15 Popular Movies Which Were Notoriously Difficult To Produce

Much like the aforementioned Poltergeist (1982), The Exorcist is believed to have had a ‘cursed’ set. Although in this instance, a lot of the nightmare-ish problems can be blamed on director William Friedkin. The director was not afraid of physically harming his ensemble if it meant getting the best results.

To achieve authentic icy breath, Regan’s bedroom was cooled as low as minus thirty degrees. Since then, Linda Blair has always detested being cold. She also got a back injury in the scene where Regan is being bounced on the bed – her reactions were genuine because of the pain.

Ellen Burstyn received a permanent spine injury in the sequence where she is thrown away from her possessed daughter. The stuntman was under instruction by Friedkin to pull as hard as possible. As a result, she fell on her coccyx and screamed in agony.

What can’t be blamed on the director is how nine people associated with the making of the horror film died during its one-year shoot. There was also a frightful moment when the entire set, except for Regan’s bedroom, burned down and caused a six-week delay in production. Everyone became so fearful that the set was haunted that they hired a Roman Catholic priest to protect it from evil spirits.