Horror classic The Exorcist received nearly identical prequels, released a year apart, and the reason behind that happening is rather complex. 1973's The Exorcist is undoubtedly one of the most celebrated horror films ever, earning ten Oscar nominations, and winning two. The Exorcist also became the first horror film to receive a Best Picture nomination, starting what is today still an extremely small club. The harrowing tale of teenage Regan MacNeil's possession by a foul-mouthed demon, The Exorcist sits at a level most horror films could never hope to reach.
Unfortunately, that level of quality in no way held true for what would become The Exorcist franchise. 1977's Exorcist 2: The Heretic is a confusing mess that does its best to try and damage the legacy of the original, and is widely considered one of the worst horror sequels ever made. 1990's The Exorcist 3 has gained quite the cult following over the years, but it ended up not being what it could've been due to studio interference.
Then we come to The Exorcist's dueling prequels. one released in 2004, and the other in 2005. While the two prequels have notable differences, especially in tone, they both basically tell the same story. Here's why they both exist, despite these similarities.
Exorcist: Why There Are Two Prequels Released A Year Apart
In 2002, Morgan Creek Productions hired John Frankenheimer (The Manchurian Candidate) to direct a prequel to the original Exorcist film. Liam Neeson was hired to play a young Father Merrin, and production was set to begin that summer. That was until Frankenheimer died, leaving the prequel without a director and star, as Neeson also exited afterward. Taxi Driver writer and Cat People director Paul Schrader was then hired to take over the project, with Stellan Skarsgard cast as Father Merrin.
While Schrader insists he faithfully filmed the script provided to him by Morgan Creek, the company ended up being unhappy with the finished product, and got cold feet on releasing it. Renny Harlin (Die Hard 2, A Nightmare on Elm Street 4) was then brought in to do some reshoots, but that ended up spiraling into a full-on rewrite of the prequel, and full reshoot of the film, despite Schrader's version already being mostly finished. Harlin's prequel, released under the title Exorcist: The Beginning in 2004, went on to be both a critical and commercial failure.
Realizing they may have made a mistake, Morgan Creek decided to allow Schrader to finish his Exorcist prequel, releasing that direct to video in 2005 as Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist. Both prequels tell the story of Merrin (Skarsgard) having lost his faith after witnessing atrocities in World War II, only to regain it after a battle with the demon Pazuzu, the same demon that would go on to possess Regan. While Dominion received better reviews, they still weren't very good overall, proving that the entire idea of an Exorcist prequel was probably ill-conceived.