Ever since the first Insidious movie was released in 2011, the Blumhouse horror franchise has been a staple for fans of the genre. The fifth entry in the franchise, Insidious: The Red Door, follows 2013's Insidious: Chapter 2, 2015's Insidious: Chapter 3, and 2018's Insidious: The Last Key. Written by Scott Teems, who penned Halloween Kills, and directed by star Patrick Wilson, Insidious 5 focuses on Josh Lambert's relationship with his son Dalton (Ty Simpkins). It's a smart decision to give these two characters the spotlight.
While reviews haven't been completely positive, Insidious: The Red Door has been a box office success. According to Box Office Mojo, Insidious 5 has grossed over $217 million worldwide as of right now. The ending of Insidious: The Red Door is just as creepy and memorable as horror fans were hoping for, and the characters finally end up in a better, happier place... at least for now.
What Is Insidious: The Red Door About?Insidious 5 continues the terrifying story of the popular Blumhouse horror franchise. This time, Dalton is at college. When the movie opens, it has been nine years since Josh was possessed by a demon. He is dealing with a lot of pain in his personal life, including grieving the loss of his mom Lorraine (Barbara Hershey) and divorcing Renai (Rose Byrne).
Insidious: The Red Door features The Further, the alternate dimension that has been part of the franchise since the beginning. Dalton's roommate and new friend Chris Winslow (Sinclair Daniel) goes into The Further after Dalton draws an image of the Red Door. Suddenly, Dalton and Josh are right back where they never thought that they would ever go again.
While some horror movies don't need sequels, the Insidious films have maintained a certain level of quality throughout. Each one is different enough from the one that came before, and that makes them fun to watch. The choice to focus on the father and son dynamic was a smart one and it makes the movie feel heartwarming, even though it's very scary.
How Does Insidious: The Red Door End?The Insidious 5 ending proves why this franchise has such staying power. There are many horror movies about demonic possession, but Insidious: The Red Door stands apart because the characters care about each other so much. The Insidious: The Red Door ending proves that it was smart to focus on Josh and Dalton. They feel determined to help save each other, and that emotion powers their final battle with the demon.
Dalton is possessed by the demon and Josh saves his son and makes sure that Chris survives, too. Dalton and Josh are victorious in stopping The Further from ruining their lives even more. When Dalton is in charge of himself again, he uses black paint to change the artwork that he made of The Further. Now the characters can't enter through The Red Door anymore.
While there are some lackluster movies in every Blumhouse horror franchise, Insidious: The Red Door adds something important and emotional to the other movies. This is clear in the final scene when Insidious fans are glad to see that Josh and Renai could get back together. Renai, and their children are going to have dinner, which allows Josh to feel happy and hopeful for the first time in a long time. Dalton and Josh reunite at Dalton's school and it seems like everything will be okay now. Of course, it wouldn't be an Insidious ending without a last moment that suggests another movie is coming. In the Insidious: The Red Door end credits, there is a scene of a light going on near The Red Door.
However, in July 2023, Patrick Wilson said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that he thinks that the Insidious franchise could continue and focus on Ty Simpkins's character Dalton Lambert. He said, "Well, the quick answer is yes. But I will say, and this is probably not the best way to sell a movie, but it would be cool if way down the line, if Insidious was like the Boyhood of horror movies. Ty could do these movies for a long time. I think that's really exciting as a filmmaker to do that and think it's exciting for an audience to see that. I'm sure it's exciting for a studio because the IP doesn't go away for a studio. But Josh and Renai? Speaking on behalf of Rose, no. I think we close our door."
