Pazuzu (The Exorcist)

Pazuzu is a powerful demon who acted as the main villain in The Exorcist books and movies - based loosely on a mythological figure native to Babylonian culture where he was considered the king of wind-demons and son of the Babylonian god Hanbi.

In the original book and movie Pazuzu is the demon that possesses Regan MacNeil - this is its most famous outting but it has also appeared in all five Exorcist films and is listed as the 2nd greatest villain of all time by Wizard Magazine.

Role In The Novel
Pazuzu first appeared in The Exorcist novel, published in 1971 - the plot of which is pretty much identical to the film.

Role In Legion
Pazuzu was also intrumental in the sequel to the Exorcist titled Legion - in which it took revenge for being exorcised from Regan's body in the first novel - using the Gemini Killer's soul to possess Father Damien Karras's dead body and causing chaos before being defeated once more.

Role In The Original Film
In 1973 The Exorcist was released as a film and Pazuzu would be the main villain just as it was in the novel - managing to possess Regan after she played with a Ouija board (appearing to her in form of the now infamous demon known as "Captain Howdy") and turning her into a hideous vessel for it to mercilessly taunt and abuse those around itself while also displaying major supernatural powers that increase as the film progresses, presumably growing in strength as the demon took more and more control over Regan's hapless form - twisting her into a demonic parody of her former self. Regan's mother becomes desperate and seeks two priests to exorcise the demon from her daughter after several failed attempts to solve the problem by more scientific methods (with Regan violently attacking doctors and therapists) - this proves trickier than expected as even the priests are reluctant to perform an exorcism due to the belief such things were confined to the dark ages. However Father Karras and Father Merrin eventually arrive to perform the exorcism regardless, the battle with Pazuzu is a terrifying rollercoaster for the two priests, who struggle to contain the vast powers of the creature - sadly the battle proves too much for Father Merrin, who dies of a heart attack during the exorcism. Father Karras becomes enrages when Pazuzu mockingly laughs at his futile attempts to revive Father Merrin and is possessed by the demon after forcing it out of Regan through physical force - upon which the priest leaps out of the window to his death, presumably without a human host Pazuzu was dispersed when Merrin died but it would return in the future sequels of the film.

In Other Movies
Pazuzu has also appeared in Scary Movie 2 and Repossessed - both of these appearances had Pazuzu's personality changed into that of a comedic villain compared to its hideously perverted true nature in the films and novels.