How ‘The Exorcist’ impacted the trajectory of Linda Blair’s career
The horror genre underwent a significant transformation in the 1970s, from the increasing dominance of Italian giallo horrors to the emergence of slashers, all of which irreversibly changed the trajectory of cinematic scary storytelling.
In 1973, William Friedkin made The Exorcist, which became the first horror movie to earn a ‘Best Picture’ Academy Award nomination. The genre is rarely given a nod by the prestigious ceremony, so a ‘Best Picture’ inclusion was revolutionary for horror. Still, the director actually never intended to make a horror movie, setting out to explore religion and faith through intense drama.
Friedkin told TheLipTV: “[William Peter] Blatty and I never spoke of making a horror film. We talked about making a film which was about the mystery of faith. I felt that The Exorcist story was one of the most powerful things you could do in dealing with the mystery of faith and God’s love and forgiveness.”
Based on a supposedly true case of exorcism, the movie was a resounding success, simultaneously thrilling and repulsing audiences. At the heart of The Exorcist is Linda Blair’s Regan, a young girl who becomes the victim of a demonic entity which possesses her body. She turns incredibly violent, acts outrageously and spews profanity, with the entity’s decision to inhabit the body of a sweet young girl making the events even more horrifying.
In the film, Blair, who was just 14 at the time, must wear thick prosthetic makeup, thrash around relentlessly, pretend to masturbate with a crucifix, and even star in incredibly realistic simulations of invasive medical treatment. Put simply, Blair didn’t have the easiest of jobs working on the movie, and the conditions on the set didn’t make her time any easier. For example, for the scenes in which Friedkin wanted the actors’ breaths to be visible, the temperature of the set was dialled down to below freezing. Yet, the young Blair was forced to act in nothing more than her costume – just a nightgown.
Upon the film’s release, Blair was subject to much criticism from some devoutly religious viewers who were not happy with her portrayal of a possession victim. She once revealed: “I had many people approach me that raised fear in everyone around me. I was very well protected. The police were hired to live at my house.”
She has also spoken out about the “pressure” placed on her by the press, who asked her weighty questions about the film’s complex themes, forgetting she was just 14. She told Dread Central, “the amount of pressure that came down on me wasn’t anything I was prepared for.”
Since starring in The Exorcist, Blair hasn’t earned any other notable screen appearances, and her stellar, Oscar-nominated performance in Friedkin’s movie might be why. She struggled to craft a career away from her legacy as Regan, ultimately leading her to repeatedly book B-movie productions and television movies such as Hell Night and Born Innocent. Her decision to move towards adult-orientated movies ensured that she was no longer associated with The Exorcist, instead becoming known as a sex symbol. However, this, in turn, destroyed a potentially illustrious acting career.
