MOVIE NEWS – It took a lot of courage for David Gordon Green to make a sequel to The Exorcist, since it is an undisputed classic of horror, so the new opus will inevitably be measured against it. However, the director has already done something similar when he made a new trilogy after another classic, Halloween, and he didn’t fail.

Green doesn’t deny that making The Exorcist: The Believer caused him a few sleepless nights, mainly because of a dilemma. How can you meet the expectations of the fanbase while still going your own way? The director finally chose the latter solution.

“The job of every filmmaker is to make radical decisions,” Green told The Direct. “If you’re looking for the favors of the fans, you’re done.” The DNA of this film is the exploration of parenthood: how do you react when your child starts behaving as if it is not your child? My task was to explore this question in the most humane and relatable way possible, without over-exaggerating the supernatural side of the matter.”

However, Green does not break with the tradition of the original film in any way, and even emphasizes the continuity, since The Exorcist: The Believer is one of the main charactersEllen Burstyn, who played the mother of the demon-possessed little girl in the 1973 classic.

“We’re organically tied to the original story,” Green explained. – Chris McNeil (Burstyn) also appears in our story and becomes an important character again because he has some idea of what is going on and can give ideas on what to do.”

Fans are also wondering if the original possessed child Regan, played by Linda Blair, will return as an adult in the sequel. This possibility has been raised before, but the Blumhouse studio, which produced the film, and Green did not give a direct answer to the question, only admitting that the actress contributed to the production of the film.

One of the scenes in the trailer increases the interest in this regard. Chris walks up to one of the possessed girls (Olivia Marcum) and tells her: we’ve met. The girl answers: mother. Some of the fans reason that maybe Regan is the new demon in the sequel. This would agree with the director’s statement that a creator must make radical decisions.

Green revealed, however, that there is no such figure in the sequel as May Von Sydow’s Catholic priest was in the original, that is, the “civilian” characters have to fight the Evil One with their own strength.

(The Exorcist: Believer – domestic release: October 12, 2023.)

Source: UIP Dunafilm