Here's A Side-By-Side Of The Cast Of "The Ritual" With The Real People The Movie's Based On
The Ritual is one of the most intriguing horror movies of the year. No other American possession film has ever had a backstory like this one because the events...are real.
Not all horror is fiction. As the film's opening suggests, the story is based on Joseph Steiger's transcribed events, making this one of the most well-documented exorcisms in American history.
Here are the film's actors and the real-life people behind the main characters:
Legendary actor Al Pacino portrays Father Theophilus Riesinger in "The Ritual." BYOHW (Bring Your Own Holy Water).
The real-life Father Theophilus Riesinger was a German-American exorcist. It may seem odd that he isn't wearing the white collar like so many other famous priests and exorcists, but that's because, along with being a Roman Catholic priest, he was also a Capuchin friar.
Pacino may have lacked that mighty beard, but he still brought the duds.
Here they are side-by-side:
XYZ Films, The Occult Museum / Via discover.theritualmovie.com
Actor Dan Stevens portrays Reverand Joesph Steiger.
The real Reverand Joesph Steiger transcribed the events The Ritual is based on, so it only made sense that the narrative moved through him in the film.
Stevens wears many hats in horror, but this was his first time donning a white collar.
Here they are side-by-side:
XYZ Films, The Occult Museum / Via discover.theritualmovie.com
Every possession film has the "possessed" character, a role played by Abigail Cowen. She portrays Emma Schmidt
The real Emma Schmidt was known under the pseudonym Anna Ecklund. Her possession was alleged to have lasted for decades. Her case was so well-documented that it received a profile in the 1936 edition of TIME Magazine.
The documented claims of what happened to this girl are truly the stuff that inspires every possession horror movie. Cowen's performance in The Ritual brings the terror to life on the big screen.
Here they are side-by-side:
XYZ Films, The Occult Museum / Via discover.theritualmovie.com
The Ritual hits theaters June 6. Check out the trailer before you experience the story based on America's most frightening exorcism.
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