David Gordon Green‘s “The Exorcist” legacy sequel may have an exciting and familiar cast member. We’ve known for awhile that Ellen Burstyn will be reprising her role as Chris MacNeil from the original 1973 movie. But actress and animal rights activist Linda Blair may be coming back as Regan MacNeil!
“Linda Blair will reprise her role as Regan MacNeil, Above the Line has exclusively learned,” reports film critic Jeff Sneider. “Sources say that Blair was only on set for a few days, so she’s not in the film all that much, but her return to the franchise should make fans’ heads spin with excitement.”
Green‘s “The Exorcist” will be a sequel to the original film, and pave the way for a new trilogy. So it makes sense to do what so many other horror franchises are doing, and pass on the torch in universe. Even though Blair hasn’t had much to do with the franchise since the 1977 sequel “The Exorcist: The Heretic” The new series of films is a collaboration between Universal, Blumhouse, and Morgan Creek.
“Linda Blair served as an advisor on the upcoming Exorcist film,” a Blumhouse spokesperson told Above the Line. So there is still a very strong possibility that is why she was seen on set. It seems like they would be making a big deal about her return to the franchise. But then again, Blumhouse is kind of known for fun easter eggs that we don’t see until the movie is released.
What we do know for sure is that the new film will star Burstyn, Leslie Odom Jr. (“Glass Onion”), Ann Dowd (“Hereditary”), Lidya Jewett (“Nightbooks”), Raphael Sbarge (“Gaslit”), Jennifer Nettles (“The Righteous Gemstones”), and Olivia Marcum in her first feature role.
The plot will follow the father of a possessed child (Odom Jr.). Desperate for help, he tracks down Chris MacNeil (Burstyn). Since, you know, she has a lot of experience with possesed children. The script was co-written by Peter Sattler (“Broken Diamonds”) and Green, based on a story by Green, Scott Teems (“Halloween Kills”), and Danny McBride (“Halloween”).
“The Exorcist” will hit theaters on October 13th, 2023 with or without Blair reprising her role.
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