Numerous scholars have examined how horror cinema reflects sociocultural anxieties and how the genre often adopts a conservative stance, reinforcing normativity in opposition to Otherness. In particular, exorcism films are frequently interpreted as narratives of troubled men (the exorcists) who resolve their crises of faith by ‘saving’ a possessed or empowered woman and restoring her to a submissive role. However, most of these analyses focus primarily on U.S.-produced films, overlooking how historical and cultural specificities shape these narratives in other contexts. This article examines two non-American productions—Verónica (2017) from Spain and Clarke’s (2018) from Ireland – to demonstrate how both films subvert traditional exorcism tropes. Drawing from their distinct histories and relationships with the Catholic Church, these films offer pointed critiques of patriarchal institutions.
