DC Announces New Horror Label With A Spinoff From The Conjuring

DC have put out a number of horror-themed titles during the company’s history, from the classic Vertigo comics to more recent Black Label and Hill House Comics imprints, with the latter led by Joe Hill. However, the publisher will now have a DC Horror brand, under which they’re releasing a series based on the world of The Conjuring. What, then, can we expect from the upcoming book?

The Conjuring: The Lover will be available from June 4th, on the same day as movie sequel The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It hits HBO Max and theaters. Talent from the film franchise are behind the comic as well, most notably David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, who’s co-writing with Rex Ogle, and there’ll be five issues in total.

The synopsis for The Lover is as follows:

“The Lover sets up The Devil Made Me Do It, expanding the tragic story of Jessica, a college freshman returning to campus after winter break, bringing with her the anxieties of last semester’s poor grades, the awkwardness of facing a boy she wishes she’d never slept with, and an undeniably unnerving feeling of being watched. Jessica soon comes to realize that something evil has made her its target, and it will not rest until it has her in its unholy grip. But why did this sinister presence set its sights on a seemingly normal college freshman?”

The latest entry in the Conjuring universe has been one of the many big Warner Bros. features delayed by COVID-19, while the partnership with DC provides corporate synergy and a chance to explore parts of the property’s mythology that haven’t yet come to light. As a result, the comic will also include back-up stories that further delve into the Warrens’ artifact room, something that Annabelle Comes Home showed is good value for scares.

There’ll eventually be new titles in the DC Horror imprint, although it’s not yet clear whether these will also spin off from established genre works under the WB umbrella, or go in the original and creator-led directions taken by Hill House. In terms of The Conjuring, at least three new pictures are reportedly being developed, meaning we could be seeing more of the Warrens, or some additional spotlights on characters like the Nun and the Crooked Man. Either way, those wanting to dip back into this spooky universe have plenty to enjoy over the next few months.