David Gordon Green Talks The New Exorcist Trilogy

Earlier this year we reported that Universal and Peacock closed a $400M deal for a new Exorcist trilogy with David Gordon Green co-writing and directing. After a recent chat with Collider, it sounds as if he will be covering directorial duties for all three of the films.

Green will be co-writing and directing a new trilogy of sequel films oriented around a returning character from the original, while broadening out the legacy with new ideas.

“To me, it's as different as making Stronger and Pineapple Express. They're just so unbelievably different. One is very primal and the other is very academic. So it's just trying to switch gears there. I'm sure I'll know more a year from now when I've gotten a handle on what Exorcist is. The script's written. And it was a very, entirely different writing process.”

The first in this new Exorcist trilogy will feature Ellen Burstyn reprising her role as Chris MacNeil, the mother of the young, possessed Regan from Friedkin's original film. Leslie Odom Jr. will play the father of a newly possessed child himself, who seeks out Regan for her help on how to save his own daughter. Peter Sattler is co-writing with Green and has told Collider the first film has already been written.

"The first one of our trilogy is written and the second two are being outlined. So we've got a ways to go on that, but we know where we're going. It's a new journey [with] some familiar characters and some new ones as well."

Jason Blum will produce with Universal distributing the films via cinemas and Peacock. The first of the trilogy is expected to release October 13th 2023.