Scarlett Johansson Enters the EXORCIST Universe in Mike Flanagan’s New Film

Universal Pictures and Blumhouse-Atomic Monster have released the first trailer for THE EXORCIST: MARTYRS, the upcoming horror film written and directed by Mike Flanagan. The trailer debuted at New York Comic Con on October 9, according to Variety’s coverage of the presentation.

Johansson stars as Julie Miller, a New York City detective who brought a satanic serial killer known as Father Sunday to justice thirteen years earlier. According to Universal Pictures’ official synopsis, a new killer draws Miller back into the investigation when her name appears written in blood inside a church crypt.

Joined by rookie detective Gina Restrepo (Sasha Calle) and former prison chaplain Father William (Chiwetel Ejiofor), Miller begins uncovering connections between notorious killers and an evil that may extend beyond the human world.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Flanagan described his approach as a combination of serial killer suspense and demonic possession, drawing inspiration from THE EXORCIST III and classic crime thrillers.

The trailer offers a disturbing glimpse of that approach, with ritualistic murders and the possibility that the evil Miller is investigating cannot be stopped by conventional police work.

THE EXORCIST: MARTYRS is scheduled to arrive in theaters March 12, 2027.