The story of The Nun is not based on any specific case investigated by the Warrens, but the character of the Nun was inspired by a few different sources. First, Valak is the name demon that takes the form of the Nun (and the Crooked Man). The influential grimoire The Lesser Key of Solomon describes a demon named Valak (or Valac), and, according to the Warrens' son-in-law Tony Spera, the look of Valak in the Conjuring Universe is taken from a conversation James Wan had with Lorraine Warren. Spera says Lorraine told Wan that one night she felt a presence and saw a "whirlwind of black mass" enter her room. Wan concluded that the presence haunting Lorraine in the movies should be specific to her character, something that attacks her faith, and decided on a nun. Also, the image of the evil Nun may be partially inspired by a series of investigations Ed and Lorraine Warren had in the 1970s. When visiting Borley Church in England, Lorraine Warren says she encountered the presence of a nun and even claims to have had a photo taken of the nun. The legitimacy of the hauntings of Borley Church and the now-demolished Borley Rectory are subject to dispute, but the idea of a ghostly nun may have been an inspiration for the Nun character in the Conjuring movies.