The Nun 2 ending explained

The Nun 2 is now haunting cinemas, but what actually happens in the movie, and how does it all conclude in the ending?

Grab your holy water and your rosaries, as the demonic Nun is back in cinemas, and back to wreak havoc.

The Nun 2 synopsis is as thus: “In 1956 France, a priest is violently murdered, and Sister Irene begins to investigate. She once again comes face-to-face with a powerful evil.” But what this synopsis fails to mention is that, as a result of saving Sister Irene in the first movie, fellow main character Maurice is now possessed by the Nun, AKA Valak, which is where most of the movie’s conflict stems from.

Now, you may be too scared to watch horror movie without knowing what happens. We understand, so rad on to find out what happened throughout the movie, particularly in how it all ends. But first, MAJOR SPOILER WARNING for The Nun 2!

The Nun 2 ending explained

To explain the ending, we must first address the opening, which involves a priest burning to death in the middle of his church, while a young boy looks on in horror.

Turns out there’s been a string of violent deaths of holy people, which has sparked worry that Valak is still at large. And so, Sister Irene, who has never claimed fame from her previous battles, is called upon once more to defeat the titular Nun. She is joined by Sister Debra, as Father Burke died of an illness in-between movies.

Irene eventually manages to figure out that Maurice has been possessed by the Nun, and she is also able to track his location, as while he travelled from church to church (hence the initial string of deaths) he is now residing at a girls’ boarding school, which was once a holy building.

He works at the school, and in his moments of human clarity (he is unaware that he is possessed) is forming a close relationship with a teacher named Marcella there, as well as with her daughter, Sophie.

But evil is certainly lurking, as are many jump-scares. We see the head of the school get beaten to death by the ghostly figure of her dead son. A delivery girl is brutally ripped apart by the Nun. A little girl gets impaled by a goat monster. It’s a lot, to say the least.

While trying to figure out what the goals of Valak are, Irene receives visions of her mother – who was dragged to a “madhouse” for having visions – and of course gets some more terrifying visions of the Nun.

Through these visions, and some helpful research, Irene is able to figure out that the demon is after the eyes of Saint Lucy, who was the Patron Saint of the blind, after having her eyes cut out by pagans. Since all demons were once angels, it seems that Valak is attempting to regain the power of an angel, though she will obviously use said power for demonic purposes.

After knocking out and tying up a possessed Maurice, all the major female characters manage to find Saint Lucy’s eyes within the school. However, Maurice quickly returns to attack. He knocks Irene and Marcella out, and chases Sophie through a crumbling bell tower. Meanwhile, Sister Debra helps keep the other children safe, as they are pursued by demonic creatures.

In a battle that ends up taking place in a wine cellar underneath the school, Sophie and a revived Irene are able to use the eyes as a holy weapon. However, the Nun soon gets the eyes, and the upper hand. Valak attempts to incinerate Irene, choke Sister Debra, and Maurice is almost about to kill Sophie.

However, in that moment, Irene realizes that she and her mother are descendants of Saint Lucy, hence why they both kept having visions. In her newly empowered faith, Irene asks Debra, who had been struggling to find faith of her own, to pray with her. In doing so, they are able to convert the wine around them into the blood of Christ, which incinerates the Nun, and frees Maurice of his possession. And thus, Irene is able to repay the life debt that she owes Maurice from the first movie.

The movie ends with all of our main characters alive and well at the boarding school, as they finally believe that the demonic holy woman is gone for good.

An issue with The Nun 2 ending

For those who have seen the first Nun movie, and some of the other Conjuring movies, you may actually be confused by this ending.

See, in the other movies we watch the Conjuring franchise’s main pair, Ed and Lorraine Warren, perform a dramatic exorcism on Maurice, in which they attempt to free him from Valak’s clutches. This contrasts the ending of The Nun 2, since we are led to believe that Maurice is free from possession, and is now living happily and healthily.

So while we have explained the sequel’s ending as best we can, perhaps all is not as it seems. Perhaps the demonic Valak is still lurking inside of Maurice, waiting to be exorcised for good.

In that case, we’ll make sure to update this article with the truth, so check back here in the future. Plus, if you want to know if anything else happens at the movie’s end, click here to find out if The Nun 2 has a post-credits scene, and what happens in said credits.

The Nun 2 is now in cinemas. For more about the movie, check out our coverage below:

• How to watch The Nun 2 – is it streaming?
• The Nun 2 post-credits scene explained
• The Nun 3: Everything we know so far
• The Nun 2 cast: All actors and characters
• The Nun 2: Release date, cast, plot, & more