'The Conjuring: Last Rites': The true story that inspired the franchise's final movie

"The Conjuring: Last Rites" brings Ed and Lorraine Warren back for one final case in the popular horror franchise: the haunting of the Smurl Family in Pennsylvania in 1986.

In previous teasers, the paranormal investigators are brought to Pennsylvania, where a family of eight reported an "evil presence" in their house — one that Ed and Lorraine recognized.

According to director Michael Chaves, the Smurl case was a real haunting in West Pittston, Pennsylvania that went on from the mid-’80s into the ’90s, and the Warrens truly were involved. 

"[The family] started experiencing supernatural activity on the day of their daughter’s confirmation—a light fell on them, which is seemingly innocuous. But it escalated over the years to levels that could not be disregarded," Chaves said in an interview shared with GMA News Online.

"And while the Smurls were going through their haunting, with their family beginning to fall apart—the Warrens are basically retired, they’re out of the game and in a safe spot. We know something is going on with Judy and there’s this dark inevitability that’s hanging over them. That’s a really striking place to start," he added.

Chaves said that as in any of his other movies, he did a deep dive into the case, and met and spoke with as many people as he could.

He spoke to the four Smurl sisters, and said that "talking to them about their experience was really powerful."

"The interesting thing is, over the course of working on these movies—and I’ve heard Peter [Safran] echoing this—I’ve become a believer," he said. "And a big part of that is just hearing these experiences."

The director said that the haunting was "really hard on the Smurls."

"They didn’t ask to be haunted, and their friends and neighbors turned against them. They didn’t believe them. They thought they were crackpots. And you come to realize the weight that that put on them. How easy it would have been to say, 'We’re making it up.' But it really did weigh on them, and it weighs on them to this day." 

Another thing he learned from the Smurls is that the real Warrens had an impact on them.

"It's easy to fall in love with Patrick [Wilson] and Vera [Farmiga], their versions of Ed and Lorraine, but we have to remember these were real people who went around to these places and tried to help countless people who had nowhere else to turn to. What an impact they had," Chaves said.

"The real Warrens touched so many lives. There were so many people who were in need, dealing with hauntings or unexplained behavior. And the Warrens were there—they traveled across the country to listen to people whom no one believed. The real truth of that is so important. It was real," he added.

"The Conjuring: Last Rites" is the fourth and final Conjuring film centered around the Warrens. It is set for release on September 5.

"Discover why this case ended it all," the film previously teased.

The first "The Conjuring" movie was released in 2013. The third installment, "The Devil Made Me Do It," premiered in 2021. —JCB, GMA Integrated News