Believer Gets Disappointing Runtime Update

The latest on Exorcist: Believer‘s runtime will be disappointing to some fans. 

Nearly 20 years after the last film in the franchise, Exorcist: Believer will serve as a semi-reboot of the series, acting as a direct sequel to the terrifying 1973 original. 

With David Gordon Green (the man behind the Halloween reboot) set to direct, Believer will see the return of Ellen Burstyn as Chris MacNeil, her character from the very first film. 

Details on the upcoming blockbuster remain scarce, but Green promised some “radical choices” for his latest stab at a horror classic.

Exorcist: Believer Is Shorter Than Expected

Exorcist: Believer received a disappointing runtime update mere weeks before it premieres. 

According to a new listing from AMC Theaters (via Cryptic HD QUALITY on X), the upcoming Exorcist sequel will be much shorter than fans may have expected. 

The movie’s confirmed runtime is 1 hour, 51 minutes, a whole ten minutes shorter than was previously reported. 

Rotten Tomatoes recently had the film listed at 2 hours, 1 minute, which was more in line with what many had expected the film to be length-wise. 

This new 111-minute runtime makes the film shorter than the franchise average. 

Given that Believer is set to be a modern reinvention of the franchise (akin to David Gordon Green’s Halloween trilogy), many had hoped it would at least be longer than 1973’s Exorcist (which clocked in at 2 hours, 2 minutes), but that does not look to be the case. 

Is Believer’s Short Runtime a Bad Thing?

Some may look at this confirmed runtime for Exorcist: Believer and think the worst. 

As time has gone on, mega-sized runtimes have become a perceived sign of quality amongst a certain contingent of moviegoers. But that is not always the case. 

Films like Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer and Matt Reeves’ The Batman are not good because they are in excess of three hours – rather, they are good and just happen to be that long. 

Some were worried earlier this year when it was confirmed Greta Gerwig’s Barbie would come in under the 2-hour mark, yet that film went on to become one of the biggest critical and financial hits of the year. 

So, yes, Believer might be a little shorter than some may have expected, but its merit should not be based on a metric as irrelevant as runtime. Instead, fans should judge the movie for itself whether it’s less than two hours or not. 

Exorcism: Believer comes to theaters on Friday, October 6.