I agree with you… It's just interesting, imo, to hear other possibilities… Like being a detective ;)

If Dennings was the real bad guy, the film would have spelled it out in undeniable terms. So would have Blatty in the novel.

Blatty says of Dennings something like, "he was a kind and considerate man when sober". He was a close friend of Chris and showed his thoughtfulness to Regan, e.g., on her birthday he lighted her on-scene and filmed her blowing out her birthday cake candles.

Flakes such as those at imdb might insist, "Yeah, okay, he was nice when sober, but when drunk – which was frequently – he could have turned into a molester."

Unfortunately for that view, Blatty (and Friedkin) _do_ show us what Dennings is like when he is drunk. In fact the uncut version of the film shows that Regan and Dennings are both present together at the party at Chris's house, the same party where the plastered Dennings makes his "alien pubic hair" remark, trashes Karl's dignity, and smashes a glass.

At no point does the drunk Dennings exhibit anything like off-color sexual behavior, much less ephebophilia. There is no hint of this in the book or the film.

Still, some imdb pinheads will further insist, "Yeah, okay, but Dennings was up in Regan's room and she broke his neck and pushed him out her window, so maybe she was provoked by his unwanted intentions."

This is really too ludicrous to be entertained, but for the sake of truthfulness, let's entertain _and_ refute it:

Dennings may in fact have had some quite legitimate reason to have gone upstairs to Regan's room. Blatty, though it takes some time for him to arrive here, lets us know that Regan is no longer her normal self.

We know this because 1) she twisted Dennings' head completely around facing backward, a demonic method of murder; and 2) supernormal strength is required for this, strength far beyond that of little Regan. It is thus established that the "thing" in the upstairs room is no longer the normal Regan.

This "Regan replacement" – which we later observe to be incredibly strong and violent – could easily have lured Dennings upstairs. Perhaps she manifested some of her weird poltergeist noises; perhaps she just screamed in her normal voice and/or cried out for help. Either way, as a decent human being and a family friend, Dennings probably would have probably bounded up the stairs in aid of Chris's daughter. That, or something like it, is the most likely scenario for Dennings being in Regan's room.

Finally, although in the novel and film Regan is said not to remember the actual possession, nothing is mentioned about the "overture" or "infestation" phase. We are free to imagine that Regan's memory was unimpaired about the things leading up to the possession.

Therefore, it is probable that if Dennings had been molesting Regan in the weeks leading up the possession, she certainly would have mentioned it – then or later – to Chris. Granted, some molestation victims are unable to talk about their abuse, but it defies _literary_ logic that Regan would be one of them. Here we return to the point that if Dennings was really the bad guy, Blatty and/or Friedkin would have pointed it out, and the best way to do so would have been from Regan's own testimony post-possession. Or somehow establish it from some other source. But, in fact, nothing of the kind takes place.

Pre-possession, Regan does exhibit anxiety about Dennings, but it is nothing that resembles a personal conflict. She is only worried that her mother will decide to marry Dennings. Her concern is thus not really about Dennings, but about her mother's good judgment. Moreover, it is not really Regan who initiates this mistrust – in this early scene in the film, it is insinuated that Regan's doubts are already being suggested by Captain Howdy's influence.

I suppose we really can't expect exacting and nuanced judgments from people like those on imbd. That's why I for one am grateful for the forum that our own Captain Howdy gives us here, where we can delineate the fine points of the Exorcist saga.

Thanks, Blizzi.

Thanks for the nice words, lunuso. Yep, I think those who look to Burke Dennings as a villain or even the cause of the possession are superficial readers who substitute insinuation for evidence.

Never thought about it. Sounds good, granny.

"I’d always pictured her dropping it out of a plastic bag."

I've always thought the same as well!

Aw, shucks, Blizzi… If I had a really creative streak I would have attempted a true haiku.

Yeah, lunuso, I always thought the excrement was deposited via a bag, for sheer handiness and stealth and swiftness!