The Exorcist: Mike Flanagan Confirmed to Write and Direct "Radical New Take"

The new film will not be a sequel to The Exorcist: Believer.

By Jenna Anderson

A new take on The Exorcist franchise is officially on the way. On Wednesday, it was confirmed that Mike Flanagan (Midnight Mass, The Fall of the House of Usher) will be writing, directing, and producing a new Exorcist movie. Flanagan's new film is being described as "an all-new story set in The Exorcist universe and is not a sequel to 2023's The Exorcist: Believer." The film will be produced by Flanagan, Trevor Macy, and John Scherer.

"The Exorcist is one of the reasons I became a filmmaker, and it is an honor to have the chance to try something fresh, bold, and terrifying within its universe," Flanagan said in a statement. "Reuniting with my friends at Blumhouse, with whom I've made some of my favorite pieces of work, only makes this more exciting."

"Mike's voice and vision are indispensable for horror fans and we are excited to welcome him back to Blumhouse," Jason Blum echoed. "I immediately responded to Mike's new take on the world of The Exorcist and can't wait for audiences to experience it."

"It's an honor to be working with Mike," David Robinson, Chairman and CEO of Morgan Creek, added. "I think his vision for this franchise is going to stun audiences worldwide, and I could not be more excited to be working with him, Trevor, Jason and the entire Blumhouse Team."

Why Isn't The Exorcist: Believer Getting a Sequel?

The rights to The Exorcist franchise were acquired by Universal and Blumhouse in 2021 in a $400 million distribution deal, which originally encompassed a new trilogy of films. At the time, there was an option for the second and third installments potentially being exclusive to Universal's Peacock streaming service.

As previous reporting on Flanagan's involvement indicated, this pivot would allow Universal and Blumhouse to deliver the two additional Exorcist movies that they originally signed up for, without necessarily being impacted by Believer's bad reception and box office.

Related:

What Is The Exorcist: Believer About?

In The Exorcist: Believer, since the death of his pregnant wife in a Haitian earthquake 12 years ago, Victor Fielding (Tony winner and Oscar nominee Leslie Odom, Jr.; One Night in Miami, Hamilton) has raised their daughter, Angela (Lidya Jewett, Good Girls) on his own. But when Angela and her friend Katherine (newcomer Olivia Marcum), disappear in the woods, only to return three days later with no memory of what happened to them, it unleashes a chain of events that will force Victor to confront the nadir of evil and, in his terror and desperation, see out the only person alive who has witnessed anything like this before: Chris MacNeil. The film also stars Emmy winner Ann Dowd (The Handmaid's Tale, Hereditary) as Victor and Angela's neighbor, and Grammy winner Jennifer Nettles (Harriet, The Righteous Gemstones) and two-time Tony winner Norbert Leo Butz (Fosse/Verdon, Bloodline) as the parents of Katherine, Angela's friend.

"Well, it's fun. We had a road map that thought, 'You know, if the world will embrace what we're making here, then we'll keep it going,'" director David Gordon Green previously told ComicBook.com of the prospect of a sequel. "So we have a nice road map, and then once we got into production, the movie took on a life of its own, and we took some detours on that road. But I'm excited that if this movie is well received and we can keep them cranking, we got some new avenues to explore." 

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