The Exorcist Cast Where Are They Now
Mercedes McCambridge
Pazuzu The only actor on this list to not physically appear in the film, Mercedes McCambridge is best known within horror circles for providing one of the voices for the demon Pazuzu. To achieve such a raspy voice, McCambridge opted to chain smoke, drink whiskey and even down raw eggs. We’d say that’s definitely above and beyond dedication, but it certainly worked. Despite playing such a pivotal role, McCambridge initially went uncredited for the film, but intervention from the Screen Actors Guild eventually rectified the issue. The Oscar-winner worked sparsely after that, devoting most of her time to helping people overcome alcohol use disorder, something she herself had gone through. She passed away in 2004 of natural causes.
Jack MacGowran
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Burke Dennings “The Exorcist” is often considered one of the most cursed films of all time. In addition to numerous on-set accidents and injuries, several people directly or tangentially involved with the production tragically died, one of whom being Jack MacGowran. In the film, MacGowran played Burke Dennings, the director of a film main protagonist Chris MacNeil is starring in. Dennings gets severely drunk at Chris’s party, before later being found dead with suspicion pointing towards the possessed Regan. Tragically, just one week after completing his scenes, MacGowran died in New York of what was called the London flu epidemic going on at the time. He was just fifty-four years old.
Kitty Winn
Sharon Spencer Sharon Spencer gets more than she bargained for when her assistant and tutor gig turns into taking care of a girl possessed by a demon. Sharon does good work regardless, as did actor Kitty Winn playing her. A greater presence on stage than on film, Winn comparatively didn’t have as many acting roles post “Exorcist” as before, though she did return for the sequel, in which Sharon fares far worse. While Sharon’s demise prevented the character from returning again, Winn hardly minded as she soon turned her attention to her personal life. She married an attorney in 1978, and retired in 1983 to focus on raising her family. Save for one other performance in 2011 at the San Jose Repertory Theatre, Winn has kept quiet.
Father Thomas Bermingham
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Father Tom Kanavan Interestingly, “The Exorcist” had a couple instances where priests were played by real-life men of the cloth. One of them was Father Thomas Bermingham. Bermingham actually taught “Exorcist” author William Peter Blatty at prep school and Georgetown University,, who then contacted Bermingham while writing the novel. Bermingham then worked as a technical advisor on the film, as well as portraying the President of Georgetown, Father Tom Kanavan. Bermingham’s involvement had people of all faiths coming to him for their own supposed dealings with demonic possession. Bermingham then went on to be a consultant for the first two “Amityville Horror” movies, though he didn’t make an on-screen appearance. The character of Kanavan returned in “The Exorcist III,” but Bermingham did not, before passing away in 1998.
Lee J. Cobb
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Lt. William Kinderman When Dennings is found dead, homicide detective William Kinderman enters the film to investigate. And considering his line of work, Kinderman is surprisingly cheerful. Prior to 1973’s “The Exorcist,” Lee J. Cobb was already quite the established actor. He was the first person to play Willy Loman in “Death of a Salesman” onstage, and was twice Oscar-nominated for Best Supporting Actor for “On the Waterfront” and “The Brothers Karamazov.” Sadly, Cobb didn’t have a long career after “The Exorcist,” as he passed away three years later of a heart attack in 1976. The character of Kinderman is the lead protagonist of 1990’s “The Exorcist III,” where he was played by George C. Scott.
Father William O’Malley
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Father Joseph Dyer Another real-life priest who both consulted on and acted in the film was Father William O’Malley. O’Malley played Father Dyer, who acts as a close friend to Father Karras. While Dyer also returned in “The Exorcist III,” O’Malley did not, focusing his efforts on teaching and producing books on Catholicism, of which he wrote thirty-seven. A graduate of College of the Holy Cross, O’Malley spent much of his professional career in education. He taught AP English at McQuaid Jesuit High School in Rochester, New York for over two decades, as well as at Fordham University in the Bronx and Seattle University. However, in 2019, O’Malley was accused of a sexual assault from the 1980s by a former student. He died in 2023.
Max von Sydow
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Father Lankester Merrin While Father Merrin is quite old in “The Exorcist,” actor Max von Sydow was not. Indeed, extensive makeup was done to make the then-forty-four-year-old Sydow pass as an elderly priest. Perhaps more than any of his co-stars, Sydow had an extensive career post “Exorcist.” In addition to returning for the sequel, Sydow had numerous memorable roles in popular media, from Ming the Merciless in “Flash Gordon,” to voicing Vigo the Carpathian in “Ghostbusters II,” to the Three-eyed Raven on “Game of Thrones.” He was twice Oscar-nominated, for “Pelle the Conqueror” in 1989 and “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” in 2012. While Sydow passed away in 2020, Father Merrin continued to be a franchise mainstay, played by fellow Swedish actor Stellan Skarsgård in the mid-2000s.
Jason Miller
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Father Damien Karras The year before “The Exorcist” was released, Jason Miller won the Pulitzer Prize for his play, “That Championship Season,” which also won the Tony Award. Then he was Oscar-nominated for playing Father Karras, which ain’t too shabby for someone’s first onscreen acting gig. Miller eventually wrote and directed a film adaptation of “That Championship Season,” in addition to returning in “The Exorcist III.” He also had a supporting role in the fan-favorite sports biopic “Rudy.” While Miller continued to act in film here and there, his passion was primarily still in theater. He worked as an artistic director of public theater in Scranton, Pennsylvania, where he died of a heart attack in 2001. He’s survived by his four children, including fellow actor Jason Patric.
Linda Blair
Regan MacNeil With production beginning when she was just thirteen years old, Linda Blair gave one of horror’s most terrifying performances as the possessed Regan MacNeil. The role made her a household name and one of the youngest Oscar nominees of all time. Naturally, Blair returned to headline the sequel, though it conversely received hugely negative reviews as one of the worst horror movies of all time. Blair’s career never reached the same level of publicity, but she was never too far from the horror genre, becoming something of a sex symbol in ‘80s grindhouse cinema and even having a cameo in the first “Scream.” She’s since become an animal rights activist, founding the Linda Blair WorldHeart Foundation, which works to rehabilitate rescue animals.
Ellen Burstyn
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Chris MacNeil Any superfan will know that production on “The Exorcist” took its toll on lead actor Ellen Burstyn, as an injury sustained while filming led to permanent damage to her spine. Still, Burstyn’s career has thrived, as she’s been nominated for a whopping six Oscars, including a rare one in the horror genre for “The Exorcist.” She picked up her golden statuette the next year for “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore,” and eventually completed the Triple Crown of acting with a Tony and multiple Emmys. The last of the main “Exorcist” cast to reprise her role, Burstyn is doing so in time for the fifty-year anniversary with 2023’s “Believer” and its planned sequel, “Deceiver.” Who do you think gave the best performance in “The Exorcist?” Sound off in the comments below!
