Mike Flanagan's Exorcist Reboot Is Suddenly One Of The Most Exciting Horror Projects In Years

In addition to the recent run of high-quality original horror movies that have taken over Hollywood, many classic franchises are getting reboots, and to the delight (and surprise) of many, a lot of them have been excellent. Iconic franchises like Final Destination, Predator, Alien, and Scream have all gotten high-quality, narratively-original sequels that have breathed new life back into previously stale IP.

While it’s far from the only horror franchise with a reset on the way, The Exorcist has quickly become the most exciting of the bunch given the recent updates from its development. We have no information yet about the plot, or even the style of the movie—is it a sequel/prequel to the existing lore, or a complete reset of the franchise? It truly doesn’t matter at this point, because the personnel now involved with the movie put it on an entirely different level.

Flanagan Has Assembled An All-Time Cast

Horror icon Mike Flanagan (The Haunting of Hill House, Doctor Sleep) was confirmed to be writing, directing, and producing a brand-new film in The Exorcist franchise in mid-2024, and we now know that it will officially hit theaters in March 2027. As if Flanagan’s involvement wasn’t enough to inspire excitement, he’s slowly built one of the most star-studded casts in recent memory for it.

Eyebrows were first raised in November 2025 when it was confirmed that Oscar nominee and box office juggernaut Scarlett Johansson would be starring in Flanagan’s new installment in the franchise. Although horror projects have attracted more and more major stars in the last 3–4 years, an actress of Johansson’s caliber is still a rarity.

Impressive as that casting is, Flanagan was evidently just getting warmed up. He has since added two more Oscar nominees in Chiwetel Ejiofor and Laurence Fishburne, making The Exorcist cast one of the most celebrated in the history of horror. The casting is encouraging for two reasons.

First, it means that we’re all but guaranteed strong, compelling performances in the movie no matter what other issues there might be. More importantly, however, is the fact that he was able to attract three performers with those resumes. With their choice of projects at any given moment, their faith has to be pretty high in Flanagan’s vision to sign on for The Exorcist.

Flanagan’s Track Record Deserves Our Trust

Victoria Pedretti as Nell in Netflix's Haunting of Hill House. — Victoria Pedretti as Nell in Netflix’s Haunting of Hill House.

Talented as the cast is, the driving factor behind the well-justified hype for The Exorcist is the fact that it’s in Mike Flanagan’s hands. The filmmaker has produced some of the greatest horror projects in the last 20 years, both in film and television. The Haunting of Hill House still stands as one of the greatest limited series of all time, but shows like Midnight Mass and The Fall of the House of Usher are also outstanding.

As a feature film writer and director, Flanagan has quietly churned out a number of underrated hits, including Oculus, Ouija: Origin of Evil, Gerald’s Game, and Doctor Sleep. Simply put, Flanagan has put so much incredible horror content into the world that it’s hard to imagine him not doing the same with existing IP like The Exorcist.

Somewhat encouragingly, 2023’s attempt at a trilogy starter, The Exorcist: Believer, was received so poorly that the rest of the trilogy was canceled, and the franchise was put on ice until Flanagan took the reins. He will have no need to adhere to established lore or narrative details, meaning we will be getting Flanagan’s unadulterated vision for where The Exorcist franchise should go.