The production of William Friedkin’s iconic 1973 film, The Exorcist, was filled with a myriad of unusual incidents and tales, even five decades after its initial release. From cast members sustaining injuries to eerie rumors of curses affecting the actors, the movie is steeped in folklore and legends.
Ahead of the release of the upcoming installment of the franchise, The Exorcist: Believer, a fascinating revelation has surfaced. A previously undisclosed makeup test for the original demon character, Pazuzu, portrayed by Eileen Dietz, has emerged and is being unveiled to the public for the first time.
Paul Davis shares a never-before-seen clip of the demon Pazuzu
Here is a snippet of the holy grail of outtakes from THE EXORCIST. I’ll be releasing a commentary video over Halloween that includes 10mins of unseen outtakes and the full 2min makeup test that was eventually used as the iconic “Captain Howdy” face. pic.twitter.com/iHgm5I4QMQ
— Paul Davis (@The_Kesslerboy) October 4, 2023
Renowned filmmaker Paul Davis, the mastermind behind the movie Beware the Moon: Remembering An American Werewolf in London and two films from Blumhouse’s acclaimed anthology series, Into the Dark, took to X (formerly Twitter) to unveil the cinematic treasure trove.
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With great enthusiasm, he described the uncovered footage as the “holy grail of outtakes from The Exorcist” and also hinted at the release of additional snippets from the rare and prized collection. “I’ll be releasing a commentary video over Halloween that includes 10mins of unseen outtakes and the full 2min makeup test that was eventually used as the iconic face,” Davis wrote.
Paul Davis says the iconic face of the demon Pazuzu was the result of a mere experiment
In his post, Davis shared a fascinating tidbit about the iconic face, which is now widely recognized as one of the most chilling figures in The Exorcist. “This is a very early makeup test for Regan, worn by Eileen Dietz and applied by Dick Smith,” he explained. “Director William Friedkin didn’t think that the makeup was organic in terms of what is described as Regan’s physical appearance in the script.”
He also provided insights into the circumstances surrounding the retrieval of this elusive piece of cinematic history. “Nearly a year later, editor Bud Smith came across the reel and spliced two frames into the sequence in which Father Karras dreams of his mother,” Davis added. “Friedkin found the effect so startling that he not only added another clip from the makeup test in the exorcism sequence (overlapped with the dummy of Linda Blair), but he had Dietz get back into this makeup to add another flash of the demon as Regan writhes around in the bed.”