraine Warren, showing us fictionalized versions of things they claim to have seen.

Looking at everything from The Conjuring and Annabelle (and their sequels) to the spin-off films The Nun and The Cure Of La Llorona, we’ve ranked the ten scariest moments from the entire franchise.

10 Beneath The Bed (The Curse Of La Llorona)

The Curse Of La Llorona might be the most critically panned entry into the franchise, but it still just about claws its way into our top ten. There aren’t too many tension-building moments, and the jump scares are overdone, but this one is still pretty intense.

Two children are hiding under a bed, with various unfortunate things happening around them. They notice the bedsheet rising from the bed and crawl out on their backs, looking up at the floating linen, which shoots down at them with a blood-curdling scream.

9 The Hand On The Shoulder (The Conjuring 2)

The Conjuring 2 had a lot to live up to when following on from the first film in the series. It had to combine a lot of tension with just the right amount of jump-scare, and it pulled it off to an extent.

One of the most effective moments in the film comes during a moment of particular tension, with Lorraine talking to Bill in an eerily silent, slow exchange. Out of nowhere, the Nun grabs bills shoulder and screams, bearing all of her disgusting teeth.

8 The Staircase (Annabelle: Creation)

Annabelle: Creation was designed to give a backstory to the terrifying Annabelle doll. It isn’t really necessary to provide such a story, but it’ll inject some money into the franchise. One of the scariest sequences in the film comes when Janice confronts a demon. It kicks off with a jump-scare that reveals the demon and sees Janice make the rather clever decision to use a stairlift to quietly escape.

Things get very intense when it becomes clear her plan hasn’t worked, and the demon sends Janice soaring down the stairs, breaking her legs and confining her to a wheelchair, the scene is absolutely chilling.

7 The Clapping (The Conjuring)

Affectionately referred to as the ‘hide and clap’ scene, this creepy moment from the first Conjuring film is about as classic as a ghost story can be. Full of creaking doors and unexplained noises, the scene is pretty tense anyway.

The fact that we hear the innocent, typically celebratory sound of clapping amongst all of this is just so creepy. The idea of a little girl lurking around the corner but not being able to see her is what horror films are all about.

6 Annabelle In The Back Seat (Annabelle Comes Home)

I guess you have to be a whole new level of brave to be a paranormal investigator in the first place, but the idea of sticking a doll known to be haunted and absolutely terrifying in the back seat of your car seems to be a strange decision for anyone to make.

Having just returned to the series, Ed and Lorraine Warren do exactly that in Annabelle Comes Home. As Ed gets out to check the engine, we see him surrounded by various terrifying demons and ghosts, before one of them kicks him out into the path of a truck coming towards them.

5 The Girl In The Corridor (Annabelle)

Early on in Annabelle, we see Mia alone in her new apartment being haunted by all sorts of classic horror tropes. It’s a slow burn, with things moving around and Mia herself being thrown to the floor, all before the figure of a child (who we assume is Annabelle’s ghost) is standing on the other side of her bedroom door. That’s creepy enough.

Then she takes off on a Get Out-esque run towards Mia, turning into a fully grown, screaming woman just as she slams the door open.

4 The Wardrobe (The Conjuring)

False assertions of safety are something the creators of The Conjuring love to play around with. The first film in the series shows us every angle of an old, creepy looking wardrobe. Obviously, our first thought is that something is going to come out of it. Nope. Perhaps from underneath? No. The side?

It seems everything is clear and this was just a blood pressure raising a false alarm. Suddenly, the camera pans up we see a horrifying demon lurking on top of the wardrobe, the one place we didn’t check.

3 The Graveyard (The Nun)

While The Nun might not be the most critically acclaimed film in The Conjuring franchise, that was because of a weak storyline, not its ability to project fear. The horror of the film is quite the opposite, in fact. It’s really, really scary.

Around half of the way through the film, we follow Father Burke through a graveyard where a sequence of absolutely horrifying things happen. He sees a guy with an alien thing bursting out of his mouth, he is buried alive, the demon rings all of the bells to stop him being found, and then, to top it all off, it isn’t just him in there.

2 The Introduction Of Annabelle (The Conjuring)

Considering the franchise is almost built around the Annabelle doll, we don’t get a lot of her in the first Conjuring film. However, what we end up getting is probably her creepiest moment ever. The first we ever see the possessed doll on screen, she is facing away from the viewer.

Obviously, this is a doll. It can’t move. Right? Wrong. Her head slowly twists to face us like a creepy owl, with that menacing, haunting smile and eyes staring all the way through our heads.

1 The Nun In The Painting (The Conjuring 2)

The impact of this scene in the sequel to The Conjuring may well have been ruined by its inclusion in the trailer, but its visual impact and truly terrifying execution make it the scariest part of the entire Conjuring universe.

With Lorraine trapped in her office, the painting of the Nun hanging on the wall is a constant presence for creepiness. For a moment you start to wonder if it really is nothing more than a painting. Soon enough, you find out you were wrong…