‘The Witch’ Gets a Ringing Endorsement and Special Screenings from the Satanic Temple

I’ve seen some stuff in my time, but I think that this might be the first time I’ve seen a film get a promotional boost from a satanic group.  I’m sure it has to have happened before, but I just can’t recall it.

While “The Witch” is already a critical darling after playing on the festival circuits, it’s latest ringing endorsement comes from a rather unusual place.  The Satanic Temple has come out in open support of “The Witch” with a letter published on “Satanic Revolution.” Their National Spokesperson and Director of the Detroit Chapter of the Satanic Temple, Jex Blackmore (such a rad name), declared that “‘The Witch’ is more than a film; it is a transformative Satanic experience.”

However, we aren’t talking “Satanic” in the sense that we’re going to all throw up the horns and a sacrifice a goat after watching “The Witch.”  What Blackmore is saying is that the film challenges the beliefs that lead to witch hunts and terrorized innocent people.  Here’s a bit more of what Blackmore thinks of “The Witch.”

As Satanists, we are ever mindful of the plight of women and outsiders throughout history who suffered under the hammer of theocracy and yet fought to empower themselves. This film provides context to a period of American history that is too often fetishized by those seeking to wield this hammer once again.

While the patriarchy makes witches of only the most socially vulnerable members of society, Eggers’ film refuses to construct a victim narrative. Instead it features a declaration of feminine independence that both provokes puritanical America and inspires a tradition of spiritual transgression. We are empowered by the narrative of The Witch: a story of pathological pride, old-world religious paradigms, and an outsider who grabs persecution by the horns. Efforts to oppress and demonize the heretic prove to be a path to destruction. The witch does not burn but rises up in the night.

Along with all this praise, the Satanic Temple is teaming up with “The Witch” for some special screenings that’ll take place in several cities.  Here are the four screenings announced thus far:

New York City premiere and Event “Awake”- Wednesday February 10th

LA Premiere and Event “Rebel”- Friday February 12th

Austin Premiere and Public Ritual “Convoke”- Tuesday February 16th

Detroit Premiere “Ascend”- Date TBA.

To learn more about the event and the screenings be sure to visit the official Satanic Temple site.  “The Witch” hits theaters on February 19th.