Linda Blair explains why she starred in the notorious Exorcist II: The Heretic

On Sept. 25, Scream Factory is releasing a collector’s edition Blu-ray of 1977’s notorious Exorcist II: The Heretic. While the film was directed by the great John Boorman (Deliverance, Excalibur), and is beloved by some genre fans, it is fair to say this horror sequel does not enjoy quite the same high reputation as William Friedkin’s original movie. In fact, Boorman’s movie is widely regarded as among the most bewildering big screen projects all-time. But returning franchise star Linda Blair, who played the possessed child Regan MacNeil in the original movie, went into the project with high hopes and still has fond memories of working with her legendary costar Richard Burton (Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?), as she reveals in a just-released clip from an interview featured on the 2-disc set.

“Finally, one day, the script appears,” says Blair in the clip. “And I felt like, Wow, this project is amazing, it’s perfect, it’s fabulous. They presented a really good next step, for the film, for the project, for Regan. You give me these amazing actors. Richard Burton, for me, that was what got me. To work with Richard Burton, that’s still, to this day, is one of the highlights of my life.”

The Scream Factory set features two cuts of Exorcist II: The Heretic — both 2K scans from original film elements — plus a raft of other special features, including an audio commentary with Boorman and an interview with editor Tom Priestley.