Coming off his science-fiction
flop ZARDOZ, Boorman was un- able to raise any interest in his dream project, the Arthurian fan- tasy MERLIN. He needed a hit and was intrigued by THE HERETIC. “I found it extremely compelling,” Boorman recalled in his memoir, ADVENTURES OF A SUBURBAN BOY (2003). “Goodhart’s clever conceit was to suggest that Regan—the young girl from THE EXORCIST—was one of these evolving humans, capable of a new sort of contact with others, but that this spiritual goodness attracted great evil, hence her or- deal... Millions of people had en- joyed watching a child being tortured in THE EXORCIST. THE HERETIC would be the antidote, a film about goodness rather than evil.”
The story of EXORCIST II: THE HERETIC picks up years af- ter Regan MacNeil (Linda Blair) was possessed by a demon; she is now a young actress in musi- cal theater and receiving psycho- logical treatment from Dr. Gene
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Director John Boorman and actor Richard Burton on the set of EXORCIST II: THE HERETIC.
Tuskin (Louise Fletcher). The Vatican orders Fa- ther Lamont (Richard Burton) to interview Regan and investigate the death of Father Merrin (Max von Sydow), who died while performing the girl’s exorcism. Lamont believes that Regan is still pos- sessed by a demon named Pazuzu. Using a new electronic device called “the synchronizer,” Tuskin hypnotizes Regan and Lamont. The girl and the priest have bizarre visions of the young Merrin per- forming an exorcism on an African boy named Kokumo. With her now-expanded mental powers, Regan cures an autistic girl at Tuskin’s clinic. Lamont travels to Africa and interviews the adult Kokumo (James Earl Jones). Kokumo takes the priest to a laboratory full of locusts and explains that a female “good locust” is being bred to resist the “brushing of the wings” which creates a de- structive swarm. After another “synchronizer” ses- sion with Regan, Lamont is possessed by Pazuzu and leads the girl to the house in Georgetown where Merrin performed the exorcism. Tuskin and Sharon (Kitty Winn), Regan’s disturbed secretary, pursue them. The women’s taxi is attacked by a
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cloud of locusts and crashes as it reaches the house. The now-possessed Sharon deliberately catches herself on fire. Inside the house, Regan is confronted by her demonic clone. Lamont is se- duced by the evil doppelgänger but resists the evil and rips out the demon’s heart. Thousands of lo- custs engulf the house as it collapses. Regan spins around and twirls her hand, causing the insects to die. Tuskin watches as Regan and Lamont wander off to spread the girl’s powers of good. Warners allotted $12.5 million to the project, making it the biggest-budgeted film in the studio’s history. Boorman, returning star Linda Blair, and male lead Richard Burton each re- ceived a $750,000 salary. Production began in May 1976.
Among the huge crew was Boorman’s close friend Rospo Pallenberg—an eccentric ex-archi- tect. The director and Pallenberg had first col- laborated in 1969 on an odd, unfaithful screenplay for an aborted Lord of the Rings film. Pallenberg was Boorman’s on-set muse for DE- LIVERANCE. “His mind makes hops and leaps
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