Universal Pictures has set a new release date for their reboot of The Exorcist from The Haunting of Hill House‘s Mike Flanagan. The reboot of the iconic horror franchise was originally set to open this year on Mar. 13, 2026, in time for a Friday the 13th release, but production was delayed. The movie has since landed Scarlett Johansson, who reportedly turned down the role of Mother Gothel’s in Disney’s upcoming Tangled remake to star in both The Exorcist and The Batman – Part II.
Universal Pictures has set Mike Flanagan’s The Exorcist for release on Mar. 12, 2027, according to Variety. The film will star Scarlett Johansson and Hamnet‘s breakout star, Noah Jupe. Flanagan will write, direct, and produce the film for Universal Pictures and Atomic Monster-Blumhouse Pictures. Few details have been given about the movie, but it has been described as a dramatic reimagining.
‘The Exorcist’ vs. Jesus as the Easter Box Office
Universal Pictures is hoping to course-correct The Exorcist franchise after the disappointing response to 2023’s The Exorcist Believer. The studio paid $400 million to acquire the distribution rights to a new trilogy of Exorcist films, with Believer as the first entry. The studio brought on the creative team that relaunched the Halloween reboot trilogy, including director David Gordon Green and screenwriters Scott Teems and Danny McBride.
The Exorcist: Believer opened in theaters on Oct. 6, 2023. Despite grossing $137 million worldwide against a $30 million budget, The Exorcist: Believer was widely panned by critics and audiences. Despite a sequel, titled The Exorcist: Deceiver, being set for release for April 18, 2025, Universal Pictures put the project on hold. In May 2024, it was announced that Mike Flanagan was being brought on board to revamp The Exorcist franchise, ultimately scrapping Universal Pictures’ original trilogy plans. Flanagan’s commitment to The Exorcist kept him from directing DC Studios’ Clayface, which is based on his pitch for a movie about the iconic Batman villain.
Currently, The Exorcist reboot is opening up against a Sony Pictures animated film titled Buds. The week prior will see the release of Pixar’s Gatto and Amazon MGM’s remake of The Thomas Crown Affair, written and directed by Michael B. Jordan. The following weeks will be very busy, as Sonic the Hedgehog 4 races into theaters on Mar. 19, 2027. The final weekend of March 2027 will see the release of Godzilla X Kong: Supernova and The Resurrection of the Christ: Part One, just in time for Easter weekend. It does seem fitting that The Resurrection of the Christ and The Exorcist will be playing in theaters together.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
