Linda Blair on Advising Exorcist: Believer Child Stars: ‘I Wanted to Make Sure They Were Okay’ (Exclusive)

Linda Blair’s return to The exorcist the franchise was made with love in its heart.

While talking to PEOPLE about her nonprofit Linda Blair WorldHeart Foundation, the 64-year-old actress also talks about reprising her role as Regan MacNeil in Exorcist: Believer.

The film features the return of Ellen Burstyn as Regan’s mom, Chris MacNeil, who agrees to help a single father (Leslie Odom Jr.) when his daughter and her best friend become possessed.

Although Blair initially refused to sign on, she eventually joined the project when the filmmakers approached her to advise the two young actresses in the film — Lidya Jewett and Olivia O’Neill.

“I came in as a counselor to get the girls taken care of, whether it’s religion, theology or anything related to the process they were going through. It’s a very horrible creature to play. It’s evil, it’s evil, it’s terrible she says. “So I just wanted to make sure they were okay.”

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Linda Blair in ‘The Exorcist’.

Everett

Linda Blair says she’s coming back Exorcist: Believer Cameo Was ‘Really Amazing’ But ‘Bizarre’ (Exclusive)

In 1973 The exorcistBlair played Regan, a 12-year-old girl who becomes possessed by an ancient demon after playing with a Ouija board.

The film was a critical and commercial success, earning $441 million at the worldwide box office to date. It was nominated for 10 Academy Awards and became the first horror film to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture.

Still, making the film was traumatic for Blair, who was only 14 at the time. Speaking of Shudder’s episode Damn moviesthe actress recalled the wrong stunt that caused her injury.

“I’m crying, I’m screaming, they think I’m faking a storm. It broke my lower spine,” Blair said in the episode, according to the LAD Bible. “No, they didn’t send me to the doctor, that’s the footage that’s in the movie.”

Lidya Jewett and Olivia O’Neill in ‘The Exorcist: The Believer’.

Universal Pictures

Inside Linda Blair’s Shocking The exorcist Comeback: ‘No One Had Any Idea What Was Going To Happen’ (Exclusive)

IN Exorcist: Believerit’s revealed that Chris and Regan have a strained relationship and haven’t spoken in years, but after a horrific incident involving Chris, Regan comes to her mother’s hospital bedside during one of the film’s final scenes. When asked what it was like to play Reagan again after five decades, Blair admits to PEOPLE that it was “bizarre.”

“That’s an honest answer,” she continues. “[But it was] really amazing.” And while two sequels are already planned for the future, Blair says she has no idea if Regan will be involved. “Honestly, I don’t know anything,” she admits frankly. “…I don’t know what they’re doing. “Exorcist: Believer is now available for streaming and purchase.

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Source: HIS Education