Widely regarded as the greatest horror movie ever made, “The Exorcist”, the 1973 film inspired by William Blatty’s original 1971 novel, broke box office records and terrified audiences around the world.
Now, more than 4 decades after the Academy Award-nominated film, “The Exorcist” returns as a TV series as a modern reinvention of your worst nightmare.
Directed by Rupert Wyatt ( of “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” fame), “The Exorcist” is a propulsive psychological thriller following 2 very different priests tackling one family’s case of horrifying demonic possession.
The official synopsis is as follows:
Father Tomas Ortega (played by Alfonso Herrera) is the new face of the Catholic Church: progressive, ambitious and compassionate. He runs a small but loyal parish in the suburbs of Chicago. He has no idea that his quiet life is about to change forever.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, another priest finds himself locked in a life-and-death struggle with evil. Father Marcus Brennan (played by Ben Daniels) is a modern-day Templar Knight, an orphan raised since childhood by the Vatican to wage war against its enemies. Father Marcus is everything Father Tomas is not: relentless, abrasive and utterly consumed by his sacred mission.
Caught in the middle is the Rance family, members of Tomas’ parish. On the surface, they’re a normal, suburban family, but all is not as it seems in this household. The patriarch, Henry Rance (played by guest star Alan Ruck), is slowly but surely losing his mind. Eldest daughter Katherine (played by Brianne Howey) has become a recluse who refuses to leave her room. Her younger sister, Casey (played by Hannah Kasulka), thinks she’s hearing strange noises coming from inside the walls.
And mother Angela (played by Academy Award and Golden Globe winner Geena Davis) has been plagued by recurring nightmares, each more frightening than the last. Angela believes there is something in the house, a demonic presence, growing stronger by the day. Desperate, she begs Father Tomas for help, unwittingly setting the naïve young priest on a collision course with Father Marcus.
Separately, each faces an insurmountable task, but together they become the only hope against an evil force that has been mobilising for centuries.
Don’t get too excited just yet, because judging from the trailer, the TV series will be quite different from both the original film as well as the novel. So there’s no knowing if it’ll live up to the “The Exorcist” reputation. But go ahead and get all spooked out by the TV series’ official trailer anyway.
Enjoy:
Jeremy Slater (of “Fantastic Four” and “Death Note” fame) will write and executive-produce with James Robinson, Rolin Jones, David Robinson, Barbara Wall, and Rupert Wyatt.
“The Exorcist” will premiere on Fox at the end of 2016.
For more information, visit the series’ official website or Facebook page.
