Filmmaker Mike Flanagan is often associated with Stephen King due to the multiple critically acclaimed adaptations of the author’s works. However, he has proven his skills with other adaptations, and he has multiple projects on the way, including a reboot of the 1973 classic The Exorcist.
Flanagan’s Exorcist film was announced in May 2024, with Blumhouse Productions and Morgan Creek attached. The film was announced in the aftermath of David Gordon Green’s 2023 entry The Exorcist: Believer, which flopped at the box office. While Flanagan’s take on The Exorcist has been delayed, during Motor City Comic Con, the auteur teased he wanted a reunion on the reboot with Rebecca Ferguson, per ScreenRant.
At The Haunting Vision of Mike Flanagan & Kate Siegel panel at Motor City Comic Con, the filmmaker spoke about his past collaboration with the Dune actress on his 2019 film Doctor Sleep, a sequel to The Shining.
Regarding a possible reunion, Flanagan explained, “[She’s been busy with a] little indie project called Dune, and she’s on Season 3 of Silo right now.”
He added, “She still finds the time to do, like, one of the biggest movies on Netflix right now,” referring to A House of Dynamite, which comes from Kathryn Bigelow. The movie received positive reviews and headed straight to the charts on Netflix following its limited release in theaters.
Flanagan added, “She’s prolific, but we’re in constant contact. Once, every couple of months, I hear from Rebecca just saying, ‘Hey, what’s going on?’ And I’ll say, ‘Hey! Would you like to come do this part? I’d love to talk to you about this thing.’
The Haunting of Hill House filmmaker explained, “She’s always booked, but one of these days, it’ll work out for sure. I can’t give away the name of the character, but when I first got The Exorcist, she was one of my first phone calls.”
In the 2019 sleeper hit, which also starred Ewan McGregor, Ferguson played Rose the Hat, the movie’s antagonist. The filmmaker has a long series of actors he collaborates with often, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see him work with Ferguson again.
What’s Mike Flanagan’s The Exorcist About?
Rebecca Ferguson plays Rose the Hat, an energy vampire that leads a cult of energy vampires called the True Knot, feeding on “steam” in Doctor Sleep.Image via Warner Bros.
The filmmaker recently wrapped production on his new take on Stephen King’s classic Carrie, among other projects like The Dark Tower. However, choosing to work on Carrie first delayed The Exorcist. Earlier this year, he revealed that “production hasn’t started” on the film, and that “no way it’s coming out next March.” He assured everyone that the project is moving forward and that there is “nothing to worry about.”
There are few details about Flanagan’s new take on The Exorcist, but it’s a reboot of the franchise, and not a sequel to 2013’s The Exorcist: Believer, as it had been anticipated. The project was originally described as a “radical new take,” promising an “all-new story set in The Exorcist universe.” There are no actors attached to the project yet, and it’s unclear whether Ferguson agreed to do it.
The Exorcist doesn’t have a release date yet, but it was originally supposed to come out in March 2026.
Created by
William Peter Blatty
Upcoming Films
The Exorcist: Deceiver
Cast
Ellen Burstyn, Linda Blair, Max Von Sydow, Jason Miller, Richard Burton, George C. Scott, Stellan Skarsgård, Leslie Odom Jr.
Movie(s)
The Exorcist, The Exorcist III, The Exorcist: Believer, Dominion: Prequel to The Exorcist, The Exorcist: Deceiver, Exorcist II: The Heretic