He may have once played the devil himself in the 1997 filmThe Devil’s Advocate, but today,Al Pacinois attempting to banish the powers of evil withDan Stevensby his side. XYZ Films has dropped the first teaser trailer for the upcoming horror filmThe Ritual, which drops its two leading men into an exorcism flick based on a true story. Although it was initially set to go toe-to-toe with the Easter crowd, the power of Christ compelled the folks behind theDavid Midell-helmed production to move the feature’s release to the summer on June 6.
Fully embracing all the terror that comes with a movie about anexorcism, the teaser trailer forThe Ritualintroduces audiences to Pacino’s Theophilus Riesinger and Stevens’ Joseph Steiger. Both men are priests who have been summoned to help Emma Schmidt (Abigail Cowen) — a young woman who is suspected to be suffering from demonic possession. Representing different schools of thought within the Catholic Church, the pair of clergymen embark on a dangerous mission that sees them take on malevolent forces.
One of the biggest names in the biz, Pacino has long been a household name thanks to his lengthy career in the industry, having appeared in beloved classics likeThe Godfathertrilogy,Scarface,andHeat. A genre-hopping performer, Stevens is a master chameleon, bouncing from his breakthrough role in the fan-favorite period drama,Downton Abbey, to more recent horror flicks such asAbigailandCuckoo. Joining the pair at the center of the story is the aforementioned Cowen, who will play the afflicted young woman, with an ensemble that includesAshley Greene(The Twilight Saga),Ritchie Montgomery(Twisted Metal),Patricia Heaton(The Middle), and more.
The True Story Behind ‘The Ritual’
Like other exorcism movies that have come before it, such as theRussell Crowe-ledThe Pope’s ExorcistandThe Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It,The Ritualtakes its story of demonic possession from a real-life case. From what’s been recorded about the dark events of Emma Schmidt’s alleged dance with the devil, it’s said that the young woman had grappled with the forces of Satan since she was a young child. It wasn’t until adulthood that her path crossed with the two priests played by Pacino and Stevens. The months-long experience saw the holy men attempting to perform their ritual multiple times on Schmidt, who was reportedly exhibiting all the signs that we’ve come to think about when we hear the word “exorcism.” We’ll keep the end of the story to ourselves so you’re able to see it with fresh eyes in the theater.
Check out the teaser trailer forThe Ritualabove before it hits theaters nationwide this summer on June 6.
The Ritual
