Mike Flanagan Says ‘The Exorcist’ Is “An Opportunity To Make the Scariest Movie” He’s Ever Done

The Exorcist

By Shane Romanchick

Published Sep 5, 2024

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Image by Jefferson Chacon

When it comes to modern horror, no filmmaker has had more impact on the genre than Mike Flanagan. The writer-director has been terrifying audiences for over a decade with films like Oculus, Hush and Doctor Sleep alongside sinister TV shows like Midnight Mass and The Haunting of Hill House. His latest film Life of Chuck isn't a horror film, but the director will be jumping back on the scream-worthy genre train soon with the next entry in The Exorcist franchise. A project that Flanagan has now called his scariest film to date.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter focused on Life of Chuck as well as the director’s own attachment to horror, Flanagan was briefly asked about the upcoming Exorcist film and the “bold promise” of it being a “radical new take”. “We aren’t making this easy on ourselves”, Flanagan said with a laugh before continuing:

“But 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.”

The Stephen King regular would finish by saying, “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.” That’s saying a lot given Flanagan's previous work has been full of traumatizing moments. Even for horror veterans, things like “The Bent-Neck Lady” in Hill House and the ending of Midnight Mass Episode 5 have stuck with audiences like their own personal haunting. That also means something a bit different when it comes to The Exorcist franchise, as the original is still considered to be one of the scariest films of all-time.

What’s the New ‘Exorcist’ About?

There are no major plot details for Flanagan’s Exorcist yet as it's still in the very early stages of development. However, we do know that it won't be a direct sequel to 2023’s Exorcist: Believer. Because of that, it’ll be exciting to see who’ll be cast in the next chapter. Flanagan has formed a huge horror family over the years which has included Kate Siegel, Karen Gillan, Carl Lumbly, Rahul Kohli, and Mark Hamill, just to name a few. The big ensemble casts are half the fun of a Flanagan production. As the director is focused on promoting his next King adaptation Life of Chuck, which premieres at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) later this month, horror fans will probably have to wait awhile for casting news to start. That's not the only project for Flanagan this year, as he wrote a segment for the next V/H/S film, Beyond, titled “Stowaway”. His wife and frequent collaborator, Siegel, is making her directorial debut with this segment. The found footage sequel will be premiering exclusively on the horror-centric service Shudder on October 4, 2024.

Flanagan’s Exorcist installment will be haunting theaters on March 13, 2026 (Friday the 13th). You can currently catch up with the franchise by streaming the original Exorcist on Max and Believer on Amazon Prime Video.