By Quinn Delaney

The Insidious franchise has become one of modern horror’s intriguing stories for its extensive supernatural mythology and unsettling family tragedies. In its six films, the series uniquely explores haunted houses, astral projection and demons. The entries have also popularized the mysterious Further, the dark realm where many souls are damned to remain forever.

Some of the franchise’s prequels and sequels have expanded the mythology effectively. However, other installments in the series were unable to recreate the original movie’s atmosphere.

Sony Pictures Releasing will premiere the franchise’s latest entry, Insidious: Out of the Further, in theaters this weekend. The new supernatural horror film serves as a follow-up to Insidious: The Red Door. Come Play filmmaker, Jacob Chase directed Out of the Further, which stars Amelia Eve, Brandon Perea and Lin Shaye. The latter reprised her iconic role of Elise Rainier in the latest sequel.

In honor of Insidious: Out of the Further’s release, we rank the six installments in the series from worst to best. Our rankings are based on scares, story, characters, and lasting impact.

6. Insidious: The Last Key (2018)

Insidious: The Last Key had the potential to be a great entry in the series. It’s the last installment that features Shaye in a leading role as the fan favorite psychic medium, Elise.

However, the story surrounding the psychic medium isn’t nearly as interesting as it should be for the fourth installment. There are some creepy sequences, and the childhood material adds emotional weight. However, the prequel leans too heavily into conventional haunted-house mechanics.

5. Insidious: The Red Door (2023)

The conclusion to the Lambert family trilogy within the series, Insidious: The Red Door is notable for giving Josh and Dalton a more emotional story. Patrick Wilson, who reprised his role of family patriarch Josh, did a respectable job in his feature film directorial debut.

Unfortunately, the movie’s horror is noticeably weaker in the sequel than some of its predecessors. The follow-up, which was released a decade after its direct predecessor’s debut, feels more like a supernatural family drama with horror elements. It bypasses the terrifying nightmare that was the driving force of the franchise’s first two installments.

4. Insidious: Chapter 2 (2013)

Insidious: Chapter 2 isthe most underrated entry in the series. Unfortunately, despite its undervalued merits, it’s not as scary as the original. The series’ first sequel tries to explain too much of what made the first movie mysterious. However, it does work in its expansion of the franchise’s mythology and exploration of Josh’s connection to the Further.

3. Insidious: Chapter 3 (2015)

Insidious: Chapter 3 brings the franchise back to form, as franchise screenwriter, Leigh Whannell, made his directorial debut on the prequel.

The film shifts the focus away from the Lamberts and toward Elise. Along with her fellow paranormal investigators, Whannell’s Specs and Angus Sampson’s Tucker, have great chemistry. The movie also has some genuinely creepy sequences, and is more emotionally grounded than expect from an origin story.

2. Insidious: Out of the Further (2026)

The series’ latest sequel, which is set a few weeks after the events of , isn’t without its faults. Like with any follow-up in genre franchises, Insidious: Out of the Further has formulaic storytelling elements and forgettable scares.

But the latest installment deserves credit for trying something different in the series. Instead of simply bringing the Lamberts back again, it introduces a new mother, Gemma, who would do anything to protect her child. She’s also given an exciting new ability involving the Further: she can actually bring entities back with her.

1. Insidious (2010)

Whannell and Insidious series co-creator, James Wan, made another classic horror franchise with the original movie. They released Insidious after launching the Saw franchise the previous decade. The filmmakers made the Further feel genuinely mysterious and frightening in the initial installment.

The  first half is especially fantastic because it keeps raising questions about what exactly is happening to Dalton and Josh. It’s the movie that established the franchise’s identity. Unfortunately, none of the sequels have quite replicated its atmosphere.

Ultimately, the Insidious franchise remains one of modern horror’s most enduring supernatural series. Each entry expands the franchise’s mythology in meaningful ways. The latest sequel, Insidious: Out of the Further, introduces fresh ideas while continuing the story established by the previous films. However, the original Insidious remains the series’ definitive entry, due to its terrifying atmosphere and memorable characters. The franchise’s future will ultimately depend on balancing familiar mythology with new stories, characters, and scares.