Start with The Exorcist (1973). In story order, the prequels Exorcist: The Beginning (2004) and Dominion (2005) come first; they are two versions of the same story. Exorcist II (1977) and The Exorcist III (1990) follow the original, and The Exorcist series (2016) and The Exorcist: Believer (2023) are later sequels to it.
- Titles
- 7
- Films
- 6
- Series
- 1
- Watch time
- 26 hours
- Box office
- $716 million
- Avg IMDb
- 5.9
Exorcist movies in release order
Here is every Exorcist title in the order it came out, 1973 to 2023: 6 films and 1 series.
| # | Title | Year | Type | Runtime | IMDb |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Exorcist | 1973 | Film | 2h 2m | 8.1 |
| 2 | Exorcist II: The Heretic | 1977 | Film | 1h 58m | 3.8 |
| 3 | The Exorcist III | 1990 | Film | 1h 50m | 6.5 |
| 4 | Exorcist: The Beginning | 2004 | Film | 1h 54m | 5.1 |
| 5 | Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist | 2005 | Film | 1h 56m | 5.1 |
| 6 | The Exorcist | 2016 | Series | 14h 30m | 7.9 |
| 7 | The Exorcist: Believer | 2023 | Film | 1h 51m | 4.8 |
Exorcist timeline: movies in chronological order
The same titles in story order, by when they take place, with the year or era each one is set in.
| # | Title | Set in | Released |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Exorcist: The Beginning | Kenya, 1949 | 2004 |
| 2 | Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist | Kenya, 1949, retold | 2005 |
| 3 | The Exorcist | Georgetown | 1973 |
| 4 | Exorcist II: The Heretic | Four years later | 1977 |
| 5 | The Exorcist III | Lieutenant Kinderman | 1990 |
| 6 | The Exorcist | Chicago, decades later | 2016 |
| 7 | The Exorcist: Believer | Georgia, 50 years later | 2023 |
Release or chronological: which order is best?
Release order and story order disagree on 5 titles here. In release order you start with The Exorcist (1973); in story order you start with Exorcist: The Beginning, set in Kenya, 1949, which came out 31 years later.
First time through, watch in release order. That is how the twists, returning characters and callbacks were built to land, and later entries assume you have seen the earlier ones. On a rewatch, try story order. It turns The Exorcist into one continuous story and makes the prequels play as setup instead of backstory.
Where to start
Start with The Exorcist and go in release order.
The whole thing is 26 hours. At two hours a night that is about 14 evenings.
The three highest rated: The Exorcist (8.1), The Exorcist (7.9), and The Exorcist III (6.5).
Every Exorcist movie, explained
One entry per title in release order: what it is about, why it matters to the bigger story, who is in it and how it did.
No. 01 · 1973 · Film · 2h 2m · 3rd in story order
The Exorcist
When a mysterious entity possesses a young girl, her mother seeks the help of two Catholic priests to save her life.
Why it matters: Two priests try to save a 12-year-old girl from possession in Georgetown.
- Starring
- Ellen Burstyn, Linda Blair, and Jason Miller
- Director
- William Friedkin
- Box office
- $431 million on a $11 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8.1 · Rotten Tomatoes 78%
No. 02 · 1977 · Film · 1h 58m · 4th in story order
Exorcist II: The Heretic
Bizarre nightmares plague Regan MacNeil four years after her possession and exorcism. Has the demon returned? And if so, can the combined faith and knowledge of a Vatican investigator and a research specialist free her from its grasp?
Why it matters: A priest probes Regan's buried memories and the demon Pazuzu; Exorcist III ignores it.
- Starring
- Richard Burton, Linda Blair, and Louise Fletcher
- Director
- John Boorman
- Box office
- $31 million on a $14 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 3.8 · Rotten Tomatoes 10%
No. 03 · 1990 · Film · 1h 50m · 5th in story order
The Exorcist III
On the fifteenth anniversary of the exorcism that claimed Father Damien Karras' life, Police Lieutenant Kinderman's world is once again shattered when a boy is found decapitated and savagely crucified.
Why it matters: Detective Kinderman tracks murders by a dead serial killer back to Father Karras.
- Starring
- George C. Scott, Ed Flanders, and Brad Dourif
- Director
- William Peter Blatty
- Box office
- $39 million on a $11 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 6.5 · Rotten Tomatoes 60%
No. 04 · 2004 · Film · 1h 54m · 1st in story order
Exorcist: The Beginning
Years before Father Merrin helped save Regan MacNeil’s soul, he first encounters the demon Pazuzu in East Africa.
Why it matters: A young Father Merrin meets the demon at a buried church in Kenya.
- Starring
- Stellan Skarsgård, Izabella Scorupco, and James D'Arcy
- Director
- Renny Harlin
- Box office
- $78 million on a $80 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 5.1 · Rotten Tomatoes 10%
No. 05 · 2005 · Film · 1h 56m · 2nd in story order
Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist
Father Merrin takes a sabbatical from the Church to devote himself to history and archaeology as he struggles with his shattered faith.
Why it matters: Paul Schrader's first, shelved version of the Merrin prequel.
- Starring
- Stellan Skarsgård, Gabriel Mann, and Clara Bellar
- Director
- Paul Schrader
- Box office
- $0 million on a $30 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 5.1 · Rotten Tomatoes 29%
No. 06 · 2016 · Series · 14h 30m
The Exorcist
Follow the lives of two very different priests tackling one family’s case of terrifying demonic possession.
Why it matters: Two priests fight possession in Chicago, where Regan MacNeil now lives.
- Starring
- Alfonso Herrera, Ben Daniels, and Kurt Egyiawan
- Creator
- Jeremy Slater
- Scores
- IMDb 7.9
- Episodes
- 20 across 2 seasons
No. 07 · 2023 · Film · 1h 51m
The Exorcist: Believer
Since his wife's death, Victor has raised his daughter Angela alone. After she and her friend return from a three-day disappearance with missing memories, they begin displaying frightening behavior reminiscent of the MacNeil possession fifty years prior.
Why it matters: Two girls come back possessed, and Chris MacNeil is called in 50 years on.
- Starring
- Leslie Odom Jr., Lidya Jewett, and Olivia O'Neill
- Director
- David Gordon Green
- Box office
- $137 million on a $30 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 4.8 · Rotten Tomatoes 22%
Exorcist box office and budgets
The 6 Exorcist films with reported numbers have grossed $716 million worldwide on about $176 million in combined budgets, roughly 4.1 times what they cost. The biggest is The Exorcist at $431 million, 60% of the franchise's total on its own, followed by The Exorcist: Believer ($137 million) and Exorcist: The Beginning ($78 million).
Measured against what it cost, the best return belongs to The Exorcist, which made 39 times its $11 million budget. The weakest was Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist at 1% of its $30 million budget. As a rule of thumb, a film needs about two and a half times its budget at the box office to cover marketing and the theaters' cut.
The best and worst rated Exorcist movies
Across 7 rated titles, The Exorcist averages 5.9 on IMDb. The top of the list is The Exorcist at 8.1, then The Exorcist (7.9) and The Exorcist III (6.5). At the bottom: Exorcist II: The Heretic (3.8) and The Exorcist: Believer (4.8).
- The Exorcist8.1 · RT 78%
- The Exorcist7.9
- The Exorcist III6.5 · RT 60%
- Exorcist: The Beginning5.1 · RT 10%
- Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist5.1 · RT 29%
- The Exorcist: Believer4.8 · RT 22%
- Exorcist II: The Heretic3.8 · RT 10%
Who appears in the most Exorcist movies
Linda Blair leads with 3 appearances as Regan MacNeil, ahead of Ellen Burstyn (2) and Jason Miller (2). Counted from each title's top-billed cast.
| Actor | Role | Titles | First and latest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Linda Blair | Regan MacNeil | 3 | The Exorcist (1973) to The Exorcist: Believer (2023) |
| Ellen Burstyn | Chris MacNeil | 2 | The Exorcist (1973) to The Exorcist: Believer (2023) |
| Jason Miller | Father Damien Karras / Patient X | 2 | The Exorcist (1973) to The Exorcist III (1990) |
| Max von Sydow | Father Lankester Merrin | 2 | The Exorcist (1973) to Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977) |
| Kitty Winn | Sharon Spencer | 2 | The Exorcist (1973) to Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977) |
| Stellan Skarsgård | Father Lankester Merrin | 2 | Exorcist: The Beginning (2004) to Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist (2005) |
| Julian Wadham | Major Granville | 2 | Exorcist: The Beginning (2004) to Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist (2005) |
| Andrew French | Chuma | 2 | Exorcist: The Beginning (2004) to Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist (2005) |
| Antonie Kamerling | Lieutenant Kessel | 2 | Exorcist: The Beginning (2004) to Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist (2005) |
| Ralph Brown | Sergeant Major | 2 | Exorcist: The Beginning (2004) to Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist (2005) |
| Eddie Osei | Emekwi | 2 | Exorcist: The Beginning (2004) to Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist (2005) |
Exorcist directors and creators
7 filmmakers have directed or created The Exorcist.
- William FriedkinThe Exorcist (1973)
- John BoormanExorcist II: The Heretic (1977)
- William Peter BlattyThe Exorcist III (1990)
- Renny HarlinExorcist: The Beginning (2004)
- Paul SchraderDominion: Prequel to the Exorcist (2005)
- Jeremy SlaterThe Exorcist (2016)
- David Gordon GreenThe Exorcist: Believer (2023)
How long it takes to watch every Exorcist movie
All 7 titles add up to 26 hours: 12 hours of film and 15 hours of series, counting every episode. That is about 14 two-hour evenings, or 3 days of ten-hour binges. The longest film is The Exorcist at 2h 2m.
The 4 best rated films: The Exorcist, The Exorcist III, Exorcist: The Beginning, and Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist.
Everything takes about 4 weeks.
Track what you've watched on the timeline and it counts the hours left.
Common questions
What order should I watch the Exorcist movies in?
Start with The Exorcist (1973). In story order, the prequels Exorcist: The Beginning (2004) and Dominion (2005) come first; they are two versions of the same story. Exorcist II (1977) and The Exorcist III (1990) follow the original, and The Exorcist series (2016) and The Exorcist: Believer (2023) are later sequels to it.
How many Exorcist movies and shows are there?
There are 7 titles in the The Exorcist franchise: 6 films and 1 series, released from 1973 to 2023.
How long does it take to watch all the Exorcist movies?
About 26 hours for all 7 titles, counting every episode.
What is the first Exorcist title in chronological order?
Exorcist: The Beginning, set in Kenya, 1949. In release order the first is The Exorcist (1973).
What is the best Exorcist movie?
By IMDb score, The Exorcist (1973) at 8.1, followed by The Exorcist at 7.9.
What is the highest-grossing Exorcist movie?
The Exorcist (1973), with $431 million worldwide. The Exorcist films have made $716 million in total.
Who has appeared in the most Exorcist movies?
Linda Blair, in 3 of them as Regan MacNeil.
What is the longest Exorcist movie?
The Exorcist, at 2h 2m.
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