Max lends his pragmatic insights into the making of 'The Exorcist'. From his comments about the film, it is clear that he is sceptical about a so-called curse attached to it, instead suggesting that such rumours were "good for publicity." It is known, however, that his brother died during filming.
Max also apparently couldn't handle Linda Blair's foul language. When told "your mother sucks cocks in hell," Max was heard to say "Cut! I've lost it Billy, I've just lost it!"
(extracts from Mark Kermode's excellent edition 'The Exorcist; The Making of a Classic Motion Picture)
When Max, then in his early forties, first received the script of 'The Exorcist', he thought he was being asked to play Father Karras. He was informed that it was in fact Merrin he had been cast to portray. Writer William Peter Blatty had based Father Merrin on the French Jesuit priest Theilard de Chardin and Director William Friedkin equated them immediately. One of the things that had won Max over to the role was the fact that renowned make-up artist Dick Smith would be handling his aging process. In the early days of production, Max flew in from Sweden to New York to work on the make-up. At the time he was also due to appear in a repertory production in Oslo and planned to commute between there and the set in New York.
In preparing for the role Max listened to tapes of an actual exorcism performed in Rome, describing them as "very graphic, very violent and very disturbing." As an aid in authenticity, Max was helped by genuine Jesuit priest Father Nicola. "Reverend Nicola was on set with Max throughout most of the exorcism scenes," Friedkin explains. "Although he had never performed an exocism himself he had written books on the subject and approached it in a very scholarly manner and became very well renowned. He came in and rehersed the scenes with Max, showing him precisely how a priest would behave in this situation, how to use the holy water, the ritual and so forth."
"It was very useful to have the priests there with us," agreed Max, "because of all those little things that only someone who actually lives the ritual all the time could really explain."
"I went down to the set when Max von Sydow had just arrived," remembers Father Tom Bermingham joyfully, "and I gave them a blessing. Then I said, 'Now I'm going to give you my own view of what everyone in this room is doing. All of us are made in the image and likeness of God, and we all mirror him in some way. What you are all doing is marvellous because you all mirror the creativity of God. Every one of you. No matter whether you think what you're doing is very small - we're not all Max von Sydow, but every one of you reflects the creativity of God."
After Father Bermingham's comments, Max apparently strolled over to him, shook him warmly by the hand and said, "Father, that was beautiful, and I only wish I could believe it."
For the role of Merrin, this clearly presented a major challenge, since von Sydow would have to portray a Jesuit priest whose absolute and unquestioning belief in a 'personified force of eveil' shone through his every gesture, every facial movement - regardless of the actor's own personal beliefs. Having seen his work both in the films of Ingmar Bergman, and in George Stevens' celebrated hit, Friedkin had no doubt that von Sydow could rise to this new challenge and was confident that Merrin's extraordinary faith would radiate throughout the movie.
As Friedkin remembers it, "The first thing we shot with von Sydow was his arrival at the MacNeil house, the exterior in Georgetown. He was great - literally one take, perfect. Brilliant! Then we got him onto the stage in New York, and we shot the sequence from his arrival at the door until he goes up to the room to perform the exorcism. Everything he did was absolutely wonderful. It was all one take, and I swear I just stood alongside the camera marvelling at what he was doing. And when he'd done it I had nothing whatever to say to him except 'Thank you!' That was it."
As von Sydow explains, the significance of Merrins arrival at this point in the story is that he is the only character who truly appreciates the reality of the demon ravaging Regan MacNeil. While Chris MacNeil and Father Karras have racked their own consciences, attempting to blame themselves for the awful events unfolding, Merrin is the one person who understands that this demon is not of their own creation, but is a real, independant, malevolent entity, an adversary who Merrin has indeed encountered on at least one previous occasion. Only by believing in this personification of evil can Father Merrin attempt to defeat the demon once more, because (as Blatty has always argued) belief in the demon was merely the other side of an absolute faith in God.
"Merrin has been here before," von Sydow elucidates. "He is the person who has met this devil before, and he knows what this is about. With that knowledge, the advice he gives to father Karras is that the devil will try to manipulate him, but he mustn't accept anything of that, mustn't believe anything he is telling him, mustn't allow him to make Karas feel guilty - which is of course the area where he loses... at first.
For von Sydow, the 'problem' was partly technical, with Dick Smith's facial make-up being extreemly difficult to manipulate when frozen! Still, the screen legend had managed to stay focused and precise in his facial responses, even as the walls of Regan's
"At the same time I was totally aware of the fact that Father Merrin, he believes," says von Sydow thoughtfully. "So I had to interpret the character in that way. It was not important what my personal or private opinions were, as long as I could personify the faith of Father Merrin in both God and the Devil. Father Merrin is a man who believes in God, and who does not shiver or hesitate for one second in this battle. Obviously if you don't believe in the devil, it's difficult to believe in exorcism as a procedure where you are really fighting that devil. For me to play that role, I think I looked at it as more from a psychological way. This is mentioned in the film, of course, to use the exorcism as therapy in one way or another. But not for Merrin - he must believe in it religiously: his weapon is his absolutely solid faith."
With disarming candour, von Sydow continues: "I do remember that there were some days when Billy Friedkin found it difficult to reach me. I think he told me at one time that I sounded more like a Southern preacher from the Bible Belt than a Catholic priest fighting the devil, physically and mentally." Friedkin was left wondering what to do.
According to von Sydow, Friedkin's only solution was to invoke the presence of the one thing he knew von Sydow believed in: the European director Ingmar Bergman. "I remember Billy actually said to me, 'Listen, what would Ingmar Bergman tell you to do in this situation?'" von Sydow laughs. "He said, 'Max, tell me what Bergman would tell you to do?'"
"That's true!" confirms Friedkin. "I even said to Max, 'look if you want to bring in Bergman to direct the scene, be my guest. I just don't know what to do.' And then Max looked at me and to my memory - although he may recall it differently - he said, 'You know, I thing I've figured out what the problem is. The problem is that I don't believe in Christ. I have no belief in the words I'm saying.' And I said, 'But Max, you played Jesus in THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD and you were wonderful. That's one of the reasons I came to you in the first place.' To which Max replied, 'But I played Jesus as a man, not as a God. I never have believed that he was a God.'"
"I don't remember such a conversation with Billy," von Sydow demurs, "but it is true that the issue of showing Jesus as a man was the key for me on THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD. Because to me if Jesus is not a man, then he is not interesting. If he is not exactly the same physically and mentally as me and you and everybody else, then there is nothing remarkable about what he does. Or what he suffers - for his story to have meaning, he must suffer, must experience suffering the way that we do. To me it's not important whether he's the son of God or not. If he's the son of God then we all are. That is what I tried to do in THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD although I was not always allowed to do it all the time. There were moments."
Now, according to Friedkin, one of those moments had come gain as the director drew upon the power of von Sydow's earlier performance to breathe life into this extraordinary scene. "I said to him, 'Max, I understand exactly what you're saying, and what I want you to do is to play Father Merrin as if he's a man. Think about him as a man who believes he is invoking this power, whether he is or not. Don't think of this priest as someone who has the power of God, merely as someone who aspires to it.' So we went back and tried it, and that was how we got back into it. Max had relaxed, and wa able to deliver that totally seemless, utterly credible wonderful performance that you see in the film. For me it was a real breakthrough."
'The Exorcist' - 25th Anniversary Collectors Limited Edition Box Set (Booklet 'The Making of a Classic Motion Picture' by Mark Kermode - also including mounted Senitype still, 25th Anniversary VHS edition of the film, soundtrack CD, and 8 lobby cards )
'The Exorcist; Out of the Shadows' by Bob McCabe, published by the Omnibus Press
'The Exorcist' - BFI Modern Classics, 2nd Edition by Mark Kermode
Home About Biography News Movies Pictures Trivia Awards Soundbites Guestbook Links