For better or worse, theInsidiousfranchise has been haunting moviegoers for over a decade. The low-budget saga has thus far managed to generate more than $730 million across five films, more than earning back their money when you consider that they were all produced for a little over $42 million combined. Despite never garnering any real critical acclaim and being met with lukewarm responses from audiences, the series continues to chug along, but for writerLeigh Whannell, he’d love for the next entry in the franchiseto go in a completely different direction.
Having brought back the Lambert family for2023’sInsidious: The Red Door, Whannell toldComicbook.comthat when it comes to the future of the long-running franchise, he’s hopingthat someone will come along with a fresh idea on where to take it next. For 13 years now, the series has mainly centered around the aforementioned Lamberts, as well as Lin Shaye’s character of Elise Rainier. For Whannell, he thinks it’s time to try something different, and we can’t say we disagree with him.
“I think those characters have run their course. I would like to see someone reinvent that series a little bit, do something new with it. I don’t know what’s happening with it right now. We’re trying to do something with it, but you know how it goes with movies. Just when you think you’re starting with something, it’s over, and then it starts up again, and so you’ll probably know about it before I do.”
Where the Insidious Franchise is Headed Next
One of the big complaints when it comes to theInsidiousfranchise is that there are too many characters, which has led to too many loose ends going untied. As such, the audience has never really gotten closure on many aspects of the series,despite there being five films in total, with one of them acting as a prequel. Shaye herself remarked in 2023, ahead of the premiere ofRed Door,that"it’s been a finicky franchise in that way where they’ve set up other characters that have come through different installments that we never see again."
Though the 2023 flick was meant to close the door on the main franchise,that isn’t to say we’ve seen the last ofInsidious. Despite the criticism, theupcoming filmThread: An Insidious Tale,starringMandy MooreandKumail Nanjiani, will serve as a spin-off that introduces even more characters, but how it fits into the overall saga remains to be seen. In addition to that, earlier this year, it was revealed that a sixthInsidiousmovie is in the works, which isn’t all that surprising consideringRed Doorbecame the most financially successful film thus far.
Insidious: Scariest Moments in the Franchise, Ranked
The Insidious franchise has become one of the best-loved horror franchises around. Relive why as we count down the scariest moments from it.
Needless to say, for those wishing that the franchise will go away, it’s best to just close your eyes and put your fingers in your ears if you want to ignore it, because it appears as if Sony and Blumhouse will continue to milk their cash cow for as long as they can. Hopefully, as Whannell said, someone will figure out how to make it fresh, so they’re not just rinsing and repeating what came before.
Insidious: The Red Door
