Horror has always been one of the most reliably bankable genres in the business, with audiences guaranteed to show up in their numbers to satiate their desire to be terrified, while the low cost/high reward model frequently generates tidy profits. However, it has to be pointed out that The Nun might just be the most ironic horror blockbuster of the modern age, for one single (but very notable) reason.
Throughout its various sequels, prequels, spinoffs, and sequels to those prequels and spinoffs, the Conjuring universe has gone down in the history books as the highest-grossing franchise in the history of horror, with last year’s The Devil Made Me Do It pushing the total takings up to a mammoth $2.1 billion.
Of the eight installments so far, Corin Hardy’s 1952-set chiller holds the distinction of being both the top-earning chapter after generating $365 million in ticket sales, but also the worst-reviewed by virtue of a 24 percent Rotten Tomatoes score. As if you needed any more evidence that critics have no sway over horror, then let this be your final reminder.
The relentless success of things that go bump in the night extends to streaming, too, with The Nun currently lurking on the shadows of the Netflix most-watched chart. As per FlixPatrol, the demonic tale has been stalking its prey on the viewership ranks, ready to explode out of the darkness in an effort to lure viewers to their doom, or at least entice them to sacrifice 96 minutes of their time.