Three-time Grammy Award winning singer Jennifer Nettles (part of the country duo Sugarland) made her acting debut in the 2015 TV movie Dolly Parton’s Coat of Many Colors. She played Dolly’s mama, Avie Lee Parton. Since then she’s starred in movies including the 2019 biopic Harriet about Harriet Beecher Stowe, with Cynthia Erivo as the titular character.
As an actress, Nettles last appeared as Aimee-Leigh Gemstone (see below) in the comedy drama series The Righteous Gemstones with John Goodman and Adam DeVine, among others. That was in February 2022. And over the past few months, Nettles hasn’t been very active on social media, until now.
This week, Nettles announced that she’s taking on “a primary role” in the sequel to the 1973 horror movie The Exorcist, which is about a 12-year-old girl “who is possessed by a mysterious demonic entity, forcing her mother to seek the help of two priests to save her.”
Many fans of Nettles are surprised to hear that she’s working on a horror movie. One replied: “This is absolutely disturbing on all levels!!” And one super loyal fan replied: “Dear god I hate scary movies but for you, I will watch – most likely like this 🤦🏻♀️ but I’ll watch! Congratulations!”
David Gordon Green (executive producer of The Righteous Gemstones and recent Halloween movies) directs and co-wrote the script.
Fun fact: Oscar-winner Ellen Burstyn (Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore), who played the mother of the possessed girl (Linda Blair) in the original The Exorcist, will also appear in the sequel, which is scheduled for an October 13, 2023 release, in time for Halloween.
