The Conjuring 2: Real Story, Scare Factor & Ranking

The Enfield poltergeist case remains one of horror’s most disputed real events, and The Conjuring 2 refuses to settle the debate—it fuels it. This film earned $320.2 million worldwide and an 80% Rotten Tomatoes score, proving the franchise could thrive without mimicking its predecessor.

Box office revenue: $320.2 million worldwide (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)) ·
Budget: $40 million (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)) ·
Rotten Tomatoes score: 80% (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)) ·
IMDb rating: 7.3/10 (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)) ·
Release date: June 10, 2016 (US) (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)) ·
Runtime: 134 minutes (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database))

Ten key specs, one pattern: the numbers confirm a film that punched well above its budget.

Is Conjuring 2 based on a real story?

What was the Enfield poltergeist case?

• The Enfield poltergeist case began on the evening of 1977-08-30 at 284 Green Street, Enfield, London (History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)).
• Peggy Hodgson reported furniture moving, knocking, and the levitation of her daughter Janet (History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)).
• More than 30 witnesses reported unexplained incidents (History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)).
• Alleged phenomena included moving objects, cold breezes, water on the floor, graffiti, and matches igniting (History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)).

How accurate is the movie portrayal?

• The film dramatizes Janet levitating high against the ceiling; real photos show her only a short distance above her bed (History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)).
• The real case included an affidavit from WPC Carolyn Heeps describing an armchair that levitated about half an inch and moved nearly four feet (History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)).
• Two Society for Psychical Research experts reportedly caught the children bending spoons themselves (History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)).
• Janet Hodgson later admitted some events were fabricated (History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)).

The implication: fans get a great horror experience, but the price is a simplified version of a famously disputed case.

What is the scariest Conjuring film?

Is Conjuring 2 really scary?

Rotten Tomatoes editorial ranks the film as “almost as scary as the original” (Rotten Tomatoes editorial (review aggregator)). The Conjuring 2 scores 80% on Rotten Tomatoes versus the original’s 86% (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)). Collider’s ranking places The Conjuring 2 among the franchise’s top entries for scare factor (Collider (film news outlet)).

What is scarier, Conjuring 1 or 2?

Five rankings, one pattern: the original usually wins, but the gap is narrow.

Rotten Tomatoes editorial (review aggregator) and Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)

The catch: “scariest” is subjective, but the data consistently puts The Conjuring (2013) at the top and The Conjuring 2 as a close second.

What is the weakest Conjuring film?

How are the Conjuring Universe movies ranked?

• IMDb user ratings place The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021) at 5.9/10, the lowest in the main series (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)).
• The Nun (2018) ranks even lower at 5.3/10 (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)).
• The Conjuring 2 holds a solid 7.3/10, among the highest in the franchise (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)).
• Critical consensus places the original and its sequel as the two strongest entries (Rotten Tomatoes editorial (review aggregator)).

Which film has the lowest IMDb rating?

The Nun (2018) holds the lowest IMDb rating among Conjuring Universe films at 5.3/10 (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)). The Conjuring 2’s 7.3 places it well above the franchise average.

Why this matters: franchise quality is not uniform, and The Conjuring 2 sits at the top tier alongside the original.

Was the girl faking it in Conjuring 2?

What evidence suggests the haunting was real?

• Multiple witnesses, including police officer WPC Carolyn Heeps, reported seeing furniture move (History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)).
• Ed and Lorraine Warren — the real-life paranormal investigators — maintained the case was genuine (History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)).

What skepticism existed?

• Skeptics like Joe Nickell argued the phenomena were likely faked by the children (History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)).
• Two SPR experts caught the children bending spoons themselves (History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)).
• Janet Hodgson later admitted some events were fabricated (History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)).

The trade-off: viewers get a compelling story, but credibility takes a hit when known fabrications are omitted from the film.

Is Conjuring 2 hit or flop?

What was the budget and box office?

• Budget: $40 million (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)).
• Worldwide gross: $320.2 million (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)).
• Revenue-to-budget ratio: 8× (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)).

How did it compare to The Conjuring?

• The first film earned $319.5 million on a $20 million budget (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)).
• The Conjuring 2 nearly matched the original in total gross despite a higher budget (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database)).
• It outperformed nearly every other horror film released in 2016 (Box Office Mojo (box office tracker)).

What this means: Warner Bros. earned eight times its investment, making a sequel inevitable.

What is the no. 1 scariest movie?

How does The Conjuring 2 compare to other horror classics?

• There is no consensus; lists vary widely (The Exorcist, The Shining, Hereditary) (Rotten Tomatoes editorial (review aggregator)).
• The Conjuring 2 frequently appears in top 100 scariest movie lists (Collider (film news outlet)).
• Tell It Animated’s ranking places The Conjuring 2 at #1 among Conjuring Universe films (Tell It Animated (horror blog)).

What criteria define the scariest movie?

Jump scares, psychological tension, and cultural impact all play a role. The Conjuring 2 is praised for its slow-burn dread and effective scares (Rotten Tomatoes editorial (review aggregator)).

The pattern: scariness is subjective, but data and editorial consensus place The Conjuring and The Conjuring 2 at the top of the franchise.

Timeline

• August 30, 1977 — Enfield poltergeist case begins (History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site))
• 2013 — The Conjuring is released (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database))
• June 10, 2016 — The Conjuring 2 premieres (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database))
• 2017 — Annabelle: Creation released (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database))
• 2025 — The Conjuring 2 still available on streaming (Wikipedia (encyclopedic database))

Key perspectives

“I was there. I saw furniture move. People can say what they want, but we experienced things that can’t be explained.”

— Janet Hodgson, in an interview with People (celebrity and human-interest magazine)

“The Enfield case was as real as any we ever investigated. The skeptics never spent a night in that house.”

— Ed Warren, archival interview referenced by History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)

“The phenomena were most likely produced by the children. There is no credible evidence of anything supernatural.”

— Joe Nickell, skeptic, as cited by History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)

“We wanted to stay true to the spirit of the Warrens’ case, but a documentary would have been boring. We made a horror movie.”

— James Wan, director, commentary on History vs. Hollywood (fact-checking site)

The sum of these voices: even those closest to the case disagree. The Conjuring 2 will never settle the debate, but it keeps the conversation alive.

Frequently asked questions

For horror fans weighing which Conjuring film to watch next, the choice is clear: start with the original for pure scare efficiency, but don’t skip The Conjuring 2 — it delivers the best blend of box-office confidence and genuine tension in the franchise. If you want a debate about reality versus fiction, this sequel serves that too.