Audiences at the recent New York test screening for David Gordon Green’s upcomingThe Exorcist: Believerwere less than thrilled with the latest installment, taking to social media to criticize the film and its creator.Green’s Blumhouse expansion onThe Exorcisthas been much anticipated, with its creator plotting an entire trilogy, hoping to breathe new life into the horror classic. Detailing the strange behavior and possession of a young girl, Regan, played expertly by Linda Blair nearly 50 years ago, the original film is considered a true horror classic and one of the scariest movies ever produced. The original was followed by several sequels, including 1977’sThe Exorcist II: The Hereticand 1990’sThe Exorcist III, as well the more recentExorcist: The Beginning(2004) andDominion: Prequel to The Exorcist(2005).RELATED:David Gordon Green’s Halloween Trilogy Is A Bad Sign For His Exorcist RemakeViewer Anonalleges audiences were less than pleased with Blumhouse’sThe Exorcist: Believer. Viewers reportedly leveled almost universal agreement on its shortcomings, claiming the movie is not particularly scary and is way too long. While some touted the existence of at least one really good jump scare, others compared its failure to Green’s Halloween trilogy, which garnered mixed reviews, particularlythe much-criticizedHalloween Ends(2022).World of Reel’s Jordan Ruimysays, “This is an especially concerning film from Green since it comes out at a time of exciting daring for the horror genre (Ari Aster, Jordan Peele, Robert Eggers, Jeremy Saulnier, David Robert Mitchell)."
Blumhouse’sExorcist: Believeris set to premiere just in time for Halloween. With several months to go, the studio may be able to alter the film into a higher quality, more tightly oiled machine given feedback from the test screening. With tight competition for October box office cash among a slew of horror movies released yearly, this latestExorcistinstallment will have to do much better to be a hit. This year’s competition for primespooky season dollars includesFive Nights at Freddy’s, a brand newSawinstallment, and theConjuringuniverse’sThe Nun 2.October also marks the return of another 1970s evil child movie withThe First Omen.
Written by Green and Peter Sattler,The Exorcist: Believerstars Leslie Odom Jr., Ann Dowd, Lidya Jewett, Jennifer Nettles, Olivia Marcum, Raphael Sbarge, and Okwui Okpokwasili.The Exorcistsequel also features Ellen Burstyn, who played Regan’s beleaguered mother in the original, reprising her role.
The Exorcist: Believeris scheduled to be released in theaters on June 04, 2025.
