In 1973William Fredkin’sThe Exorcistshattered box office records, traumatized audiences, and caused a moral panic among some religious groups. It also became the first horror film ever nominated for an Academy Award and set the stage for a new subgenre: the possession film. And now with the release ofDavid Gordon Green’s reverentialThe Exorcist: Believer,this genre has returned to its roots.
50 years later, this subgenre has become quite a crowded field. Over the years many films with similar themes of possession, loss of faith, the power of belief, and just good old-fashioned scares have emerged. LikeThe Exorcistmany are based on true stories and were underrated during their initial runs (much likeBelieverhas been). While they don’t have the direct lineage thatBelieverdoes and none will ever match the cultural impact of the original these movies more than live up to its legacy.
10The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005)
Based on the true story of Anneliese Michel, a German woman who died of malnutrition after enduring 67 exorcisms, this little-known but intriguing film blends demonic possession with courtroom drama. Directed byScott Derrickson(known forDoctor Strangeand most recently the brilliantThe Black Phone) it follows the trial of Father Richard Moore (Tom Wilkinson), a Catholic priest charged with negligent homicide after attempting an exorcism of 19-year-old college student Emily Rose (Dexter’sJennifer Carpenterin an amazing performance).
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The possession scenes are disturbing and the courtroom scenes as tense and thrilling as anyJohn Grishamnovel. Wilkinson’s performance is brilliant, andLaura Linneyas his avowed-agnostic defense attorney is fascinating as always. After 18 years the film still holds up as a great study on the legalities of faith and belief.
9The Last Exorcism (2010)
Using found footage format,The Last Exorcismtells the story of Reverend Cotton Marcus(Patrick Fabian), an evangelical minister who has so lost his faith he believes all the exorcisms he has performed over the years have been shams. He invites two filmmakers to document his final one, so he can expose exorcism as a fraud.
Conducting a phony exorcism in which he claims to drive out a demon named Abalam from a farmer’s young daughter named Nell (Ashley Bell), he soon finds himself confronted with evil he could never have imagined. The film artfully keeps viewers guessing as to what is psychological manipulation and what is truly supernatural. Along with strong performances, it all makes for riveting entertainment.
8The Rite (2011)
Based onMatt Baglio’s non-fiction bookThe Making of A Modern Exorcist,The Riteoffers less jump-scares and a deeper examination into issues of faith, Catholicism, and what it takes to become an exorcist in the first place.
Anthony Hopkinsplays Father Lucas a Welsh Jesuit priest trying to exorcise a possessed sixteen-year-old girl while helping newly ordained priest Michael Kovak (Colin O’Donogue). It may not be considered among Hopkins' best, but it’s a solid performance and an appearance by the lateRutger Haueris an extra treat.
7The Possession (2012)
You don’t have to be Catholic to be an exorcist. Based on the true story of Kevin Mannis, who bought a wine cabinet at a yard sale he claimed contained an ancient spirit from Hebrew mythology known as a dybbuk, this underrated film explores the Jewish traditions around demonic possession and exorcism.
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The Walking Dead’sJeffrey Dean Morganplays soon-to-be-divorced basketball coach Clyde Brenek who buys his 10-year-old daughter Emily(Natasha Callis) a box from a yard sale, unwittingly setting her up for possession by an evil dybbuk. Brenek must enlist the aid of a Hassidic rabbi and help perform an exorcism to save his daughter. Morgan gives an impassioned performance alongsideKyra Sedwickwho plays ex-wife Stephanie as two parents fighting for their daughter’s life. It’s a parable about divorce as much as a possession film, which gives it all the more depth and intelligence.
6The Taking of Deborah Logan (2014)
Another little-known gem, this film puts demonic possession alongside the more earthly horrors of degenerative disease.Deborah Logan (All My Children’sJill Larson)is an elderly Alzheimer’s patient living with her daughter and caretaker Sarah (Mad About You’sAnne Ramsay). When Sarah allows three film students to film a documentary about her mom, they begin to notice Deborah’s increasingly bizarre behavior.
Thought at first to be a normal progression of her disease, they begin to sense that something supernatural is going on. The result is a part found footage, part possession movie that offers unsettling scare scenes while never undermining the seriousness of the disease it depicts.
5Deliver Us From Evil (2014)
Director Scott Derrickson’s second entry in the possession film field is also based on true events, this time accounts from NYPD Sergeant Ralph Sarchie as written in his bookBeware the Night.Eric Banaplays Sarchie, a cop who, having renounced religious belief, finds himself battling demons in New York City.
Teaming up with Jesuit priest Mendoza (Edgar Ramirez), Sarchie does the detective work while Mendoza teaches him about how to exorcise “primary evil” demons. An interesting blend of genres with some surprising twists along the way.
4The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016)
In thisIFC Midnightgem, a father and son coroner team finds bizarre phenomena happening around them as they examine the body of an unidentified female for autopsy. It turns out Jane Doe isn’t what she appears to be.
Brian CoxandEmile Hirschgive stellar performances in a creepy, atmospheric chiller that blends procedural investigation with possession and the supernatural seamlessly and with scary effectiveness.
3Veronica (2017)
In this possession film from Spain, a fifteen-year-old girl uses a Quija board to contact the spirit of her dead father. What she gets is a demonic presence that turns her world upside down.
It’s based on the true story of Estefania Gutierrez Lazaro who, after holding a séance at school suffered from hallucinations and seizures and claimed she was being possessed by an evil force. After many medical examinations that could not pinpoint her affliction she eventually died under mysterious circumstances. The film brings us into Veronca’s world, mental state, and grueling experiences in chilling fashion.
2The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021)
The ConjuringandThe Conjuring 2, based on the real-life paranormal investigations of Ed and Lorraine Warren, are successful jump-scare, haunted house movies. For the third one, however, the franchise moves decisively into possession film territory. It’s based on the trial of Arne Cheyenne Johnson, known as The Devil Made Me Do It Case, the first U.S. murder trial to use demonic possession as a defense.
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A self-styled exorcist himself, Ed Warren (Patrick Wilson) and his wife Lorraine (Vera Farmiga) witness the exorcism of an eight-year-old boy. The family is in attendance, including the boy’s sister and her boyfriend Arne Johnson, who invites the possessing demon to take him in an effort to save his girlfriend’s brother. Ed sees the demon enter Arne and, after recovering from a heart attack, becomes determined to help Arne, whose demon has caused him to commit murder.
1The Pope’s Exorcist (2023)
A strong performance byRussell Crowereally makes this film, which is based on the life and books of famed exorcist Father Gabriele Amorth. As Amorth, Crowe not only takes on demons but a skeptical church hierarchy that thinks his exorcisms are just psychological theater designed to help the mentally ill.
When the Pope himself sends him to Spain to help a possessed boy, Amorth eventually discovers a church cover-up in which a founding member of the Spanish Inquisition was possessed, infiltrating the church and causing many evils. In the end, he and the Pope are bonded by their strong belief that evil exists, and that exorcism is a cure
