Linda Blair in 2022 and her in The Exorcist.Photo:Jody Cortes/Getty; Warner Bros. Pictures/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty
Jody Cortes/Getty; Warner Bros. Pictures/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty
Warning: This article contains spoilers forThe Exorcist: Believer, in theaters now.
The Exorcist: Believerfeatures many shocking developments — but none hold the surprise element of a cameo in the horror movie.
Near the end of the film,Linda Blairreturns as Regan MacNeil alongside her mother in the franchise, Chris MacNeil (Ellen Burstyn).
For fans of the movies, the cameo is a jaw-dropping moment, as Blairpreviously said she had not been approached to star inBelieveror its two planned sequels.
Linda Blair and Ellen Burstyn on the set of The Exorcist.Warner Bros. Pictures/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty
Warner Bros. Pictures/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty
Burstyn, 90, nabbed an Oscar nomination alongside director William Friedkin, Jason Miller for Best Supporting Actor, and Blair for Best Supporting Actress. It won for Best Screenplay and Best Sound.
The new film sees the return of Chris as she agrees to help a single father (Leslie Odom Jr.) when his daughter and her best friend become possessed.
It’s revealed that Chris and Regan have a strained relationship and haven’t spoken in years. After a horrific incident involving Chris, Regan comes to her mother’s hospital bedside during one of the film’s final scenes.
Believerdirector David Gordon Green (Halloween Ends) describes Burstyn and Blair’s onscreen reunion that was 50 years in the making as “a beautiful moment.” He reveals that their first take is what made it into the film.
“We did take two just kind of for s—s and giggles, but take one was magic,” Green, 48, says.
To preserve the surprise even for his crew on set, Green says he didn’t add Blair’s name to the call sheet for the day. “Her code name was Bartholomew,” he says. “Nobody had any idea what was about to happen.”
“It was just a really special moment to be a part of that reunion, to be a part of that legacy, the connection that’s so monumental that the two of those performers have,” Gordon shares. “Witnessing that reconnection was really amazing.”
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Ellen Burstyn and director David Gordon Green on the set of The Exorcist: Believer.Anne Marie Fox/Universal Pictures
Anne Marie Fox/Universal Pictures
As for how he convinced Blair to return, Green says he engaged her in “similar ways” to Burstyn.
“I don’t want to just say, ‘Hey, actors, do you want to be in my movie? Yes or no? Check one,’ " Green explains. “I want to say, ‘Here I am, here’s who I am, here are my intentions. I’m going to go get creative. I might have something to talk about with you later.’ "
Green says Blair, who was just 14 while filming the original, became a consultant on the film, advising Green to “design the production around the psychology for the best wellbeing” of the child actors on set.
“We had many conversations about having a child psychologist on set and what to do during production and what to do after production, what to do upon release of the film,” says Green. “And so we were getting to know each other in that kind of ethical, creative standpoint.”
Green won’t share whether Blair and Burstyn will reprise their characters for two planned sequels, but he says he’s excited to “see how far I can take it” as he embarks on completing his newExorcisttrilogy.
“I’ve got a roadmap of infinite ideas of things that I’d like to do,” he says.
The Exorcist: Believeris now in theaters.
source: people.com
