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Linda Blair speaks out on 'The Exorcist' curse

By T.K. Randall
April 2, 2020 · Comment icon 16 comments

Filming for the movie didn't always go to plan. Image Credit: YouTube / SYFY WIRE
The former child actress, who starred in the iconic horror film, suffered significant real-life injuries during filming.
When it was released, the original Exorcist was so terrifying that some unsuspecting cinemagoers ended up passing out in the theater. Things didn't go much better behind the cameras either.

When shooting began in 1972, a fire tore through the set of Regan MacNiel's home, causing extensive damage. In a peculiar twist, the room used for the actual exorcism scenes escaped unscathed.

Actors Jack MacGowran and Vasiliki Maliaros both died shortly after filming had wrapped and both Linda Blair and Max von Sydow suffered the loss of close family members during shooting.

Jason Miller's son nearly died in a motorcycle accident and several actors were injured onset.

One of those who suffered injury was Linda Blair herself who, during filming, had been strapped into a special contraption designed to flail her body around to make her appear possessed.

One day during filming the lacing that was designed to support her came loose, leaving her flailing around so violently that she fractured her lower spine and was left in agony.

Blair herself can be seen speaking out about the incident in the below clip from new docuseries Cursed Films which explores some of the stories behind famous movie curses.

The footage that was recorded at the time of the accident was later used in the actual film.



Source: Syfy.com | Comments (16)




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Recent comments on this story
Comment icon #7 Posted by spartan max2 4 years ago
I read some of C.S Lewis stuff. None the book you mention though. To me, if the universe is designed then it was a very poor design. Lots of pointless suffering and things having to consume each other to survive. 
Comment icon #8 Posted by William holt 4 years ago
If the universe is cruel & unfair where do we get  this idea from? What are we comparing it to? We have a basic idea of justice that science can't explain. If we were wholly the product of a meaningless universe we wouldn't have. So there must be more to it. The problem of evil remains but the alternative is a universe where nothing matters .        
Comment icon #9 Posted by spartan max2 4 years ago
(You can quote people by clicking the "quote" button at the bottom of each post, it then notifies them when you are responding to them. Just a friendly tip since I see you are new). But I would argue that our sense of justice could be attributed to evolution, biology, and learned upbringing. 
Comment icon #10 Posted by William holt 4 years ago
I don't think animals have a sense of justice like we do even if they understand pain &  suffering. Justice is a moral sense and relies on abstract reasoning. We are free to flout it or ignore it as many do. Instinct is different. Sometimes justice can get you killed. Not very beneficial if it's all just survival of the fittest  .  
Comment icon #11 Posted by spartan max2 4 years ago
Animals don't, but humans evolved a prefrontal cortex that animals haven't.  And you can take most morals and see how evolutionary it makes sense. For example, if you see a alone scared infant or kid most people have the natural impulse to help it out.  It makes sense that we would evolve with the desire to do that because it helps out species survive. Our species probably would not survivor otherwise.
Comment icon #12 Posted by Piney 4 years ago
The pattern is evolution is initiated by environmental stresses and takes the path of least resistance.  
Comment icon #13 Posted by Holt 4 years ago
Instinct and the moral law are not the same although many scientists like to make out that they are. We are not obliged to obey our instincts. We could ignore the child's distress if we were too busy to stop and help or if it involved putting ourselves in danger. Instincts can contradict each other. The moral law is what decides between them. We may choose to help even if we don't want to.
Comment icon #14 Posted by the13bats 4 years ago
Yep, things go wrong on most films, the more complex the more goes wrong,    
Comment icon #15 Posted by Green Wasp 4 years ago
The room with the prayers actually was untouched: This sounds bad: It also says some of the actors died shortly after the filming and there was a motorcycle crash. I recently just watched this movie, and it is a little boring compared to more modern films.
Comment icon #16 Posted by the13bats 4 years ago
I actually enjoy part 3 with brad Dourif best it had a odd feel like phantasm films which i like, I was young when the first exorcist came out and it did for possession etc, what Jaws did for sharks, close encounters did for aliens etc, people did go nuts for a spell. We have a guest room, that we call Regans room.


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