‘The Conjuring 3’ Under Fire by Brother of Film’s Subject Over ‘Exploitation’ of Family Trauma

The latest installment in The Conjuring series, The Conjuring 3: The Devil Made Me Do It, hit theaters and HBO Max on June 4, proving that the popular horror franchise is showing no signs of slowing down. Starring Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson as Ed and Lorraine Warren, real-life paranormal investigators, The Conjuring 3 focuses on the strange case of Arne Cheyenne Johnson, who claimed he was demonically possessed when he fatally stabbed his landlord in 1981.

At the time, Johnson alleged that the demon had left his girlfriend Deborah Glatzel’s brother David, who was a young boy at the time, and entered him. During the trial, Johnson’s defense attorney tried to defend him against the charges, claiming that “the devil had made him do it.” These arguments were based on claims made by the Warrens and were not permitted by the judge. Johnson was eventually convicted of manslaughter and spent 4 years in prison.

The Harford Courant reported that David’s brother Carl Glatzel eventually left Connecticut because of the painful memories associated with the event, particularly the delusions and hallucinations that David suffered from at the time of the murder. He also had no kind words to spare the Warrens, claiming that they “exploited his family for monetary gain.”

Glatzel previously told The Associated Press in 2007 that his brother had suffered from mental illness as a child and had recovered, but that the entire experience was agonizing. “It was living hell when we were kids,” Glatzel said. “It was just a nightmare. I’m not going to go through that again. Neither is my brother.” The incident was turned into the 1983 NBC television movie, The Demon Murder Case, and the book The Devil in Connecticut by Gerald Brittle. Glatzel sued Brittle and Lorraine Warren after the book was reprinted in 2006, but the case was dismissed. However, Brittle did tell the Courant that the book was taken out of print after the lawsuit. “I did it because I was fed up with the case, fed up with Carl Glatzel,” Brittle said. “It just wasn’t worth it to me. It had no bearing on the fact that the book was true.”

Despite this pushback from the family, The Conjuring franchise will certainly continue. “I know producer James [Wan] has some cases up his sleeve,” director Michael Chaves told Entertainment Weekly. “I think that there’s a lot of things they want to explore. I think this film has shown how diverse the Conjuring films can be and how they are willing to take chances and surprise audiences. I’ve heard of things they’re developing and I’m very excited to see what comes next. I come at this first and foremost as a fan of the franchise and so I’m excited to see what happens.”