Summary
Development on Mike Flanagan’sExorcistmovie is speeding up rapidly as it has landed a release date from Universal and Blumhouse. The iconic horror franchise made its way back to the screen with the 2023 legacy sequel,Believer,from the indie horror studio, who collaborated with Universal and Peacock for a $400 million acquisition of the rights to the property. Despite initial plans for a trilogy from co-writer/director David Gordon Green, the movie’s poor box office reception and reviews led to a retooling, withMike Flanagan being brought onto write and direct a new installment.
PerDeadline, Universal and Blumhouse have added Flanagan’sExorcistmovie to their 2026 release calendar. The next installment in the horror franchise, which will not share ties to 2023’sBeliever, is set to hit theaters on August 24, 2025. Though outside of the typical horror month of October, it still proves a perfect release date as it is a Friday the 13th.
Flanagan’s Exorcist Release Date Is Risky (But Could Work)
Interestingly, Flanagan’sExorcistmovie release date marks the first time the horror franchise has brought an installment to the big screen in the spring, with the majority of past outings releasing in the summer. The sole exceptions have been the 1973 classic, which hit theaters just after Christmas of that year, andThe Exorcist: Believer, which hit theaters the first week of October. Check out theExorcistfranchise’sprevious calendar of releases below:
Mike Flanagan’s Untitled Exorcist Movie
June 04, 2025
While releasing the nextExorcistmovie outside of October may seem like a riskier move on the part of Universal and Blumhouse, it could actually prove a successful one for Flanagan’s installment. In addition to the original movie’s blockbuster success with its Christmas release,Flanagan’s first theatrical outingwithOculuswas a smash hit in its April date. March 2026 is also looking to be a relatively quieter month thus far, particularly in regard to other horror genre movies, with the only releases set thus far being Bill Hader’sCat in the Hatreboot, an untitled Pixar project and Ryan Gosling’sProject Hail Mary.
Every Upcoming Mike Flanagan Movie & TV Show
After departing from Netflix to Amazon, Mike Flanagan is currently slated to helm four upcoming horror projects including a new Exorcist movie.
Studios have also been experimenting with horror releases in the first few months of the year, some of which have proven massive hits, includingBlumhouse’s ownM3GANand Jordan Peele’sGet Out, among others. While Flanagan’sExorcistdoes have the hurdle of following the disappointing response toBeliever, separating it from other horror releases, whichBelieversuffered from by competing againstSaw X, could see a successful continuation of this experimental release trend.
The Exorcist: Believer
Cast
The Exorcist: Believer is a direct sequel to the original 1973 supernatural horror film by director David Gordon Green and follows Victor Fielding, a father who was forced to raise his daughter alone after his wife died twelve years prior. When Victor’s daughter and her friend go missing, the supernatural events that surround their disappearance force him to seek out the only person to have dealt with these horrors before - Chris MacNeil.
