The Exorcist: Believer (2023) Ending Explained
tl;dr:
The ending of The Exorcist: Believer (2023) sees Victor Fielding (Leslie Odom Jr.) and Angela (Lidya Jewett) confronting the demon Pazuzu, which has possessed Angela and her friend Katherine (Olivia Marcum). After a harrowing exorcism involving multiple religious traditions, Victor makes a desperate choice to sacrifice himself to save Angela, invoking a ritual that transfers Pazuzu's hold onto him. The film concludes with Angela freed but traumatized, while Victor's fate is left ambiguous, hinting at future battles with the demonic force. The ending sets up potential sequels while leaving key questions unanswered about the nature of evil and the cost of faith.
Detailed Explanation of the Ending
The climax of The Exorcist: Believer revolves around a multi-faith exorcism attempt led by Victor, Katherine's parents, and a team including a Catholic priest, a Protestant preacher, and a Haitian Vodou practitioner. This reflects the film's theme of diverse spiritual traditions uniting against a common evil. The demon Pazuzu, however, proves resilient, mocking their efforts and exploiting their doubts. The tension peaks when Pazuzu forces Victor to choose between saving Angela or Katherine, echoing the film's exploration of parental love and sacrifice. Victor's decision to save Angela-while heartbreaking-underscores his character arc from a skeptical single father to someone willing to confront the supernatural at great personal cost.
The final act hinges on Victor's realization that Pazuzu's power thrives on fear and division. In a moment of clarity, he embraces a ritual steeped in his late wife's Haitian roots, offering himself as a vessel for the demon to spare Angela. This act of self-sacrifice mirrors themes from the original Exorcist, where love and suffering are intertwined with spiritual warfare. As the ritual concludes, Angela is freed, but Victor collapses, his eyes flickering with a malevolent light, suggesting Pazuzu now resides within him. The ambiguity of his fate-whether he's fully possessed or fighting the demon-leaves room for sequels while maintaining the horror of the unknown.
Unresolved Questions and Possible Answers
What happens to Victor after the exorcism?
- He becomes a new host for Pazuzu, setting him up as a tragic figure in future films.
- He's in a state of partial possession, fighting the demon internally (a la Regan's lingering trauma in the original).
- The demon leaves him physically unharmed but psychologically shattered.
Why does Pazuzu target these families specifically?
- Victor's atheism and trauma over his wife's death make him vulnerable.
- The girls' innocence and friendship symbolize purity, which demons traditionally corrupt.
- A larger cosmic battle is hinted at, with Pazuzu testing humanity's faith across generations.
Will Angela face lasting consequences?
- Her trauma could manifest in a sequel (e.g., psychic abilities or renewed demonic attention).
- She might become a target for other supernatural forces due to her “marked” soul.
Themes and Symbolism
The ending reinforces the film's central themes: the limits of faith, the cost of love, and the universality of evil. By incorporating multiple religious perspectives, the movie suggests that evil is a collective problem requiring unity to overcome-yet it also acknowledges that victory is rarely clean or permanent. Victor's sacrifice parallels Chris MacNeil's ordeal in the original, but with a twist: his agnosticism is challenged not by Catholicism alone, but by a tapestry of beliefs. The open-ended conclusion leans into the franchise's legacy of unsettling ambiguity, leaving audiences to ponder whether evil is ever truly defeated or merely contained.
Personal Opinion
While The Exorcist: Believer doesn't reach the heights of the 1973 classic, its ending is a bold mix of emotional weight and franchise setup. Leslie Odom Jr.'s performance elevates Victor's arc, and the multi-faith exorcism is a fresh take on the genre. However, the film struggles to balance its ambitious themes with pacing issues, and the finale's reliance on sequel bait feels slightly contrived. The ambiguity of Victor's fate is effective but risks feeling unresolved rather than haunting. Overall, it's a worthy addition to the franchise, though it lacks the original's sheer visceral terror. The ending succeeds in leaving viewers unsettled-questioning whether love truly conquers all or merely delays the inevitable.
Final Thought:
The Exorcist: Believer's ending is a meditation on sacrifice and the price of belief, wrapped in a cliffhanger that ensures the demon's legacy endures. Whether this pays off depends on where the franchise goes next.