Mike Flanagan's The Exorcist movie seemingly casts a key character alongside Scarlett Johansson. It is set to be a new story in The Exorcist franchise's timeline and is not a sequel to 2023's The Exorcist: Believer. Flanagan is directing and writing the project.
Now, Hamnet star Jacobi Jupe has been cast in Flanagan's Exorcist movie. Since the child characters are usually the possessed in these films, this will likely hold true for Jupe's character as well. Filming is slated to begin in New York in 2026.
Jupe's casting comes in the midst of critical acclaim for his titular role in Hamnet. The film is widely predicted to win Best Picture at the upcoming Oscars, with Jupe's emotional performance being one of the many elements leading to extensive recognition. He also received a Critics Choice Award nomination for Best Young Actor.
Mike Flanagan's Exorcist movie is being produced under his Red Room Pictures banner, along with Blumhouse and Atomic Pictures. The film was previously scheduled to be released in theaters on March 13, 2026. With production beginning next year, there is not a new official release date yet.
Hopes are high for Flanagan's take on the long-running horror franchise after The Exorcist: Believer underperformed at the box office. It made $65.5 million in the U.S. and $136.2 million worldwide, which was a disappointment after NBCUniversal, Peacock, and Blumhouse bought the franchise rights from Morgan Creek for $400 million in 2021.
From his numerous Stephen King adaptations to his Netflix series, many of Mike Flanagan's movies and shows have been hits in the horror genre. He directed feature film adaptations of King's Gerald's Game and Doctor Sleep and is helming an upcoming series at Prime Video adapting Carrie. On the Netflix side, his credits include the well-received The Haunting of Hill House, Midnight Mass, and The Fall of the House of Usher.
While the newest addition to the movie, Jupe, is now best known for Hamnet, he has appeared in several other movies and shows as well. He played Michael Darling in Disney+'s 2023 film Peter Pan & Wendy. Jupe was also a series regular in Apple TV's psychological thriller 2024 psychological thriller Before starring Billy Crystal.
Flanagan is known for casting many of the same actors in his various projects. This makes it more likely that some familiar faces from his various movies and shows will be next to join Johansson and Jupe in the new iteration of The Exorcist beginning production in 2026.
