Prime Video released the official trailer for an upcoming horror-comedy film that will make you wonder how far you would be willing to go for your own best friend. My Best Friend’s Exorcism trailer showcases Amiah Miller and Elsie Fisher as two teenage best friends whose friendship will be put to the test by supernatural forces.
My Best Friend’s Exorcism is based on a book of the same name by New York Times best-selling author Grady Hendrix. Hendrix had his debut novel Horrorstör published in 2014, which is being currently adapted to the screen. His latest published work, The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires, is also in the process of being adapted this time into a TV series produced by Amazon.
Directed by Damon Thomas (Killing Eve), My Best Friend’s Exorcism is set for the most part in 1988, which coincided with a social phenomenon in the US coined the “Satanic Panic”. The official synopsis reads as follows:
“Surviving the teenage years isn’t easy, especially when you’re possessed by a demon. It’s 1988, and best friends Abby (Elsie Fisher) and Gretchen (Amiah Miller) are navigating boys, pop culture, and a paranormal force clinging to Gretchen like a pair of neon legwarmers. With assistance from overly confident mall exorcist Christian Lemon (Christopher Lowell), Abby is determined to compel the demon back to the pits of hell—if it doesn’t kill Gretchen first. At turns horrifying and hilarious, My Best Friend’s Exorcism pays homage to 1980s pop culture with a totally timeless tale of terror and true friendship.”
The trailer begins with an upbeat tone, as if the movie is going to be a regular high school-set coming-of-age plot centered around two teenage best friends. That’s what it appears to be until roughly 30 seconds into the video. Then, the mood abruptly shifts and grows darker, ominously so. The two girls, Gretchen and Abby, decide to go into a house wherein, apparently, a girl had been sacrificed in a Satanic ritual. Although Abby is apprehensive, Gretchen convinces her to come along.
We all know enough about horror films to know that that was not the smartest decision ever. And, surprise, surprise, Gretchen becomes possessed. But the film does not intend to take The Exorcist route, because, while using tropes that we have come to associate with and probably originated with the 1973 film, My Best Friend’s Exorcism is clearly told through a comical lens which explores different themes.
Besides Miller and Fisher, the 96-minute movie also stars Cathy Ang, Rachel Ogechi Kanu, and Christopher Lowell. Jenna Lamia penned the script based on Hendrix's book.
My Best Friend’s Exorcism premieres on Prime Video next month, on September 30.