This Halloween season brings forth a highly anticipated theatrical release, none other than “The Exorcist: Believer,” a fresh “legacy sequel” to the original horror masterpiece helmed by late William Friedkin.

As hinted in the trailers, a double dose of devilish possession takes center stage in this installment, promising a spine-chilling twist on the iconic tale. A newly unveiled image from Empire magazine reaffirms this intriguing premise.

Director David Gordon Green, known for his work on the recent “Halloween” franchise, offers insights into the film’s unique approach. He explains, “The Halloween movies are in the slasher genre. They’re a place to play and maybe have some campy fun. But this one was more researched and a bit academic. The narrative we were sculpting, and the relationships, were more dramatic. It’s a very different approach.”

David Gordon Green steered the ship for this brand new “Exorcist” sequel, a collaborative effort involving Universal, Blumhouse, and Morgan Creek. Notably, this film marks the opening chapter of a trilogy. Horror enthusiasts can mark their calendars for the theatrical release on October 13, 2023, with Leslie Odom Jr. taking a starring role.

The plot unfurls with a gripping synopsis: “Since the death of his pregnant wife in a Haitian earthquake 12 years ago, Victor Fielding (Leslie Odom, Jr.) has raised their daughter Angela (Lidya Jewett) on his own. But when Angela and her friend Katherine (Olivia Marcum) disappear in the woods, only to return three days later with no memory of what happened, it unleashes a chain of events that will force Victor to confront the nadir of evil and, in his terror and desperation, seek out the only person alive who has witnessed anything like it before Chris MacNeil (Ellen Burstyn).”

The ensemble cast also features Ann Dowd (“Hereditary”), Raphael Sbarge (“Gaslit”), and Jennifer Nettles (“The Righteous Gemstones”).

The screenplay for “Believer” is a collaborative effort by Peter Sattler (“Broken Diamonds”) and David Gordon Green, with a gripping storyline crafted by Green, Scott Teems (“Halloween Kills”), and Danny McBride (“Halloween”).

The “Exorcist” franchise has been absent from the big screen since the 2005 release of “Dominion: Prequel to The Exorcist,” an alternate version of the previous year’s “Exorcist: The Beginning.” These films followed in the wake of 1977’s “The Exorcist II: The Heretic” and 1990’s “The Exorcist III.”

In more recent history, “The Exorcist” found a new life as a short-lived television series on Fox, cleverly existing within the same world as the original classic, earning accolades for its excellence.