Synopsis

Novelist William Peter Blatty based his best-seller on the last known Catholic-sanctioned exorcism in the United States. Blatty transformed the little boy in the 1949 incident into a little girl named Regan, played by 14-year-old Linda Blair. Suddenly prone to fits and bizarre behavior, Regan proves quite a handful for her actress-mother, Chris MacNeil (played by Ellen Burstyn, although Blatty reportedly based the character on his next-door neighbor Shirley MacLaine). When Regan gets completely out of hand, Chris calls in young priest Father Karras (Jason Miller), who becomes convinced that the girl is possessed by the Devil and that they must call in an exorcist: namely, Father Merrin (Max von Sydow). His foe proves to be no run-of-the-mill demon, and both the priest and the girl suffer numerous horrors during their struggles. The Exorcist received a theatrical rerelease in 2000, in a special edition that added 11 minutes of footage trimmed from the film's original release and digitally enhanced Chris Newman's Oscar-winning sound work.

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After all this time, "The Exorcist" is still one hell of a movie.

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Movie News

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'The Exorcist' Back To Haunt Small Screen
Horror classic 'The Exorcist' is coming back to possess a new audience -- it's to be remade into a new TV miniseries.
"Sopranos" Frontrunners for Emmys, "Exorcist" Suit Settled at 11th Hour, Diana Ross Breath Test Results Admissible
With three nominations and nothing to show for it, could this be the year HBO's critically acclaimed series The Sopranos finally gets its Emmy for best drama? Also: William Friedkin William Blatty Exorcist Diana Ross Civilian Pictures Inc Billy Dead Lloyd Braun Eminem Slim Shady Betty Thomas The Smoker Sigourney Weaver The Woods Johnny Messner Anacondas
The thought of an "Exorcist" prequel scares Blatty
William Peter Blatty "The Exorcist"
Writer, director turn heads with "Exorcist" suit
Charging in effect that Warner Bros. had cooked the books to deprive them of their legitimate profits from last year's re-release of The Exorcist, writer William Blatty and director William Friedkin have sued the studio, demanding more than percent of the movie's profits.

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