Patrick Wilson Teases What to Expect from 'The Conjuring 2'

Kevin Polowy
·Senior Correspondent, Yahoo Entertainment

The Conjuring was one of the biggest surprise hits of 2013, scaring up $137 million at the U.S. box office, a rare feat for a horror movie that’s not a sequel, reboot, or remake. What The Conjuring did have going for it — aside from some seriously freaky spirits — was the allure that its story was based on real events, real people, and one scary real doll.

Those real people included the renowned paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren (played in the movie by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga), who brought their calm expertise to the film’s horrific happenings. The cinematic Warrens are set to return in the upcoming sequel The Conjuring 2, which brings them to London to inspect the notorious Enfield Poltergeist in the late-1970s, which involved the haunting of two young girls.

Related: First Look: ‘The Conjuring 2’ Cast on Why They Needed an Exorcist on Set This Time

As Wilson told us back in November, the follow-up taps deeper into the couple’s internal struggles with ghost-hunting. We talked to him on the film’s Encino, Calif. set, where the cast and crew worked out of a suburban residence before crossing the Atlantic for the London-set scenes. “The things that we alluded to in the first one — Lorraine’s struggles with what this takes out of her, what really caused her to not want to do this anymore — we explore that,” Wilson said (watch above).

“You know, we’re a little older, a little wiser. But we still have that same drive. That’s the crux of the Warrens’ position: what’s good for their family, and what’s good for their souls, and wanting to help people.”

Like any real-life paranormal incident and despite some creepily convincing evidence, there’s always been skepticism surrounding the actual events in Enfield. That uncertainty also becomes a big factor in The Conjuring 2. “Is this real?” Wilson said. “We push that a lot further, because I think the skepticism is as important as the belief in this subject.”

The Conjuring 2 opens everywhere June 10. Watch the trailer: