How the Twist at the End of The Exorcist's Pilot Episode Hints at a Strong First Season

Let's get something out of the way before we dive in — The Exorcist, Fox's TV reboot of the film of the same name, does little to break new ground in its pilot episode. In my humble opinion, the premiere episode is a solid, scary hour of TV, but in a horror genre saturated with exorcism tales, there's only so much you can do to keep familiar tropes (360-degree head snaps, floating bodies, speaking in tongues) feeling fresh. That being said, the show manages to introduce an interesting set of characters, and a satisfying twist that, unlike other new Fall shows, feels warranted. If the haunting drama can keep up this momentum, it just might shape up to be one seriously satisfying season of terror. Spoilers ahead!

The series takes place in the same universe as the original film, roughly 40 years after the events with Father Karras, Father Merrin, and Regan (there's a subtle nod to it in a scene with a blink-and-you'll-miss-it shot of a newspaper headline). Father Tomas Ortega (Alfonso Herrera) has become disillusioned with the church (reminiscent of Father Karras) when he begins having vivid, lifelike dreams of another priest, Father Marcus Lang (Ben Daniels, seemingly taking on the Father Merrin character). In Father Tomas's dreams, Father Marcus is in the middle of performing an exorcism on a young boy in Mexico City, which eventually ends in the child's grisly death and Marcus being rebuked by the Vatican. Meanwhile, a member of Father Tomas's church named Angela Rance (Geena Davis) implores the priest to visit her home since she believes that one of her daughters, Kat, is possessed. Tomas visits the Rances and interacts with a sullen, sarcastic Kat and her very peppy younger sister, Casey, before telling Angela that he doesn't think anything strange is going on. He then tracks down Father Marcus, who informs him that his dreams aren't dreams at all.

Angela doesn't take no for an answer from Tomas, and asks him to come back one more time. When he does at the end of the episode, they hear a disturbance in the attic and he heads into the dark armed with only his cell phone's flashlight to check it out, calling Kat's name. That's when a very possessed, very creepy Casey suddenly swings into view (read: big jump scare) instead and briefly attacks him before Angela flicks on the lights. That gives Casey enough time to snap back into her enthusiastic, normal high school student veneer, leaving Father Tomas visibly rattled. This presumably will set up Tomas and Marcus working together to defeat the demon that has taken up residence in Casey. Sure, it's not the most original twist you'll ever see, but it's a good sign that the show isn't afraid to get creative or take a few risks, no matter how small.