Mike Flanagan’s ‘The Exorcist’ Officially Wraps Filming

It’s been over 50 years since we’ve gotten a good Exorcist movie.

And yes, that’s the joke, because if we’re being honest, there really hasn’t been a good Exorcist movie outside of the original. Back in 1973, William Friedkin adapted William Peter Blatty’s novel into what is not only one of the greatest horror films ever made, but arguably still the scariest.

What makes The Exorcist so effective isn’t the head-spinning or the pea soup. It’s how relentlessly brutal the film is toward Regan. The things that happen to her, the things she says, the places the movie is willing to go – it’s uncomfortable. It’s shocking. Even today, there are moments that feel like they crossed a line. Modern studio horror just doesn’t operate that way anymore.

That’s why the film has endured. There’s nothing else quite like it, and there probably never will be.

Now, do we really need another Exorcist movie?

I think the answer is no.

The Exorcist was copied so many times that it basically became its own subgenre. We’ve had everything from The Last Exorcism to The Rite, The Possession, Deliver Us from Evil, Prey for the Devil, The Pope’s Exorcist, and countless other possession movies that have come and gone over the years. Some are good. Most are forgettable. But the market certainly isn’t starving for exorcism stories.

That said, the name still carries weight.

Universal reportedly spent around $400 million to acquire the rights and launch a new trilogy. Their first attempt, The Exorcist: Believer, was a swing and a miss. In my opinion, that started with putting the franchise in the hands of David Gordon Green. His style works for certain projects, but horror has never really felt like his lane, and Believer ultimately failed to justify its existence.

To their credit, Universal and Blumhouse seem to have learned from that mistake.

Enter .