Russell Crowe’s new horror movie sounds incredible, but everyone’s thinking the same thing

Russell Crowe’s new movie has a great concept, but the upcoming horror has left fans scratching their heads for one reason.

Russell Crowe is officially in his horror era, with a new movie coming out in June that’ll put him back into the scream king role. The Exorcism, directed by Joshua John Miller, stars Crowe as an actor who begins to unravel while he’s shooting a supernatural horror film. His daughter (Ryan Simpkins) starts to wonder if something malevolent is at play.

It sounds like it could be a meta ride, but fans have all noticed one key thing that makes this project an odd choice for Russell Crowe. The thing is, he just did an exorcist-based horror movie.

The Pope’s Exorcist came out last year, starring Crowe as Father Gabriele Amorth. The film was based on the real-life Amorth’s book, which detailed his stories and encounters with exorcisms. It did well at the box office ($77 million), but that hasn’t stopped fans from wondering why Crowe is doing another very similarly-themed movie so soon.

One X user joked: “This man is collecting the exorcism movie version of the infinity stones.” Another added: “Russell Crowe really in his exorcism movie era,” while a third said: “This man must be really into exorcisms.”

While it’s unexpected that Crowe would opt to do two exorcism movies so close to each other (if that is indeed a key part of The Exorcism’s plot, as the name hints), some have even suggested that the two movies could be connected. This theory might be a little far-fetched, but it would be an ingenious horror marketing tool if true.

“If the film within the film is The Pope’s Exorcist, take all of my money,” said one comment. Another asked: “Based on his real experiences filming The Pope’s Exorcist??”

The Exorcism will be released in theaters on June 7, 2024, then on Shudder. For now, take a look at all the best horror movies to watch on Disney Plus and on Amazon Prime Video.