The Exorcist Movies: The Beginning Timeline

1973 - 20044 Films7h 44m3.2 Average

This chronological watch order uses Exorcist: The Beginning as the prequel, showing Father Merrin's first encounter with demonic forces in Africa.

This version was the studio's preferred cut, featuring more conventional horror elements than Dominion. While telling essentially the same prequel story as Dominion, The Beginning takes a more action-oriented approach to the material.

There are 4 other watch orders available – see the links up above.

1
Exorcist: The Beginning poster

Exorcist: The Beginning

20041h 54m2.7
Director: Renny Harlin
Cast: Stellan Skarsgård, Izabella Scorupco, James D'Arcy, Julian Wadham, Remy Sweeney

A prequel exploring Father Merrin's first encounter with the demon Pazuzu in East Africa, years before the events of the original Exorcist film.

2
The Exorcist poster

The Exorcist

19732h 2m4.6
Director: William Friedkin
Cast: Ellen Burstyn, Linda Blair, Jason Miller, Max von Sydow, Lee J. Cobb

When a 12-year-old girl begins exhibiting disturbing supernatural behavior, her desperate mother turns to two priests who must perform an ancient exorcism to save her daughter's soul.

3
Exorcist II: The Heretic poster

Exorcist II: The Heretic

19771h 58m2
Director: John Boorman
Cast: Richard Burton, Linda Blair, Louise Fletcher, Max von Sydow, Kitty Winn

Four years after her demonic possession, Regan MacNeil is plagued by disturbing nightmares, prompting a Vatican investigator and research specialist to determine if the evil has returned.

4
The Exorcist III poster

The Exorcist III

19901h 50m3.4
Director: William Peter Blatty
Cast: George C. Scott, Ed Flanders, Brad Dourif, Jason Miller, Nicol Williamson

Fifteen years after the events of the original exorcism, Police Lieutenant Kinderman investigates a series of brutal murders that bear an unsettling resemblance to the methods of a supposedly dead serial killer.