Insidious: Out of the Further' Post-Credits Scene Explained: How It Sets Up a Sequel

Insidious: Out of the Furtheris out in theaters today. The movie is the sixth entry into the Insidious franchise, expanding the story beyond the scope of the Lambert family and series mainstay Elise Rainier. While the latter makes a key appearance, the film centers on a new protagonist and her family’s connection to the Further, a dark dimension in parallel to ours, housing all manner of terrifying demons.

Out of the Further is a serviceable horror movie. While not as scary or fun as its predecessors, the new chapter shows that it’s possible for the franchise to move beyond the pieces that it’s been known for over the past 15 years, leaving the door open for future stories. And if you're wondering if you should stay in your seat through the credits, we're here to tell you that you should definitely stay put — there's a scene that follows up on Cyrus Lem, the terrifying demon that the movie introduces and that serves as the primary villain.

Warning: Spoilers ahead for Insidious: Out of the Further

Insidious: Out of the Further’s post-credit scene, explained

Image: Sony Pictures Releasing

Like previous Insidious films*, Out of the Further* has a primary villain to anchor its story. Cyrus Lem is a hippie-cult leader that has been targeting Gemma (Amelia Eve) and her family for most of her life, first haunting and killing her mother in the movie's striking opening sequence. He has a more human design when compared to previous Insidious demons, with long black hair and numerous rings on his fingers that make a clinking sound when he stalks his victims. He also has a scarf covering his eyes.

By the movie's final showdown, Gemma develops an understanding of the powers that run in her family and is finally able to utilize her skill to take things in and out of the Further for her own benefit. After Cyrus kidnaps Gemma’s daughter Maya (Island Austin), he uses her to bring dozens of demons out of the Further and into the real world. To rescue her, Gemma locks the demons inside her house and transports the entire structure back to the Further. She escapes back into the real world, reuniting with Maya and her boyfriend (Brandon Perea), leaving Cyrus behind with an angry mob of demons who feel robbed of their freedom.

Image: Sony Pictures

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The post-credits scene is brief, and takes us back to Cyrus in the Further. A demon pushes him onto the dental treatment chair and takes a metal tool into his mouth, drilling into his teeth. It’s a painful fate that had been teased earlier in the film, when Gemma was held down on that same chair. Aside from the gruesomeness, it shows that the demons have no allegiance. They can be as awful to one of their own as they are to the humans they torture.

The scene also features some winks to longtime Insidious fans, including a brief appearance from KeyFace, the demon from Insidious: The Lost Key. He locks Cyrus into the torture chamber as the camera pans out and reveals the franchise’s emblematic red door.

The post-credits scene doesn’t establish much about the future of the franchise, but it reasserts the fact that these demons are never really gone. Seemingly any of them could come back whenever a human ends up on the Further by accident — they just might be missing a few teeth when they do.

What’s next for the Insidious franchise?

Image: Sony Pictures Releasing

The future of the Insidious franchise largely depends on the success of Out of the Further. In 2023, Insidious: The Red Door was a great box office success, becoming the highest grossing movie of the franchise and one of the best horror performers of the year. If Out of the Further fares nearly as well or better, it’s likely that James Wan and Leigh Whannell's cinematic universe will continue to produce more stories, inviting new filmmakers into the fold.

In 2023, an Insidious spin-off was announced. Thread: An Insidious Tale was meant to star Mandy Moore and Kumail Nanjiani as a couple who travel back in time to prevent the death of their young daughter, with their actions resulting in dire consequences.

The film had Jeremy Slater attached as writer and director, with him previously working on films and TV shows like Mortal Kombat II, and Moon Knight. As of this writing, it’s unknown if that project is moving forward.

Insidious: Out of the Further is now in theaters.