April 14, 2004
Two Exorcist Prequels On DVD?
It's enough to make your head spin. Morgan Creek—which shelved director Paul Schrader's unseen Exorcist prequel movie and ordered it remade under helmer Renny Harlin—now says it may want to release both versions of the movie on DVD, Variety reported. Schrader shot an entire version of Exorcist: The Beginning last year before Morgan Creek scrapped it and ordered a new version from scratch, including a new script, new cast and director Harlin, the trade paper reported. Harlin's Exorcist: The Beginning heads for theaters on Aug. 20.
Now, Morgan Creek chief James Robinson is telling the trade paper that he's seeking to have Warner Brothers release both directors' Exorcist movies on DVD simultaneously. That could raise a credits arbitration issue with the Directors Guild of America, the trade paper added.
Schrader told the trade paper that he's agreed in principle to the arrangement with Morgan Creek in order to get his version seen and as a way of settling the contractual issues of his being owed a preview and an official screening. "I'm very proud of my film, and I think it deserves to be seen," Schrader told Variety. "If I get the DVD, I can say 'God bless you, Renny; may your film do well.'"
It's unclear whether Warner would bundle both films in one DVD or simply make both films available individually. A spokesman for the studio told the trade paper that Morgan Creek hadn't yet discussed the DVD plan with anyone there.
Plot Outline: Young Father Merrin (Skarsgård) encounters the demon Pazuzu for the first time while doing missionary work in post-WWII Africa