Mike Flanagan Just Ghosted the Exorcist Reboot—and Blumhouse Is Sweating
Mike Flanagan—Netflix's favorite horror architect and newly crowned savior of The Exorcist—just dropped a demon-sized delay on Exorcist: Deceiver. The film, previously slated for March 13, 2026, is now officially exorcised from the release calendar. Reason? Production hasn't even started. And Flanagan? He's busy raising hell elsewhere—namely, wrapping up his Carrie remake.
Hollywood horror circles just felt a cold wind. Blumhouse and Universal's $400 million bet on the franchise is circling the drain faster than Father Merrin's crucifix in holy water.
This Isn't Just a Delay—It's an Industry Seance Gone Wrong
Let's be clear: this isn't your standard “creative differences” footnote. This is Universal banking almost half a billion on a trilogy—and its second act has no script, no set, no start date.
Flanagan confirmed via Tumblr (yes, Tumblr still exists) that not only will Deceiver miss its 2026 slot—it hasn't even entered pre-production. “We need to finish Carrie first,” he said. “No way it's coming out next March.”
Translation: The devil is in the scheduling.
Blumhouse hoped Flanagan could resurrect the franchise after Exorcist: Believer got dragged harder than a priest in a possession scene—22% on Rotten Tomatoes, a limp ‘C' CinemaScore, and a measly $136M haul. That's barely a third of Universal's investment recouped. Ouch.
The Deeper Curse: History Keeps Repeating Itself
Here's the spooky déjà vu: Universal tried this with The Mummy reboot in 2017, launching a “Dark Universe” that collapsed after one movie. They tossed money at prestige horror and ended up with a cursed cinematic corpse.
Sound familiar? Exorcist: Believer brought back Ellen Burstyn and a legion of expectations—and still tanked. David Gordon Green bailed soon after. Now Flanagan's in the hot seat, with full creative control and a mandate to reboot a reboot. It's like trying to raise Lazarus after his bones were already sold on eBay.
Even horror auteurs have limits. And Flanagan, brilliant as he is (Midnight Mass still slaps), may be realizing that fixing this franchise is like performing an exorcism with a TikTok tutorial.
Now the Fans Are Split—Is This Smart Patience or Delayed Damnation?
Some fans are preaching patience. After all, Flanagan's methodical pace is what makes his work hit harder than a 3AM jump scare. But the business reality? Time costs money. And Blumhouse is bleeding clock.
Quote it like scripture: “There's no way it's coming out next March.” Translation? This franchise may not return before 2027—if it returns at all.
If Flanagan fails, The Exorcist may go the way of Paranormal Activity: one hit, then an endless graveyard of sequels.
So… genius or doomed delay?
