The first reviews for The Exorcist: Believer have dropped. And the results are terrifyingly bad.
David Gordon Green, who directed the recent Halloween trilogy, was enlisted by Blumhouse to direct the Exorcist sequel. Like his Halloween films, Green would be directing a direct sequel to the original film with Believer.
Ellen Burstyn, who received an Oscar nomination for her performance in the original Exorcist film, reprised her role of Chris MacNeil in Believer. Leslie Odom Jr., Ann Dowd, and Jennifer Nettles also starred in the film.
Universal and Peacock was betting on Green's Halloween success to carry over to the Exorcist series. His Halloween trilogy grossed a cumulative $490 million. The New York Times reported a couple of years ago that Universal and Peacock secured the rights to the Exorcist franchise for at least $400 million.
Originally set for an October 13 release, The Exorcist: Believer was scared off by the incoming Taylor Swift “Eras” tour concert film. That means earlier reviews, and some of the top critics have weighed in on the film.
Article Continues BelowBased on 68 reviews, the latest Exorcist film holds just a 25% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes.
David Ehrlich of IndieWire gave the film a D grade, calling it a “hyper-conservative movie that spends its entire running time torturing its main character for prioritizing the well-being of his wife over the safety of her fetus.” He also said the film did a “lazy” job exhuming the franchise's legacy.
The Hollywood Reporter's David Rooney's Rotten Tomatoes blurb turns its attention to Green. “Unlike Green’s Halloween trilogy, which served up diminishing returns with each new installment, Believer condenses that downward trajectory into the first chapter.”
Not everyone hated it, though. Matt Donato of Paste Magazine gave the film a 7/10 rating, saying that it “works fine as a rewound relaunch of the Exorcist franchise.”
The Exorcist: Believer will be released on October 6.