The Exorcist: Believer Director Reveals The Intense Secrecy Around SPOILER’S Big Cameo

The Exorcist: Believer was able to distinguish itself from so many other (read: lesser) Exorcist sequels and spinoffs by bringing back original film star Ellen Burstyn as a major symbol of franchise authenticity. However, Burstyn returning as actress-turned-author Chris MacNeil quickly led fans of the original Exorcist to a much bigger question: would Linda Blair also be returning as Regan MacNeil, Chris’s formerly-possessed daughter? 

(SPOILERS) The story of The Exorcist: Believer side-steps the issue of Regan by explaining that she and Chris have become estranged ever since the latter wrote a memoir about their experience with demonic possession. There’s a thematic point made about how evil can claim victory in many forms, even when we think we’ve defeated it, as the Devil’s true goal is always to divide people and have them lose their faith in moments of hardship and darkness; the theme is driven home when Chris pronounces her unyielding belief that she and Regan will see each other again one day – and finally gets that reward from God in the most unexpected way… 

How Regan Returns In The Exorcist: Believer

During the Second Act of Exorcist: Believer, Chris joins the parents of possessed girls Angels Fielding (Lidya Jewett) and Katherine (Olivia O’Neil) in the battle for their souls – and ends up paying a heavy cost. 

Chris’s reunion with the demonic entity from The Exorcist ends with a crucifix being stabbed into both of her eyes, blinding her permanently. However, the grisly injury soon brings a divine gift: In the final scene of the film, Regan is compelled to come to the hospital to finally reunite with Chris, and takes her mother’s hand, letting her know she’s there with her. Although blind, Chris is overjoyed to get even that version of a reunion with her beloved daughter.

Linda Blair’s Exorcist: Believer Cameo Was Kept Top-Secret While Filming

ComicBook.com got a chance to speak with The Exorcist: Believer director David Gordon Green and producer Jason Blum during the film’s press junket and had to ask how they pulled Linda Blair back into the franchise after so many years of her refusing to do so. 

“If anything else, we pulled it off because when the movie was coming together, David and I really felt like it was important to tell the people who were responsible for the original movie that it [the reboot] was happening. So… I called her up and I told her what we were doing and told her our plans, and over the course of a rather long conversation it became clear there was a little possibility that she might come back and do something with us. And that’s how it started.” 

Director David Gordon Green revealed just how tight the parameters were on the day of shooting Blair’s cameo: they had one day to get the scene, while Linda Blair and Ellen Burstyn hadn’t reunited in years: 

“That shot… we did one take, they hadn’t seen each other in many years,” Green explained. “Ellen’s blindfolded, feels her hand and all of that energy… you see on screen.”

Not only was Ellen Burstyn literally kept in the dark about Linda Blair’s return –  nearly all of the crew was unaware of what was happening until they actually saw Blair show up on set!

“Oh, and the crew didn’t know she was coming,” Green recalled. “And so you see the guy pushing the dolly and all of a sudden a tear starts coming out of his eye… it was effective in so many ways as an onset experience that I’ll never forget.”

The Exorcist: Believer is now in theaters.