--- title: The Ritual: The True Story Behind the Exorcism Horror description: The Al Pacino-led possession thriller purports to be based on the true story of the infamous 1928 exorcism of Emma Schmidt. canonical: https://time.com/7290789/the-ritual-true-story/ author: Megan McCluskey article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2025-06-06T12:00:00.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:51:05.841Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: The Real Story Behind The Ritual and the Woman Who Inspired The Exorcist og:description: The Al Pacino-led possession thriller purports to be based on the true story of the infamous 1928 exorcism of Emma Schmidt. og:url: https://time.com/7290789/the-ritual-true-story/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfab57e07c10d6e68/6998c71a66d4e3bceacbc866/The-Ritual.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: The-Ritual og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Real Story Behind The Ritual and the Woman Who Inspired The Exorcist twitter:description: The Al Pacino-led possession thriller purports to be based on the true story of the infamous 1928 exorcism of Emma Schmidt. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfab57e07c10d6e68/6998c71a66d4e3bceacbc866/The-Ritual.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # The Real Story Behind _The Ritual_ and the Woman Who Inspired _The Exorcist_  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer Jun 6, 2025 12:00 PM UTC  (L-R): Dan Stevens as Joseph Steiger and Al Pacino as Theophilus Riesinger in The Ritual. (L-R): Dan Stevens as Joseph Steiger and Al Pacino as Theophilus Riesinger in The Ritual.XYZ Films  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer Jun 6, 2025 12:00 PM UTC **_Warning: This post contains spoilers for_** **The Ritual** **_._** Considering it provided some inspiration for [William Friedkin's](https://time.com/6321075/exorcist-believer-review/) seminal 1973 horror classic [_The Exorcist_](https://time.com/6320808/the-exorcist-believer-david-gordon-green/), the real-life exorcism case of Emma Schmidt (who was also referred to by the pseudonyms Anna Ecklund and Mary X) is unsurprisingly one for the books. But how much truth there is to the religiously-fueled aspects of the story is up for interpretation. _The Ritual_, now in theaters, purports to be based on the true story of Schmidt's exorcism, which took place at a secluded convent just north of Earling, Iowa, in late 1928\. In the movie, writer-director David Midell (_NightLights_, _The Killing of Kenneth_ _Chamberlain_) presents Schmidt's afflictions as symptomatic of demonic possession rather than mental illness or other influences, a decision that positions the film as a [faith-based thriller](https://time.com/6960996/the-tk-best-religious-horror-movies-of-all-time/) despite an ending title card that acknowledges there are those who doubt that narrative. Although Schmidt (who is played by 27-year-old Abigail Cowen despite the fact that she was in her 40s at the time of the events chronicled in the movie) is at the center of the story, _The Ritual_ really revolves around the push and pull between the two Catholic clergymen who preside over the rite, local parish priest Father Joseph Steiger ([Dan Stevens](https://time.com/7008776/cuckoo-ending-explained/)) and Capuchin friar Father Theophilus Riesinger (Al Pacino). While Steiger is experiencing a crisis of faith following his brother's suicide, Riesinger is a devout and somewhat controversial believer in the ritual of exorcism. This focus on the two male characters may result from the fact that, as Midell explained in a [video he shared on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/reel/DIoZUqqph9m/?utm%5Fsource=ig%5Fweb%5Fcopy%5Flink&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==) in April, _The Ritual_ is based on a 1935 booklet titled _Begone Satan!_ Thisaccount of Schmidt's case was put together by the Catholic Church, which it's probably safe to assume brought its own slant to the way the story was told. ## What happened to Emma Schmidt?  Abigail Cowen as Emma Schmidt in The Ritual. XYZ Films _The Ritual_ hits most of the generic exorcism horror plot beats in retelling Schmidt's story, with Schmidt exhibiting an aversion to holy objects, spewing blasphemy, experiencing fits of violent rage, vomiting bile, and clinging to walls in an inhuman fashion, among other demonic behaviors. In real life, Schmidt's exorcism was one of the last officially sanctioned by the Catholic Church, a fact that seems to have contributed to its infamy. As the movie alludes to, Schmidt, who was born in 1882, began showing signs of what was deemed to be possession starting at the age of 14\. The issues began after Schmidt was subjected to abuse at the hands of her father, who allegedly took a sexual interest in her, and her Aunt Mina, who was [reportedly](https://nonpareilonline.com/news/earling-site-of-last-sanctioned-exorcism/article%5Ff943f041-ba99-528c-bdce-7ec7f88a0d29.html) her father's lover, a child murderer, and also a witch "who had placed a spell on some herbs which she placed among the girl's food." However, when it comes to claims about witchcraft, it's important to remember this was still the 1800s, when the term was applied with some regularity to women who defied various social norms and conventions. Riesigner performed the rites of exorcism on Schmidt for the first time in 1912\. But Schmidt's symptoms later returned, pushing her to what _Begone Satan!_ author Father Carl Vogl wrotein the booklet seemed like the edge of sanity. "She was conscious of some sinister inner voices that kept on suggesting most disagreeable things to her," he wrote. "These voices tried their utmost to arouse thoughts of the most shameful type within her, and tried to induce her to do things unmentionable and even to bring her to despair. The poor creature was helpless and secretly was of the opinion that she would become insane." Schmidt's final exorcism was eventually performed in three stages over the course of a total of 23 days between Aug. 18 and Dec. 22, 1928\. During the course of these sessions, Riesinger claimed there were four different spirits possessing her: Judas Iscariot, Beelzebub, her Aunt Mina, and her father. If Vogl's account is to be believed, Schmidt's ailments during this time appeared to be of an unearthly and inexplicable nature. But your opinion on the matter will likely depend on how much stock you put in the word of the Church. Eventually, Riesinger is said to have successfully completed the exorcism after three consecutive nights and days of working on Schmidt with no breaks, allowing her to live out the rest of her life in relative peace. Some accounts claim Schmidt was possessed off and on until her death. Riesinger would go on to be [profiled by TIME](https://time.com/archive/6820778/religion-exorcist-energumen/) in 1936. As for what Midell himself thinks happened to Schmidt, in a statement included in the film's production notes, he describes feeling "struck by the scientific and fact-based approach many have taken in relation to seemingly unexplainable (i.e. paranormal) events." "Some have described exorcisms as Rorschach tests: those with a background in faith and religion see a spiritual struggle for the soul of a human being, while those who are more scientifically minded see a person in need of psychiatric assistance," he said. "Spiritual or psychological, what cannot be denied is the profound suffering experienced by Emma Schmidt, and the bravery and fortitude required by those who came together to alleviate her suffering." ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/7290789/the-ritual-true-story/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/7290789/the-ritual-true-story/"},"headline":"The Real Story Behind The Ritual and the Woman Who Inspired The Exorcist","datePublished":"2025-06-06T12:00:00.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:51:05.841Z","description":"The Al Pacino-led possession thriller purports to be based on the true story of the infamous 1928 exorcism of Emma Schmidt.","url":"https://time.com/7290789/the-ritual-true-story/","keywords":["movies","Explainer","culturepod"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfab57e07c10d6e68/6998c71a66d4e3bceacbc866/The-Ritual.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Megan McCluskey","jobTitle":"Staff Writer","url":"https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfab57e07c10d6e68/6998c71a66d4e3bceacbc866/The-Ritual.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"The-Ritual","caption":"The Ritual","creditText":"XYZ Films","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/movies/","name":"movies"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/7290789/the-ritual-true-story/","name":"The Real Story Behind The Ritual and the Woman Who Inspired The Exorcist"}}]}] ```