Al Pacino and Dan Stevens are set to star in a new exorcism-themed horror film titled The Ritual. The film is set up at XYZ Film with David Midell directing.
Of course, the movie is based on a true story, and The Ritual follows “two priests — one questioning his faith (Stevens) and one reckoning with a troubled past (Pacino) — who must put aside their differences to save a possessed young woman through a difficult and dangerous series of exorcisms.”
The film is described as being “an authentic portrayal of Emma Schmidt, an American woman whose demonic possession culminated in harrowing exorcisms. Her case remains the most thoroughly documented exorcism in American history.”
Also known as Anna Ecklund, which was a pseudonym for Emma Schmidt, her alleged demonic possession and exorcism occurred over several decades, culminating in an extensive exorcism that lasted from August 18 to December 23, 1928, in Earling, Iowa.
Ecklund was said to have exhibited symptoms akin to possession beginning at age fourteen, and was forty-six years old during her final exorcism by Father Theophilus Riesinger, a Roman Catholic priest.
This seems like an interesting project for Pacino and Steven to team up on! I’m not really familiar with this story, but it will be interesting to see how the creative team Hollywoods it up.
It looks like we’re going to be seeing a lot of religious horror films get produced after The First Omen and Immaculate did well at the box office.
The Ritual was written by Midell and Enrico Natale and XYZ Films plans to release it theatrically in 2025.
Source: Variety