The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It director Michael Chaves previously revealed that the initial plan for the movie included a demon with spinoff potential. Chaves shared a few fascinating details about this now Lost Demon in Bloody Disgusting’s live-tweet watch party for the movie’s home release last night, including creepy footage of the demon!
That demon would’ve worked with “The Occultist,” the human antagonist. But its inclusion overcomplicated the narrative, so the demon got exorcised from the final cut.
“We actually did have what we thought was going to be the new [spinoff] demon, and this is something that was true to the story,” Chaves explained in his initial interview with Slashfilm. “We had a demon that was full-on pulled from little David’s interview and description. Arnie said he saw the same thing. And it felt like this was going to be the iconic demon.”
Chaves continued, “[James Wan] was with this from the very beginning – James, Monster Maestro. And we shot it. We had a cut of the film with this demon in it.”
It turns out though that the Lost Demon isn’t entirely gone from the final cut. Chaves also revealed in the Twitter watch party that the demon that terrorizes young David Glatzel (Julian Hilliard) in the waterbed sequence is the Lost Demon, played by actor Davis Osborne, who revealed the demon was referred to as “the Beast.”
@Davis10omatic is the #LostDemon you can see him in the waterbed. #TheConjuringWatchParty
— Michael Chaves (@michaelchaves) August 25, 2021
Hilliard tweeted a charming behind-the-scenes photo that gives a better look at the Beast:
Here's another with the best beastie. Also, got this "me
" cookie cake for the incredible crew! #TheConjuringWatchParty pic.twitter.com/lpxhjiHbXr
— Julian Hilliard (@_JulianHilliard) August 25, 2021
The director later revealed a clip of Osborne in action, taunting an incarcerated and cursed Arne Johnson (Ruairi O’Connor). Even in a quick, 36-second clip, the demon’s presence packs a punch. Hashtag release the Lost Demon cut? Even with much of the Lost Demon trimmed from the sequel, Osborne still got to showcase his ability to unnerve. The actor is credited as The Infirmary Patient, and you can spot him eerily singing Blondie’s “Call Me” to Arne.
The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It is now available on VOD and physical media!
@Davis10omatic played the amazing #LostDemon – this was a scene where he appeared to Arne in the jail. Even with this footage on the monitor he was really scary. #TheConjuringWatchParty pic.twitter.com/aBLT0rxupM
— Michael Chaves (@michaelchaves) August 25, 2021