Mike Flanagan's The Exorcist continues to round out its cast, with a whole bunch of longtime collaborators joining previously announced stars Scarlett Johansson, Laurence Fishburne, John Leguizamo, Diane Lane, Jacobi Jupe and Chiwetel Ejiofor.
Per Deadline, joining The Exorcist are 11 members of the so-called Flanafamily, including Rahul Kohli, Hamish Linklater, Gil Bellows, Carl Lumbly, Robert Longstreet, Matt Biedel, Samantha Sloyan, Kate Siegel, John Gallagher Jr., Benjamin Pajak, and Carla Gugino, most of whom have appeared across myriad Flanagan projects from Midnight Mass to The Life of Chuck.
Flanagan's Exorcist is confirmed to be an all-new story set in The Exorcist universe and is not a sequel to David Gordon Green's ill-fated The Exorcist: Believer from 2023. According to The Hollywood Reporter, while plot details for The Exorcist are being kept under the sheets, it is known that Johansson plays a mother and Jupe her son. Leguizamo may be playing an antagonist. No word yet on who anyone else will be playing.
Previously, Flanagan teased the project in more detail to THR, acknowledging the pressure he's under when carrying on the legacy started by William Friedkin's 1973 horror classic::
“I’ve always felt that there’s no point in going into a franchise or into a property that monolithic unless there’s something new you can bring. I chased The Exorcist very aggressively because I was convinced I had something that I could add. This is an opportunity to do something that I believe has never been done within the franchise — something that honors what came before it but isn’t built on nostalgia. I really just saw an opportunity to make the scariest movie I’ve ever made. I know expectations are high. No one’s more intimidated than I am.”
In addition to writing and directing, Flanagan, who also has new adaptations of Carrie and The Mist in the works, is producing via his Red Room Pictures banner, alongside David Robinson for Morgan Creek Entertainment and horror titan Jason Blum for Blumhouse-Atomic Monster. Executive producers include Alexandra Magistro for Red Room Pictures and Ryan Turek for Blumhouse-Atomic Monster.
Flanagan's Exorcist releases in theaters on March 12, 2027. Stay tuned for updates.
