Insidious: Chapter 2 is a 2013 American supernatural horror film directed by James Wan. The film is a sequel to the 2010 film Insidious, and the second installment in the Insidious franchise, and the fourth in terms of the series's in-story chronology. The film stars Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne, reprising their roles as Josh and Renai Lambert, a husband and wife who seek to uncover the secret that has left them dangerously connected to the spirit world. The film was released September 13, 2013.
Two prequels, Chapter 3 and The Last Key were released on June 5, 2015, and January 5, 2018, respectively, with a direct sequel to Chapter 2, The Red Door, released on July 7, 2023.
Plot
In 1986, Lorraine Lambert summons demonologist Elise Rainier to help her son Josh, who is being haunted by the spirit of an old woman. While searching for any paranormal phenomena in their home, Elise's arm is slashed by an unseen but physical force. She insists that they must suppress Josh's astral projection abilities for his own safety and plant altered memories in his brain.
24 years later, Josh's wife, Renai Lambert, is under questioning about the death of Elise. She's warned that if Josh's fingerprints are found at the crime scene, he'll be prosecuted for Elise's murder. Josh, Renai and their children – Dalton, Foster, and Cali – relocate to Lorraine's house, where they again begin to encounter strange paranormal events. Dalton tells his mother that he has been having bad dreams about a woman in a white dress, as well as hearing Josh talk to an unseen figure. Renai receives a call from the police stating that the fingerprints do not match Josh's. A woman in a white dress attacks Renai and Josh hears a voice urging him to kill his family.
Specs and Tucker, Elise's former associates, show Lorraine a videotape of the 1986 investigation, enhanced to reveal an adult Josh standing behind the young Josh. They contact Elise's former colleague Carl, who attempts to contact Elise's spirit. They are told to find answers at an abandoned hospital, where Lorraine used to work as a doctor. Lorraine recounts the story twenty-five years ago when a patient named Parker Crane who was admitted for trying to castrate himself, had assaulted Josh. She saw Parker some days later and when she asked a nurse why he was out of bed, the nurse seemed confused and told Lorraine that he had jumped to his death the day before. The group goes to the Crane family home where Lorraine is attacked by the spirit of Parker's mother, Michelle, who calls herself "Mother Mortis". The group find a secret room, containing numerous corpses, a black wedding gown and newspaper clippings. Carl touches the gown and discovers Parker to be a serial killer known as "The Bride in Black" – who kidnapped and murdered many women while dressed as a woman himself. Parker had been forced to kill his victims at the behest of his mother's spirit.
Josh's body begins to slowly deteriorate and Renai realizes he is possessed. Lorraine insists that they all get away from Josh. Carl, Specs and Tucker arrive to drug him but he subdues them. Carl awakens in the spirit realm of The Further, where he meets the spirits of the real Josh and Elise. The time moves non-chronologically there, and Josh is able to communicate with himself as a child to locate Parker's house in The Further.
Meanwhile in the physical world, the possessed Josh ambushes Lorraine and Renai. She escapes to the basement with the children and Dalton voluntarily enters The Further to help his father. There, Josh and the others find Parker's house where they witness Michelle abusing him and forcing him to act like a girl. Elise saves Josh and appears to destroy Michelle's spirit, which stops the possessed Josh from murdering his family in the real world. Carl and Josh escape and Dalton leads them back to the living world, allowing Josh to finally regain control of his body. The Lambert family is finally reunited, with Josh and Dalton once again having their memories suppressed by Carl.
Some time later, Specs and Tucker arrive at the house of a family whose daughter, Allison, is in an unexplained coma. No one but Allison's younger sister can sense Elise's spirit, due to the potential ability of astral projection, who passes between them, going to Allison's room. She is confronted by an unseen figure, as a creaking sound is heard.