The Exorcist is reportedly being rebooted, with a plan to release the next chapter of the horror franchise in 2021. The original movie, which came out in 1973, became one of the most iconic horror films of all time. It was nominated for 10 Academy Awards (including Best Picture), winning two of them. Since then, there have been multiple installments of the franchise, although it's lost some steam over the years and some will question whether or not a remake of the horroer movie is necessary.
After the critical and box office success of The Exorcist, it became a tentpole franchise of the horror genre. A sequel, The Exorcist II: Heretic was released in 1977, though its success greatly lagged behind the original. It would be another 13 years before The Exorcist III came out, which was retitled to try to recapture the audience from the original film. Two more prequel films came out in the early 2000s, but the horror movie prequels were flops in the eyes of both critics and consumers buying tickets at the box office. Since then, the film franchise has been dormant.
But The Exorcist may finally be ready to make a return. According to Deadline, one of the projects Morgan Creek Entertainment is working on - in addition to a Dead Ringers TV show - is a reboot of The Exorcist. Interestingly, one of the nuggets included is a potential 2021 release date, which feels rather soon for a movie that hadn't been publicly announced until this week.
There hasn't been a film in the series since 2005, but the franchise hasn't been completely quiet over the past 15 years. Fox chose to reboot The Exorcist as a television show in 2016 and managed to get two seasons out of it. There has also been a play based off the 1971 novel that spawned the movie series, premiering in Los Angeles in 2012. With reboots of prized properties being all the rage in Hollywood, this is the perfect time to reboot the horror icon.
The biggest question is what a new version of the film will be about and how it will respond to the current trends in the horror genre. Filmmaking conventions have changed a lot over the past decade and a half, meaning the franchise can be taken in a modern direction. It can also choose to follow in the path the television show would've taken if it made it to a third season. Regardless, The Exorcist will be one of the most hyped horror films of 2021.
Source: Deadline