In Ari Aster’s “Hereditary,” the Emmy-winning actress performs a lady named Joan, the second-in-command of a sinister cult that worships the demon King Paimon. She manipulates her household to recite chants that allow the demon and orchestrates hauntings and murders as a way to summon the darkish god she prays to. It is deep, darkish, and terrifying — and Ann Dowd virtually turned down the half.

In an interview with Mashable, the actress shared her preliminary response to studying the “Hereditary” script. Except for studying it “with one eye shut,” the story transported her again in time to when she first noticed “The Exorcist” in highschool, as a younger woman who was raised Catholic. Demon possession is frightening stuff, and Dowd virtually could not bear to be part of it. It is a stunning revelation contemplating she’d ultimately play Joan with ease, a lady who has no drawback organizing nude, decapitated adults in a treehouse if it means offering a demon with a mortal vessel.