WonderCon turned out to be an unexpectedly fruitful occasion for horror aficionados. After unveiling the first footage from its upcoming sequel Sinister 2, Blumhouse Productions and Focus Features also showed off a clip from this summer’s Insidious: Chapter 3, a prequel that finds Lin Shaye’s Elise Rainier taking on a different supernatural entity before she ever met the Lambert family.
In the clip, Elise attempts to reach out to the dead mother of a teenage girl (Stefanie Scott), only to encounter unexpected resistance. It’s a creeping if not particularly illuminating watch, though the creeping menace of something stalking the girl is clearly felt.
Insidious: Chapter 3 finds Leigh Whannell, who wrote all the previous films and is a long-time collaborator with helmer James Wan, also stepping behind the camera (Wan was busy delivering the best of all the Fast & Furious films, so we’ll cut him a break) for his directorial debut. In addition to Shaye and Scott, the cast includes Dermot Mulroney, Angus Sampson and Whannell.
Here’s the official synopsis:
The newest chapter in the terrifying horror series is written and directed by franchise co-creator Leigh Whannell. This chilling prequel, set before the haunting of the Lambert family, reveals how gifted psychic Elise Rainier (Lin Shaye) reluctantly agrees to use her ability to contact the dead in order to help a teenage girl (Stefanie Scott) who has been targeted by a dangerous supernatural entity.
In addition to the clip, WonderCon also brought news that Blumhouse and Focus are interested in merging their Insidious and Sinister universes at some point down the line, bringing together characters and supernatural villains. Jason Blum recently spoke on the matter, explaining that:
“We’re not close to an Avengers, but I do like the idea of having the worlds collide in the different franchises we work on. That’s a really cool idea… I want to continue to do that.”
It’s certainly an interesting concept, and if the stories work, there’s no reason for Elise and Officer So & So (or The Man With Fire On His Face and Buhguul, which might be more interesting) to meet somewhere down the road.
Insidious: Chapter 3 opens June 5th.
