James Wan Shares ‘The Nun 2’ BTS Photo Confirming Another Original Character’s Return

AS filming finally kicks off on the long-awaited sequel, James Wan has shared a new The Nun 2 behind-the-scenes photo confirming another original character’s return.

A follow-up to 2018’s hit Conjuring spinoff, the 2023 horror movie sequel will again follow Taissa Farmiga’s Sister Irene as she is called upon to investigate the murder of a priest in 1956 France, which seemingly has to do with the iconic demon Valak.

Alongside Farmiga, The Nun 2 is slated to see the return of Bonnie Aarons in the titular role, while introducing The Invisible Man’s Storm Reid to the horror franchise.

After years of silence, the film finally began gaining steam this past April when Michael Chaves, who previously helmed The Curse of La Llorona and The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, was brought on to direct.

After a casting call seemingly confirmed her return, this past month brought the official announcement that Farmiga would be returning for The Nun 2, and it appears she won’t be the only one coming back for the sequel.

Producer James Wan has taken to Instagram to share the first The Nun 2 BTS photo. In addition to announcing that filming has begun on the horror sequel, Wan tagged actor Jonas Bloquet in the post, confirming him to be another original character returning for the film.

With the film said to be set in 1956, The Nun 2 would fall as the third chronological story within The Conjuring Universe, coming just a few years after its predecessor, as well as being set a year after Annabelle: Creation, which itself included a nod to Valak and the Romanian monastery she originated from.

This also establishes the sequel as being set roughly 15 years before the events of the original The Conjuring, in which Vera Farmiga’s Lorraine Warren first came into contact with Valak via hers and Patrick Wilson’s Ed attempting to exorcise the demon from a man originally only referred to as Maurice Theriault.

Audiences would later come to learn how Maurice came under possession of Valak in The Nun, with Jonas Bloquet’s Frenchie having been attacked by the demon in the film’s final act, and a recreation of the footage shown in the original The Conjuring with Bloquet now portraying Frenchie in favor of Christof Veillon.

Given the initial ending of the original film saw Frenchie still in relative control of himself as he brought Sister Irene and Demián Bichir’s Father Burke back to civilization, it will be interesting to see how he fares come The Nun 2.

Some have theorized that Valak may briefly possess another character, so as to not create a timeline issue regarding hers and Frenchie’s ties to the original Conjuring, but with Bloquet back for the sequel, it seems equally likely Sister Irene may try and fail to purge her friend of the demonic spirit.

The Nun 2 hits theaters on September 8, 2023. (source: screenrant.com)

(ROHN ROMULO)