If there has been one constant in "The Exorcist" franchise, it’s that none of the sequels or prequels have ever come close to touching the terror or brilliance of William Friedkin‘s groundbreaking original. Nor have any of the countless exorcism movies since managed the feat either. But that isn’t stopping another bite at the apple, as "The Exorcist" (recently named as the greatest horror movie ever by Time Out) is now getting prepped for the small screen in an expansive remake/prequel that will stretch out the terror over ten episodes.
Vulture reports that "Martha Marcy May Marlene" director Sean Durkin will get his Hollywood feet wet with a ten-part television adaptation of the iconic horror movie classic for Morgan Creek. Producer Roy Lee — who knows a thing or two about remakes with "The Grudge," "The Departed," "The Eye" and upcoming "Oldboy" under his belt — is on board to help steer the ship, in the tale that will explore the events that lead up to the possession before Father Damian Karras (played by Jason Miller in Friedkin’s film) is called in.
As you might recall, Morgan Creek previously tried to make a prequel back in 2004 but wound up with two movies instead of one thanks to a troubled production: Renny Harlin‘s "Exorcist: The Beginning" and Paul Schrader‘s "Dominion: The Prequel To The Exorcist," neither of which were memorable. It seems that they’re going for more meat ‘n potatoes, spinning head stuff here than the spiritual angle those movies took on. And while that’s perhaps for the best, the one thing that has plagued exorcism movies since is….we’ve seen all this done before. Many, many times over.
But that being said, Durkin did show a remarkable knack for drawing out suspense in the most seemingly ordinary of circumstances in ‘Martha Marcy’ so we’ll give him a shot here to see how he does. The plan right now is to pitch the show to networks in the next couple of weeks, but you can bet some phone calls are already being made.