“The Exorcist: Believer,” the latest chapter in the series that started in 1973 with William Friedkin’s original classic, is nearly here. And ahead of the movie’s release, we are exclusively debuting a featurette devoted to the movie’s thoughtful approach to spirituality. You can watch it above.
“’The Exorcist’ is universal,” Ellen Burstyn says in the featurette. “Possession happens all over the world.” And one of the things that “The Exorcist: Believer” really does is take in influences and religions from different parts of the globe. “I’ve grown up with a fascination of religions of all sorts,” director David Gordon Green says in the clip. “And this was an opportunity to explore possession through a variety of perspectives.” There’s even a master of divinity from Princeton who served as a kind of spiritual advisor to the movie. They really did take it seriously. And it comes across in the movie.
In this new “Exorcist,” two young girls experience what is described as “synchronized possession” after getting lost in the woods and not returning for several days. This leads one of the girl’s father (played by Leslie Odom Jr.) to search for an explanation in the unlikeliest of places – Chris MacNeil (Burstyn, returning to the franchise for the first time since the original), the mother of the young possessed girl in “The Exorcist.” It leads them both down a dark and unexpected path in an effort to rid his daughter of demonic infestation. It’s quite the ride.
The new movie was written Peter Sattler and Green from a story by Scott Teems, Danny McBride and Green. It was produced by Jason Blum, David C. Robinson and James G. Robinson. It is meant to be the first in a trilogy of new films with the second movie, “The Exorcist: Deceiver,” opening in theaters on April 18, 2025 (should make for good Easter viewing).
“The Exorcist: Believer” is in theaters everywhere on Friday.
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