One of the most famous films ever, “The Exorcist,” is getting a new lease on life on the FOX channel, but it’s also adding big name Geena Davis to its cast.
The Oscar winning actress has signed on to FOX’s new “Exorcist” show prompting many to ask, “There’s going to be an Exorcist series?!” It shouldn’t be too surprising in this age where many of the classics such as “Psycho,” “The Omen,” and “Rosemary’s Baby” are getting reinvented into TV shows with “Bates Motel,” “Damien,” and the Zoe Saldana miniseries… “Rosemary’s Baby.” Reportedly Davis will be playing a character named Angela Rance. If that name doesn’t sound familiar to fans of the book or movies it’s because this will be a modern retelling of the story. The character has been described by FOX themselves as…
“…a naturally beautiful, regal and proud woman who is weighed down by stress. Rance does everything she can to stay positive and keep her faith even though her family is currently struggling…”
It sounds a lot like the Ellen Burstyn role Chris MacNeil, the mother of the possessed Regan, just with the name changed. This is also helped by the casting of Alfonso Herrera and Ben Daniels as priests Father Tomas Ortega and Father Marcus Lang respectively.
There is no word about if this is in any way connected to the miniseries author William Peter Blatty announced to Cemetery Dance back in 2009. In fact, there seems to be no word about if William Peter Blatty is involved in ANY capacity; only that Morgan Creek Productions is still behind it. This is interesting as plans for an “Exorcist” series has been discussed ever since the making of “Exorcist III.” However, we do know that Jeremy Slate is an executive producer and writer of this new series. If that name sounds familiar it’s because he was the co-writer of 2015’s infamous “Fantastic Four.” Although he maintains that very little of what he wrote survived, so perhaps this is a chance for redemption which after all, is a major theme of “The Exorcist.”
What do you think about this casting choice? Will you watch this version of “The Exorcist” on FOX?
This story was first reported by the Hollywood Reporter