The Exorcist sequel has shut down production because the star of the upcoming legacy sequel, Leslie Odom, Jr. has had a health complication. Details are sparse, but it’s enough to put a hold on the Blumhouse and Universal production.
David Gordon Green, fresh off his Halloween legacy sequel trilogy, has been hard at work on a legacy sequel to another ‘70s horror classic, The Exorcist, which spawned a beleaguered series of Exorcist sequels and shows that have seen as much failure as success. In the sequel, titled The Exorcist, Odom, Jr. joins a returning Ellen Burstyn, who played Chris MacNeil, the mother of the possessed Regan (Linda Blair) in the original movie.
Deadline reports that The Exorcist sequel, which Odom, Jr. called “really scary and fun, but also meaningful and deep,” has shut down shooting over the holidays so the actor, whose health condition hasn’t been specified, could recover. It’s costing the production to keep him, as the money outlaid not only for the rights but for keeping a crew attached isn’t cheap. This testifies to how much the producers and director believe in their star and the value he brings to the project. Production hopes Odom Jr. will be able to return with the rest of the cast when The Exorcist sequel resumes filming in January 2023.
The original 1973 movie, The Exorcist, was directed by William Friedkin and based on the book of the same name by William Peter Blatty and featured a script by Blatty. In the film, Father Merrin (Max von Sydow) unleashes the Mesopotamian demon Pazuzu during an archaeological dig in Iraq. In Washington DC, while Chris MacNeil (Ellen Burstyn), an actress, films a movie, her daughter, Regan (Linda Blair), plays around with an Ouija board and gets possessed by Pazuzu. After a harrowing ordeal, Chris finally convinces the Catholic church she needs help, and they send Father Merrin and Father Karras (Jason Miller) to help save the girl’s soul. The new The Exorcist picks up 50 years after those events.
With a fresh legacy trilogy inspired by the original John Carpenter Halloween under their belts, it made sense for Gordon Green and Blumhouse to continue what has been a fruitful relationship and move on to other properties. The property they settled on was The Exorcist franchise to the tune of some $400 hundred million laid out for rights to the world of demon-possessed people who spew pea soup. Odom, Jr. made his bones first as Aaron Burr in Lin Manuel Miranda's smash success Hamilton and then recently starred in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery.
The Exorcist is set to be released on October 13, 2023.
Source: Deadline