If you recall my review of The Pope’s Exorcist, one of the things I stressed was the obvious franchise hopes Screen Gems had for it. While the $18M horror didn’t exactly break the bank, earning $52M worldwide at this point, clearly the bean counters are happy because a sequel is coming.
Bloody Disgusting was first to report that a sequel to The Pope’s Exorcist is in early development. Russell Crowe is expected to return as Father Gabriele Amorth, who is based on the real-life top exorcist of the Vatican.
Screen Gems were smart. The production budget was kept low, making it easier to score a hit. The film easily beat out horror-comedy Renfield, which had a $65M budget and has only earned $17M.
It’s unclear if director Julius Avery will return, the same with screenwriters Michael Petroni and Evan Spiliotopoulos.
There are plenty of demonic stories from Amorth’s career that can be used for the next film, as he is claimed to have performed over 100,000 exorcisms for the Vatican.
