In an announcement that highlights the dangers of finality in a movie title, Studiocanal has revealed it will be making a sequel to The Last Exorcism. Production is set to begin next month, with Eli Roth producing the film through Arcade Pictures.
The Last Exorcism is a found-footage horror film from 2010 that follows an avowed fraud of a priest as he demonstrates the various tricks and chicanery that go into real exorcisms. Critics reacted well to the film’s novel take on the genre as well as the lead performance of Ashley Bell, who starred as a young farm girl thought to be possessed by a demon. Bell will return for the sequel.
The original turned a $1.8-million budget into more than $65 million in returns. Perhaps bolstered by the impressive profits, Roth described his intentions to go for an R-rated sequel, “and show the true horror of what this subject matter has to offer.”
Canadian director Ed Gass-Donnelly will handle directing duties, but little else is known, aside from producers acknowledging that the sequel begins three months after the first film. This doesn't seem to be much of a concern, as the Hollywood Reporter quotes Roth as saying that “the biggest creative challenge will be coming up with the right title!”
The "Untitled The Last Exorcism Sequel" is expected late next year, so Roth will have plenty of time to think. Better yet, it’ll give people time to forget about a more recent exorcism movie that made people wish the genre had in fact stopped with The Last Exorcism.
