The New Exorcist Movie Will Cast Scarlett Johansson In

What an excellent day for a casting announcement. Scarlett Johansson will be starring in the new Exorcist movie from writer-director Mike Flanagan with Blumhouse Productions, and Atomic Monster, per Deadline. Let there be green light! “Scarlett is a brilliant actress whose captivating performances always feel grounded and real, from genre films to summer blockbusters, and I couldn’t be happier to have her join this Exorcist film,” Flanagan shared with the outlet. It will be Johansson’s third horror film, with her first two being 2013’s Under the Skin and 2002’s Eight Legged Freaks, if you don’t count dinosaurs coming back to life as a horror movie. While it’s unclear what her exact role will be, if it’s anything like the previous Exorcist movies, she’ll be helping get rid of a demon that’s taken over the body of a child or a priest. Or maybe they’ll switch it up, and she’ll be the one possessed. God only knows.

Originally slated for next March, there’s no current release date for this reboot of the franchise; it is not a sequel to the Believer film from 2023. Flanagan, who has been attached to the project since May 2024 with Red Room Pictures, confirmed on Tumblr on June 2, 2025, that they hadn’t begun production and that they had to finish Carrie before working on The Exorcist. He does promise that it’s not a literal remake and that he’s setting high goals for himself. “My goal is to make the scariest movie I’ve ever made, and trying to make something that scares the shit out of me,” he shared in 2024 at New York Comic Con. That’s a high bar to set for your next movie; at least it will make it worth waiting for.