Over the past five decades, the “Exorcist Steps,” at 36th and Prospect streets in Georgetown, have become an enormously popular destination for both locals and tourists: Joggers regularly use the 75 stairs as a challenging workout; fans treat them as a filmgoer's mecca, a reminder of the most hauntingly frightening ...
Built in 1895, the stairway connects Prospect and 36th Streets with M Street, NW in Georgetown. The 75 steps were featured in the scene from the hit 1973 horror movie “The Exorcist” in which the character Father Karras fell to his death down the steps from a nearby house.
The Exorcist steps are concrete stairs, continuing 36th Street, descending from the corner of Prospect St and 36th St NW, down to a small parking lot, set back from the intersection of M Street NW, Canal Rd NW, and Whitehurst Freeway NW in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C., famous for being featured in ...
Linda Blair on Filming The Exorcist & More - NEW Uncut Interview
Why was the stair scene removed from The Exorcist?
The Exorcist spider walk scene, initially deleted from the film's release, was restored later, delighting fans who consider it a favorite sequence. Director William Friedkin felt the scene was a big special effect too early in the story, but later reinserted the scene using CGI to erase wires.
One Exorcist moment that took decades to get noticed was The Exorcist spider walk scene, in which Regan walks backward down the stairs on her hands with a mouthful of blood. The reason it went under the radar is that The Exorcist spider walk was deleted from the film's initial 1974 release, only being restored later.
The filming crew added an entire fake wing on the eastern side of the house, so that Regan's bedroom window could be closer to the infamous steps. Interior scenes were shot in New York City.
While its sensationalized depiction of demonic possession has all but defined this type of narrative in the popular imagination, the material itself is loosely based on a real-life case from 1949, where Father William Bowdern performed a series of exorcisms on a 14-year-old boy.
The Exorcist is a horror masterpiece that traumatizes audiences with explicit and realistic scenes, causing people to faint and vomit. The scariest scene in The Exorcist is a blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment during Father Karras's first meeting with the possessed Regan, which is filled with intent and scope.
The film follows Father Lankester Merrin, whose faith has been renounced after his experiences in World War II, as he works as an archeologist and discovers dark occurrences while excavating in Kenya.
From religious groups denouncing its content as immoral to audience members fainting and vomiting during its theatrical run, the overblown reaction to The Exorcist is most of the reason why it's synonymous with the phrase “scariest film ever made” despite how comparatively tame it can now appear.
The Exorcist had a serial killer involved in the first film. Paul Bateson later inspired William Friedkin to make the controversial film, Cruising. The Exorcist Overcame Bateson's Drama to Produce Many Sequels As It Approaches Its 50th Anniversary.
Fifty years later, they are fondly — or perhaps even infamously — known as the Exorcist Steps in honor of The Exorcist, the 1973 film that tells the tale of a mother portrayed by Ellen Burstyn trying to free her young daughter from demonic possession with the help of two Catholic priests.
Buying a house can be scary but not as scary as the recent purchase by Danielle Witt and Ben Rockey-Harris, new homeowners of the home that inspired "The Exorcist."
The Exorcist Cast Endured Deaths, Fires and More Mishaps - Was the Set Haunted? Crew members thought that technical difficulties and the actors' injuries were caused by a haunting. Even before The Exorcist began filming, strange problems would arise on the set. A catastrophic and costly fire ignited.
From subtle whispers in the background to all-out pandemonium as a chorus of demonic voices envelop the theater, the sense that you're being constantly pursued by otherworldly voices is palpable and relentless in The Exorcist.
While no accidents during filming of “The Exorcist” were fatal, many people involved or associated with the production died during it. Reports range anywhere from four to — the number Burstyn recalls — nine people passing away.
The three-bedroom Georgetown home where young Regan MacNeil was exorcised of the demon Pazuzu would be worth more than $1 million today, according to Trulia's estimate. The actual home featured in "The Exorcist" last sold for more than $2 million in 2003, according to Zillow.
There is a plaque on the walll honoring the film. If you come to Georgetown for a visit, you will need to visit the Exorcist steps. The steps are next to the Car Barn and they are steep. Some days they can be very crowded between runners and tourists.
To make Regan's room cold enough so her breath would be visible, four air conditioners were used to bring the temperature on set down as low as 40 degrees below zero, according to the documentary "The Fear of God."
What happened to the little girl who played in The Exorcist?
However, when she was peer pressured into buying cocaine at the age of 18, it led to an arrest and subsequent sentencing to three years probation. The much-publicized drug bust caused Linda to be blacklisted in Hollywood, and her career was soon reduced to B-movies and occasional TV guest appearances only.
