Linda Blair has secured her place as one of the most iconic horror movie icons in cinema history due to her spine-tingling portrayal of Regan MacNeil in the classic horror film The Exorcist. The mere mention of her name conjures memories of the bone-chilling possession scenes that made the original movie a timeless masterpiece.
Recently, when news of a new sequel, The Exorcist: Believer, emerged, excitement surged among fans, especially with the return of Ellen Burstyn, who portrayed Regan’s mother, Chris MacNeil, in the original movie. This development naturally made those fans wonder whether Linda Blair would revisit her iconic role.
Director David Gordon Green says Linda Blair was not interested in reprising her role as Regan MacNeil in ‘The Exorcist: Believer’
In a new interview with Total Film magazine, the director of the upcoming sequel, David Gordon Green, revealed that Blair would not be reprising her role as Regan.
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He explained that the 64-year-old, who had previously featured in two installments of The Exorcist and bagged a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress for the 1973 classic, was no longer interested in returning as Regan MacNeil.
David Gordon Green reveals that Linda Blair was on the production set of ‘The Exorcist: Believer’ as an advisor
Green pointed out that, despite her disinterest in revisiting her role, Blair remained a crucial presence throughout the movie’s production, playing a pivotal part in mentoring and preparing child actresses Lidya Jewett and Olivia Marcum, who take on the roles of the new targets of the demon Pazuzu’s malevolence in the film.
“She came to set because she was an advisor on the movie,” Green noted to the publication. “I was really lucky to have her read the script, but she was not interested in a significant role and stepping back into that. We brought her in as an advisor because we’re dealing with young people, and we want to take them to dangerous places safely.”