Mike Flanagan Teases His Exorcist Movie, and the Stephen King Adaptation That Got Away

When fearfulness fans deliberation of Mike Flanagan, the contiguous associations are Netflix and Stephen King. The creator of The Haunting of Hill House, Midnight Mass, The Fall of the House of Usher, and different much-loved Netflix constricted bid has since shifted his streaming location to Prime Video, but his allegiance to King remains solid. His adjacent release, non-horror communicative The Life of Chuck, is different adaptation of the author’s enactment for the large screen. And portion helium has much successful the works successful that department, he’s besides adding different large fearfulness class to his resume soon: The Exorcist.

With David Gordon Green departing the franchise aft the disappointing The Exorcist: Believer—recently, Green spoke astir what his scrapped 2nd movie might’ve been like—the expectations of Universal and Blumhouse present remainder connected Flanagan’s take, Speaking to the Hollywood Reporter, helium had rather the tease to offer.

“I’ve ever felt that there’s nary constituent successful going into a franchise oregon into a spot that monolithic unless there’s thing caller you tin bring,” helium told the trade. “I chased The Exorcist precise aggressively due to the fact that I was convinced I had thing that I could add. This is an accidental to bash thing that I judge has ne'er been done wrong the franchise—something that honors what came earlier it but isn’t built connected nostalgia. I truly conscionable saw an accidental to marque the scariest movie I’ve ever made. I cognize expectations are high. No one’s much intimidated than I am.”

The scariest movie he’s ever made? Bold words coming from the feline who injected the Bent-Neck Lady into countless nightmares—though technically speaking, Hill House was a series, not a feature.

The interrogation goes connected to sermon Flanagan’s convivial narration with King, including the nerve-wracking acquisition of screening 2019’s The Shining sequel Doctor Sleep for the author, who notoriously disliked the 1980 Stanley Kubrick Shining. It went well, obviously; they’re inactive pals, and not lone does Flanagan person The Life of Chuck coming, he’s besides got The Dark Tower books connected his to-adapt list, envisioning some diagnostic and bid possibilities. (While Flanagan doesn’t specify what his archetypal Amazon task volition be, helium says “spooky is decidedly the priority.”)

But there’s 1 King communicative we won’t beryllium getting from Flanagan, which helium admits with what sounds similar a definite magnitude of regret: an adaptation of 2014 caller Revival. It’s astir a antheral whose beingness intersects implicit the years with a curate turned religion healer whose usage of energy awakens supernatural terrors. Flanagan told THR helium wrote a publication that was “one of my favourite things I’ve ever written,” but “it fell apart,” adding “That’s gone present due to the fact that I person The Dark Tower. Stephen doesn’t similar to person you sitting connected much than 1 happening astatine a time. It means something’s not getting made.”

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