Rachel Stavis, billed as the “Hollywood Exorcist,” is channeling her creativity for a number of upcoming scripted projects.
Stavis is an author and filmmaker whose day job — as a “non-denominational exorcist on a mission to create global change by eradicating darkness from one person or place at a time,” per her bio – has put her in the employ of studio chiefs, movie stars and global political figures.
Stavis’ work ranges from the personal and therapeutic to paranormal investigations, and content makers are taking notice. Stavis is currently in the casting phase for her feature directorial debut “Da Wee Do Wa,” for which she also wrote the script. The film explores generational trauma suffered by women in the context of body horror. XYZ Films is in the mix to produce the project. V, formerly known as Eve Ensler, is on board as an executive producer. Acclaimed multi-hyphenate and “Better Things” creator Pamela Adlon is also attached as an EP.
V, who created the landmark theater piece “The Vagina Monologues,” called Stavis’ film “an intense and wonderfully written exploration into generational trauma and gaslighting – two forms of abuse that so many people are facing right now. Telling this story through the lens of horror is a powerful way to address important issues and spark meaningful conversations, so I’m thrilled to collaborate in bringing these themes to light in a nuanced and unconventional way.”
In addition to the film, Stavis has partnered with prolific writer-producer Glen Mazarra (“The Shield,” The Walking Dead”) on a series adaptation of her own memoir, “Sister of Darkness: The Chronicles of a Modern Exorcist.”
Published by HarperCollins in 2018, the book covers Stavis’ formative years in discovering her gifts and revisits cases that put her and her clients in peril. Mazarra called Stavis “an incredible person with a fascinating story, one we’re excited to explore as a TV series. She’s changed how I see the world.”
Show business has been enamored with exorcism for decades, especially recently as Universal rebooted “The Exorcist” franchise and an unusually strong performance from Russell Crowe’s 2023 film “The Pope’s Exorcist.”
Reps for Stavis have also been shopping journals from the author surrounding her most terrifying gig – a 2019 incident involving a building called The Rosewood Inn. The property’s new owner reached out to Stavis noting numerous unusual occurrences: several workers had reported strange noises, screams and visions; a construction foreman fell into a coma and ultimately died. An investigation revealed a string of mysterious deaths on site years prior.
Stavis is repped by CAA and Kailey Marsh at Brillstein Entertainment.
