The Insidious Series: A Complete Guide

I immediately understood what he actually meant to ask was the classic “Are these movies in the same universe?” Because I’d been asked this question way too many times, but this particular phrasing was probably the laziest version of them all.

I didn’t drag it out and said straight up, “No, they’re not in the same universe, there’s no connection between them.”

My friend insisted: “Come on man, even the lead actor is the same!”

That’s when I snapped back, just as it came to me: “Then why are you asking me, damn it!”

His voice trembling, with a scared expression, he said, “Isn’t it?”

“I said no!” I put an end to it. “The lead actor is playing different characters,” I said, pulling up Google to show him: “Look, here!”

Then, to smooth things over, I explained that it was normal for him to be confused; after all, James Wan is one of those directors who loves working with a core team on multiple projects. “For instance, he wrote the Insidious series with Leigh Whannell, the writer of the Saw series,” I said.

Years passed, and when I sat down at the computer to write about the Insidious series, this memory came back to me and I wanted to share it with you all.

So let me continue from where we left off above.

You know those great duos that complete each other? Well, the James Wan-Leigh Whannell partnership is like a horror version of a classic comedy duo, totally in sync, but terrifying!

This series wasn’t the duo’s first project together, of course. In fact, they started out in 2003 with that legendary short version of “Saw” that was made to sell the concept to studios. Then in 2004, they brought us the first feature-length film of the series that would impact the entire world: Saw.

(Side note: Speaking of classic duos, greetings to Furkan, the other half of Korku101, who’s a huge fan of Turkish cinema legend Zeki Alasya!)

Insidious (2010)

First, we need to bow down to its commercial success. Shot on a mere $1.5 million budget, this film made close to $60 million in the US alone, causing quite a stir. In fact, it was widely written and discussed that James Wan—along with the Saw series, Dead Silence, and Death Sentence—was bringing the horror genre back to life.

The film takes that astral projection (astral travel) phenomenon we all know and presents it with a completely different kind of dread. Everything begins when young couple Josh and Renai move into a new house with their three children.

Strange occurrences in the house immediately lead Renai to the classic conclusion: the house must be haunted. She pressures her husband to move. But the real horror begins when the events continue even after they move to a new house! Objects move around day and night, doors open and close, and strange sounds echo throughout. Because the problem isn’t the house, the problem is their son Dalton!

Meanwhile, their son Dalton slips into a coma that doctors can’t explain. All his bodily functions are fine, yet he won’t wake up. When the family moves to their new house but the events continue, Josh—though he doesn’t believe any of this—allows his wife and mother to call in a medium, and Things Unfold.

Patrick Wilson, who plays Josh, also portrayed Ed Warren in The Conjuring series. This is where that little confusion I mentioned at the beginning comes from.

Also, this is the film with that famous Darth Maul-looking demon.

Even though it doesn’t promise anything new, it’s a good film that uses its materials properly. If you haven’t watched this 15-year-old film yet, I’d say go in with moderate expectations.

Insidious: Chapter 2 (2013)

Now… As soon as the first film ended, there was that big question everyone asked: “Okay, but what happened to Josh?”

The second film starts exactly from there.

Making a solid sequel is hard. The number of disliked sequels far exceeds the liked ones. But this film manages to land itself in the liked category.

In the first film, we watched more of the “desperate father trying to save his child” side of things. Here, though, we get the father’s return, transformations, possession, and mysteries about that famous “Bride in Black” spreading out. Especially the tension that begins with Josh becoming increasingly strange…

I’ve had nightmares where I’m talking to someone I know but feel like they’re not really them. Well, the entire atmosphere of the film is built on exactly that feeling.

One of the things the Wan & Whannell duo gets praised for most is precisely this: What they’re actually doing could be dismissed as clichéd stuff. Slamming doors, toy sounds, footsteps echoing in corridors… But they pull it off well, and the result is delicious.

The film connects with the first film so beautifully that some scenes literally fall into place like puzzle pieces.

It introduces a place called The Further, and it’s not just a simple “afterlife.” This liminal realm is quite layered—a muffled void where past, present, and alternate flows intermingle.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Insidious: Chapter 2 makes the first film even more meaningful.

In short: If you liked the first film, you’ll love the second one even more. Because it has a structure that expands the universe while staying rooted in its origins.

Insidious: Chapter 3 (2015)

This is the first film where Wan handed the director’s chair to Whannell.

This film, centered on Elise, tells the story of years before the Lambert family saga. So this time, there’s no Josh and Renai.

Following the hero’s eternal journey law, Elise had refused to work as a medium for a period. Well, in this film we see exactly that time period. Plus, it shows little by little Elise’s old connections with entities in The Further.

This film tries to sell character depth rather than scares. Unfortunately, I can’t say it succeeds very well at that.

Insidious: The Last Key (2018)

This time Adam Robitel is in the director’s chair. Whannell is on the writing team, but Wan only appears as a producer. By the way, I haven’t mentioned this until now, but let me note here that Leigh Whannell has been appearing since the first film as Specs, the assistant to parapsychologist Dr. Elise Rainier.

In this film, we return to Elise’s childhood and the demons from her childhood. It shifts from horror to the “trauma and confronting the past” track. Or rather, it tries to shift. During this attempt, it also neglects the horror aspect, resulting in a bland outcome. I don’t know if they wanted to create an iconic villain character and give the horror community a gift like Valak, but our key-fingered ghost is actually quite impressive. However, I can say the state of the film has been his misfortune too.

We don’t see this often in horror cinema: building a universe that grows from a medium’s childhood trauma.

But Insidious tried it. At least it tried.

Insidious: The Red Door (2023)

And the “closing” for the Lambert family.

Dalton is now in college. When adolescent trauma and astral gate trauma combine, we face a double-trouble story.

This time, Patrick Wilson—the series’ Josh—is not only in one of the lead roles but also in the director’s chair, and his directing is quite good.

Again, it plays more with atmosphere than horror; some scenes even approach Conjuring tones. That’s why I understand once more those friends who got confused.

“Because the film’s lead actor. Is also the lead in another series by the series’ creative director, and is also directing this film. The series’ creative director is also this film’s producer.”

Anyway, leaving behind that deliberately confusing sentence, let me explain the film. A full 10 years pass. Josh and his now college-age son Dalton have tried to forcibly forget that cursed past, that trauma of The Further.

But nothing forgotten truly disappears; it’s just pushed deeper. And that Other beyond the Red Door calls them back when the time comes.

We can call it a pleasant farewell to the Lambert Family.

Conclusion

The Insidious series didn’t invent something brand new in horror cinema; but it became a series that did what it did in the best possible way. It planted the idea in our minds that astral travel could have a dark side. It iconized a dark dimension like The Further.