Mike Flanagan to Direct ‘Exorcist: Deceiver'

Last night, Jeff Sneider had this exclusive. Mike Flanagan, who recently wrapped his 11th feature, “The Life of Chuck,” is going to direct the next two ‘Exorcist’ films, including “Exorcist: Deceiver.”

Flanagan is said to have total creative freedom for this next chapter in the franchise. It makes sense. Last year, filmmaker David Gordon Green called it quits and decided to sign on to a couple of indies.

After the poor reception of “Exorcist: Believer,” there had been reporting that a creative re-think would be done for the next two films, this after Green had expressed doubts about his future participation.

Blumhouse owes Universal two more ‘Exorcist’ movies. The studio shelled out a $400 million investment for the rights of the franchise. Last year’s “Exorcist: Believer” was panned by both critics (22% on RT) and audiences (‘C’ CinemaScore) and ended up only grossing $136 million. From a business standpoint, a fresh new voice is the way to go with these next few films.

The writing was on the wall for t. In May 2022, a little over six months before it would be released, ‘Believer’ test-screened in NYC and the response was terrible. A few months later, it tested again, and the response was just as negative.

Flanagan’s last film was 2019’s “Doctor Sleep”, which was based on Stephen King’s follow-up to “The Shining”. He’s well-respected within the horror genre, having also helmed “Oculus,” “Hush” and “Gerald’s Game.” His successful television output includes “The Haunting of Hill House,” and “The Fall of the House of Usher” for Netflix.

Flanagan no doubt has a lot of pressure to steer the ‘Exorcist’ franchise back into form, especially with the late William Friedkin’s ghost watching over him.

If there’s a spirit world, and I come back, I plan to possess David Gordon Green and make his life a living hell — Friedkin, 2022