Universal Nabs The Exorcist Trilogy With Ellen Burstyn to Reprise Role

According to The New York Times, Universal Pictures and Peacock have successfully acquired the rights to Blumhouse Production’s follow-up trilogy to William Friedkin’s iconic horror film The Exorcist for a whopping deal of over $400 million. This acquisition comes after it was reported last December that Halloween‘s David Gordon Green was in talks to direct. Now, it has been officially confirmed that he has signed on to helm the first film in the planned trilogy, which is expected to arrive in theaters in late 2023.

In addition, acclaimed actress Ellen Burstyn has also agreed to return to the franchise and will reprise her iconic role as Chris MacNeil after over 40 years since the original film made its debut in 1973. For her performance as a mother to a possessed child, she earned her second Oscar nomination for Best Actress.

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Blumhouse’s The Exorcist trilogy is not being developed as a remake but rather as a direct sequel to the original horror feature. Joining Burstyn is Oscar nominee Leslie Odom Jr. (Hamilton, One Night in Miami) for the leading role of a father of a possessed child whose desperation leads him to track down Chris McNeil.

“Blumhouse has always experienced incredible partnership from the team at Universal, and I’m grateful to Donna Langley and Jimmy Horowitz for believing in the vision of David’s film and having the foresight to be flexible with distribution, so the team feels top-notch support through the lifeline of the film. They’re committed to theatrical exhibition and will also serving streaming viewers well by bringing an exciting franchise like the Exorcist to Peacock too,” Blumhouse CEO and Founder, Jason Blum said in a statement (via TheWrap). “I’m grateful to be working with David Robinson and the great team at Morgan Creek on this iconic franchise.”

Based on William Peter Blatty’s 1971 novel, the original film was directed by William Friedkin from a screenplay also adapted by Blatty. It starred Oscar winner Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Jason Miller, and Linda Blair. The Exorcist centered around the sudden demonic possession of a 12-year-old girl named Reagan after encountering an old Ouija board. In a last attempt to save Reagan, two Roman Catholic priests are enlisted to conduct an exorcism on her.

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“There’s no better time to be joining forces with the team at Peacock, reuniting with the great team at Universal and finally getting to work with my friends at Blumhouse, than on this classic franchise,” Morgan Creek president, David Robinson said. “David Gordon Green, Danny McBride, Scott Teems, and Peter Sattler have put together a compelling continuation of this iconic tale and I can’t wait to bring this to fans around the world.”

The Exorcist sequel will be directed by David Gordon Green from a screenplay he will co-write with Halloween writers Scott Teems, Danny McBride, and Petter Sattler. It will be produced by Jason Blum, David Robinson, and James Robinson with Green, McBride, and Couper Samuelson to executive produce. It will be a co-production between Blumhouse and Morgan Creek Production, with Ryan Turek to oversee the project on behalf of Blumhouse.

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