She next appeared in James Wan's horror film "The Conjuring" (2013), which was met with critical and commercial success. The film became the second highest-grossing horror film of all time up to that date. Farmiga portrayed paranormal investigator and self-professed clairvoyant Lorraine Warren, alongside Patrick Wilson, for which she was nominated for the MTV Movie Award for Best Scared-As-Shit Performance. Sheri Linden of "The Hollywood Reporter" wrote that "Farmiga resonates an extraordinary sensitivity" in the role, while Justin Chang of "Variety" called her performance "moving" and highlighted her chemistry with Wilson as a "rock-solid rapport". She reprised her role in the sequel, "The Conjuring 2" (2016), which was also directed by Wan. The film was the second released in the main series, but the third released within The Conjuring Universe. Like its predecessor, "The Conjuring 2" was met with a positive critical reception and commercial success, surpassing "The Conjuring" as the second highest-grossing horror film of all time.