Widely considered to be one of the biggest-ever horror franchises in the history of the colossal genre, several spine-tingling demonic entities have been introduced in the long-standing Conjuring universe. Of course, one of the scariest paranormal forces to date would be the demon Valak from The Nun spin-off series. Valak, who was initially introduced in the highest-grossing entry in the Conjuring realm back in 2018, is set to make an eerie return in The Nun II.
Throughout the entire Conjuring franchise, Valak has provided an endless amount of jump scares and genuinely terrifying moments. Considering the character is loosely based on a real-life entity, the inclusion of the monstrous villain makes it all the more horrifying. But before the follow-up horror begins haunting theaters next Friday, let’s dive in and explore the origins of Valak as per the narrative.
Who is Valak?
As previously mentioned, Valak is the central antagonist in The Nun spin-off film series. Despite being the main villain of the spin-off series, Valak was originally introduced in James Wan’s The Conjuring 2 as a side character/villain who began appearing in demonologist Lorraine Warren’s visions. When thrill-seeking viewers first meet Valak, it’s clear that the entity holds evil intentions and thus poses as a figure of religion to mock helpless civilians and eventual victims.
Appearing in various religion textbooks, Valak (sometimes spelled as Valac and Ualac), has been described as a winged angelic boy riding a two-headed dragon. However, in the Conjuring universe, Valak is referred to as “The Marquis of Snakes,” and an inhuman entity which loves to cause pain and suffering.
What does Valak want?
Like most demons in folklore and fiction, Valak’s main goal is to weaken a victim to the point of no return in an attempt to cast an eventual possession. Valak uses possessed bodies as a way to transport between vessels in a way to terrorize those who have not yet been possessed — and more specifically, to terrorize the Warrens. In fact, this terror proved to be so prominent that Lorraine experienced a vision where her husband Ed died at the hands of Valak.
The act of possession performed by the demon Valak is done as a way to utilize a person’s soul so that the demon can walk amongst the living and cause havoc. Seeing as demons are angels that were banished from Heaven and cast down to Hell, the whole point of Valak trying to obtain souls is to be given the opportunity to either live again on Earth or to simply cause pain to others.
Where does Valak fit in the Conjuring universe?
As previously mentioned, Lorraine Warren first witnessed the demon Valak in a vision while her and Ed were attempting an exorcism on Frenchie from the Conjuring universe. During the exorcism, Lorraine witnessed a vision of her husband Ed dying at the hands of Valak, implying that the demon was both threatening and taunting Lorraine. Following the exorcism, Lorraine locked herself in a room for days and never revealed the information of what she saw to Ed until a while later.
Following the Frenchie exorcism, Lorraine and her daughter Judy witnessed Valak in their family home around the same time that Ed and Lorraine were asked to go to Enfield, London, England to investigate a paranormal case. While there, the Warrens came face-to-face with the demon Valak, who was possessing the spirit of Bill Wilkins to terrorize the Warrens.
The origins of Valak’s starting point were eventually uncovered in The Nun (2018), where it was revealed that a duke during the Dark Ages summoned the demon in a Romanian church. The rift was initially closed after some time, but due to World War II bombings, the rift was eventually opened and Valak once again was able to release terror. That being said, we’ll have to see what kind of horror Valak unleashes during The Nun II — which is out in theaters on Sept. 8.
Published: Aug 29, 2023 12:04 pm