Scarlett Johansson has joined Mike Flanagan’s upcoming Exorcist movie, marking her first foray into the horror genre in over a decade.
The Marvel actor’s involvement was confirmed by a recent Deadline report, which also revealed that the upcoming flick will be telling an “all-new story” within the franchise’s world – and won’t be a sequel to The Exorcist: Believer. Blumhouse-Atomic Monster, Morgan Creek Entertainment and Flanagan’s Red Room Pictures are producing, with the latter geared up to write and direct.
“Scarlett is a brilliant actress whose captivating performances always feel grounded and real, from genre films to summer blockbusters, and I couldn’t be happier to have her join this Exorcist film,” said Flanagan, in a statement shared by the publication.
Directed by William Friedkin, The Exorcist (1973) follows Ellen Burstyn’s Chris, a desperate mother who enlists the help of two enigmatic priests to save her daughter, Regan (Linda Blair), from a mysterious, malevolent entity. In David Gordon Green’s 2023’s follow-up, Chris comes to the aid of single father Victor (Leslie Odom Jr.), when his kid Angela (Lidya Jewett) and her schoolfriend Katherine (Olivia Marcum) succumb to similarly evil spirits.
Across her 30-year career, Johansson has starred in just two horror titles, neither of which are your conventional, out-and-out frightfests. Eight Legged Freaks, a horror-comedy in which Johansson, Scott Terra, and Scream’s David Arquette are terrorized by a bunch of giant spiders, came out in 2002, while eerie sci-fi flick Under the Skin saw her play a man-eating alien in 2013.
“This is an opportunity to do something that I believe has never been done within the franchise – something that honors what came before it but isn’t built on nostalgia,” Flanagan previously told The Hollywood Reporter. “I really just saw an opportunity to make the scariest movie I’ve ever made. I know expectations are high. No one’s more intimidated than I am.”
For more, check out our guide to the most exciting upcoming horror movies heading our way.
