This week brought some mind-blowing news for horror fans as it came out that Blumhouse is partnering up with Morgan Creek and Paramount Pictures to produce a new Exorcist trilogy. With Halloween 2018 director David Gordon Green in the director’s chair, these Exorcist films will take a similar approach to what Green did with Michael Myers and follow on from the original movie – in this case, William Friedkin’s 1973 classic.
For one, Ellen Burstyn has been confirmed to reprise her role as Chris MacNeil, the mother of Regan, the pre-teen girl who’s possessed by the demonic spirit of Pazuzu. This was surprising news as Burstyn has never returned to the franchise before, while Regan herself – actress Linda Blair – has long been more closely associated with it, having played Regan again in 1977’s The Exorcist II: The Heretic.
As of now, though, Blair has not been contacted to appear in Paramount’s legacy sequel trilogy. This comes from her own words, as Blair took to Twitter following the news to clarify that she’s heard nothing about the project to date.
“To all my fans asking about my involvement in the new Exorcist reboot, as of now, there has not been any discussions about me participating or reprising my role,” Blair told her Twitter followers. “I wish all those involved the best and I appreciate the loyalty and passion the fans have for The Exorcist and my character.”
To date, Leslie Odom Jr. is the only other cast member confirmed to be on board the trilogy. The first film is said to follow Odom Jr. as a parent whose child becomes demonically possessed. His only option is to reach out to Burstyn’s character, one of the few people who has first-hand experience of the situation. In other words, it sounds like Burstyn will fill the role of the priests this time around, much like Jamie Lee Curtis’ Laurie Strode is tougher and wiser in the new Halloweens.
The first of these Exorcist films is set to land in theaters in late 2023, a year after Green’s Halloween Ends. The two sequels could then arrive on Paramount Plus, as per the details of the $400 million mega-deal.
