20 Things You Didn't Know About The Exorcist
18. Father Dyer Was Played By An Actual Priest Who Got Slapped By The Director
William O'Malley was a real-life Jesuit priest. Allegedly, he became the first man of the cloth to ever play the role in a motion picture with his performance in The Exorcist.
O'Malley was familiar with author/producer, William Peter Blatty, through his criticism of the original novel. O'Malley had even gone as far as to call the character of Father Dyer "cliched" - but was talked into playing the role by Blatty and director William Friedkin.
However, when filming the scene where Father Dyer administers last rites to the body of Father Karras, Friedkin was unsatisfied with O'Malley's performance. The director asked the actor if he trusted him, to which O'Malley affirmed he did. Friedkin then slapped the priest across the face and immediately called action before O'Malley could react.
Thanks to the genuine look of shock on the priest's face from the slap, the take was included in the final cut of the film.