Spooky season might be over, but we have amazing news for horror fans everywhere. News just came up that Scarlett Johansson will star in new Exorcist movie, but with a unique spin.
The upcoming film will have Johansson in the lead role, and the film will give an all-new story set in the Exorcist universe. This is not a sequel to the 2023 entry, The Exorcist: Believer, which starred Leslie Odom Jr.
The radical take on the upcoming film is from writer and director Mike Flanagan, known for his work with The Fall of the House of Usher (2023), The Haunting of Hill House (2018), Gerald’s Game (2017), and The Life of Chuck (2024).
“Scarlett is a brilliant actress whose captivating performances always feel grounded and real, from genre films to summer blockbusters, and I couldn’t be happier to have her join this Exorcist film,” said Flanagan.
While not much has been said about the film yet, we do know that the upcoming Exorcist will be set in the same universe as the 1973 film and should be a whole new spin on the classic stories.
The original movie followed Ellen Burstyn’s Chris MacNeil as she sought two priests to perform an exorcism on her possessed tween daughter, played by Linda Blair. It was a hit with audiences, earning $441 million at the box office and garnering two Academy Awards.
Flanagan hopes to breathe new life into the franchise after the most recent releases, such as Believer, which wasn’t well-received.
“The Exorcist is one of the reasons I became a filmmaker,” the director said, according to The Independent. “And it’s an honor to have the chance to try something fresh, bold, and terrifying within its universe. Reuniting with my friends at Blumhouse, with whom I’ve made some of my favorite pieces of work, only makes this more exciting.”
In 2024, according to The Hollywood Reporter, he wanted to do “something new” with the iconic franchise and make the “scariest movie”.
“I chased The Exorcist very aggressively because I was convinced I had something that I could add. This is an opportunity to do something that I believe has never been done within the franchise – something that honors what came before it but isn’t built on nostalgia. I really just saw an opportunity to make the scariest movie I’ve ever made,” he said.
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