Jamie Lee Curtis Credits Mother for Declining Exorcist Audition

Jamie Lee Curtis recently shared a pivotal moment from her early life that shaped her path to Hollywood stardom, crediting her mother with shielding her from a potentially traumatic role in the 1973 horror classic The Exorcist.

During an appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show, the actress recounted how, at around age 12, she was considered for the part of Regan MacNeil, the young girl possessed by a demon in the film directed by William Friedkin and based on William Peter Blatty's novel. A producer, who had seen Curtis at a party and noted her sassy personality, contacted her mother, Janet Leigh, known for her role in Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho, to ask if the girl could audition. Leigh firmly declined the offer.

Curtis, now 65, expressed deep gratitude for the decision, emphasizing her mother's commitment to preserving her childhood. "He called my mom and said, 'Hey, I'm producing the movie of the book The Exorcist. Will you let Jamie audition for it?' And at the time I was probably 12 and, like, cute and kind of sassy and I had some personality and I'm sure he saw me at a party and was like, 'Oh, she'd be funny.' And my mother said, 'No,'" Curtis recalled. She added, directing...