By Jeremy Fuster

With the success of last month’s “Weapons,” Warner Bros. became the first studio ever to release seven consecutive movies that opened to $40 million or more at the domestic box office. New Line’s “The Conjuring: Last Rites,” the latest installment of James Wan’s hit franchise, could make it eight as it is projected for a $50 million-plus opening.

“Last Rites” is the ninth film in the “Conjuring” universe that first began back in 2013, a franchise that includes three mainline films starring Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson as well as two spinoff series around occult foes from those movies: the “Annabelle” trilogy and two “The Nun” films. Combined, they’ve made nearly $2.4 billion in lifetime global grosses.