In the wake of writing Clayface and creating a new version of Carrie for the small screen, Mike Flanagan has unveiled the first look at his new Exorcist movie. The upcoming seventh movie in the franchise, The Exorcist: Martyrs, stars Scarlett Johansson and Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Flanagan has teased just how dark it gets.
Speaking to FilmSpeak, he confirmed that the movie is the darkest thing he's ever written. "It's viciously dark," Flanagan said. "It's unsafely dark at times, and we went places in there that I've never, never gone on any of my sets emotionally. But I have to say that at the end of it, we found some light and some hope in it that I'm really grateful for because it's a harrowing story."
Mike Flanagan’s The Exorcist: Martyrs only in theaters March 12. Trailer out this Friday. https://t.co/KmzWwhUyykOctober 7, 2026
Very little is known about the upcoming horror movie at the moment, but it reportedly follows a single-mother cop whose 12-year-old son becomes the target of a demonic force. This all happens after she watches the execution of a notorious satanic serial killer, only for his crimes to continue in a supernatural capacity.
Ejiofor and Laurence Fishburne also star as priests who join Johansson's investigation, while The Odyssey actor John Leguizamo plays the satanic Father Sunday. A 15-second teaser and some first-look images have been released, which show Johansson investigating something horrific while Ejiofor leads prayer in a church.
The Exorcist: Martyrs arrives in theaters on March 12, 2027. For more scares, check out our guide to the best horror movies of all time.
