Boorman and the Devil is a 2025 American documentary film about John Boorman's 1977 horror film Exorcist II: The Heretic, which almost ended his career.Swampflix The documentary is produced, edited, and directed by David Kittredge.
Release It premiered at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival in September 2025. It was released at the Quad Cinema in New York City on August 28, 2026, and expanded to other cities like Los Angeles on September 4. The film was released on streaming platforms for home viewing on September 22, 2026.
Reception On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 98% of 60 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.2/10. The website's consensus reads: "A fascinating, candid testament to the passionate excesses of 1970s filmmaking, Boorman and the Devil delivers a lively and funny autopsy of one of Hollywood's most infamous failures." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 79 out of 100, based on 13 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.
In a positive review, Jordan Mintzer of The Hollywood Reporter wrote, "Whatever your take, the crazy story behind Exorcist II: The Heretic is ultimately one of nostalgia — for a time when ambitious filmmakers like Boorman could go to Hollywood and commit 'the sin of hubris,' and then go to hell for it." Alison Foreman of IndieWire gave the film a B+, writing, "David Kittredge delivers a dazzling reflection on the career of John Boorman in the documentary Boorman and the Devil, a robust reframing of the legendary director's Exorcist II: The Heretic, as strange and poetic as the disastrous 1977 production itself." Daniel Kurland of Bloody Disgusting was also positive, writing, "Boorman and the Devil is absolutely everything that you'd want from an Exorcist II deep dive reclamation. Kittredge's thorough exploration of this title is evident, and compelling information is put together in an impressive, comprehensive package that avoids many of the standard talking head documentary pitfalls. It's also surprisingly funny."
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