The first trailer for "The Exorcist: Martyrs" has split critics down the middle, so there's no consensus crowning it the scariest horror trailer of the year. Director Mike Flanagan called it the scariest project of his career at its New York Comic Con debut, and some outlets agree the footage earns that billing, while others came away unconvinced. The trailer dropped October 9, 2026, when Flanagan and star Chiwetel Ejiofor unveiled it at NYCC, and the reaction since has broken into two camps: critics praising its mood and restraint, and critics questioning whether the franchise can still deliver.
Table of Contents
- What Flanagan Says Makes This One Different
- The Case For "Scariest Trailer of the Year"
- The Case Against
- Who's In It and When It Arrives
- How to Judge It Yourself
- Frequently Asked Questions
What Flanagan Says Makes This One Different
At the NYCC panel, Flanagan told the crowd "Martyrs" is the scariest project of his career and said it needed to frighten audiences "to your bones," explicitly separating it from the Exorcist sequels that came before it, according to Variety. That's a notable claim from a director whose credits include "The Haunting of Hill House" and "Doctor Sleep." The trailer backs up that intent by leaving out franchise staples.
Variety reported it deliberately omits a possessed child and the series' signature theme music, both marketing hallmarks of every prior Exorcist release, a clear break from how the franchise has sold itself since 1973. Instead of the familiar Regan-style possession imagery, the footage follows Scarlett Johansson as NYPD homicide detective Julie Miller, investigating the ritualistic death of an altar boy found in a church crypt. The setup implies the killer may be demonically driven, but the trailer frames the story as a murder investigation first.
The Case For "Scariest Trailer of the Year"
CBR called the trailer a "masterclass" in mood and stakes, ranking it the best serial-killer-style Exorcist entry since "Se7en." Nerdist reported that Flanagan himself named "Se7en" and "The Silence of the Lambs" as touchstones for the film, which explains the detective-thriller tone running through the footage, per CBR's review. SlashFilm's trailer breakdown praised the look of the footage and noted Flanagan is drawing more from "The Exorcist III" than the 1973 original — a point in its favor for horror fans who consider that 1990 sequel the series' most unsettling follow-up.
SlashFilm's trailer breakdown still flagged the "serial killer possibly possessed" premise as "a bit hokey," a caveat worth weighing against the praise. Those two reviews are the strongest evidence for the "scariest" case: a horror-savvy outlet and a crime-genre outlet both responding to the trailer's atmosphere, even as one of them hedges on the premise itself.
The Case Against
Pajiba took the opposite position, reporting it watched the trailer twice and remained unconvinced. The review questioned whether star power alone can save a franchise it suggested may be "too chopped" to fix, per Pajiba's review. That skepticism tracks with the franchise's recent track record.
Gizmodo framed this trailer as a chance to reverse the damage of 2023's "The Exorcist: Believer," noting that film holds just a 22% Rotten Tomatoes score, according to Gizmodo. A trailer carrying that kind of recent baggage faces a higher bar before critics call it the year's scariest. No outlet independently crowned the trailer "scariest of the year" — that framing traces back to Flanagan's own NYCC quote, not a critical consensus, per Variety. Readers weighing the hype should treat it as the director's pitch, not a verdict.
Who's In It and When It Arrives
Johansson and Ejiofor lead a cast that also includes John Leguizamo, Laurence Fishburne, Diane Lane, and Jacobi Jupe, in a Blumhouse/Atomic Monster production that Flanagan wrote and directed for Universal, confirmed by Variety. That's a deeper bench than "Believer" fielded, which may partly explain the more serious critical attention this trailer is getting.
"The Exorcist: Martyrs" opens in U.S. theaters March 12, 2027. It's positioned as a standalone entry rather than a direct sequel to "Believer," which lets it sidestep that film's reputation rather than build on its story.
How to Judge It Yourself
Readers deciding whether the hype holds up have a few concrete things to check against: The five-month gap before the March 12, 2027 release gives Universal time for additional marketing that could either reinforce or undercut the first trailer's restraint.
- Watch for the absence of the possessed-child imagery and theme music — if that absence feels like a loss rather than a fresh start, side with Pajiba's skepticism.
- Compare the detective-thriller framing to "Se7en" and "The Silence of the Lambs," the two films Flanagan cited as touchstones, and judge whether the church-crypt murder setup earns that comparison.
- Weigh the "Exorcist III" influence SlashFilm identified against the "serial killer possibly possessed" premise it called hokey — the two reactions can both be true at once.
- Remember the 22% Rotten Tomatoes score on "Believer" sets a low bar; a trailer only has to clear that, not prove itself the scariest of the decade.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who stars in "The Exorcist: Martyrs"?
Scarlett Johansson leads as NYPD detective Julie Miller, alongside Chiwetel Ejiofor, John Leguizamo, Laurence Fishburne, Diane Lane, and Jacobi Jupe, confirmed by Variety.
Is this a direct sequel to "The Exorcist: Believer"?
No. It's a standalone entry, not a continuation of the 2023 film, per Variety.
When does the movie come out?
March 12, 2027, in U.S. theaters.
Why does the trailer skip the possessed-child imagery most Exorcist marketing uses?
Variety reported the omission, along with dropping the series' signature theme music, is a deliberate departure meant to set "Martyrs" apart from earlier sequels, per Variety.