Not the news horror fans wanted on Friday the 13th for sure, but the man responsible for creating the greatest horror story of the 20th century has passed away. William Peter Blatty died last night in a hospital in Bethesda, Maryland, according to his wife of 33 years Julia Alicia Blatty, who confirmed to CNN. He was 89.

The acclaimed writer, director, and screenwriter died of multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer. William Friedkin, who directed the film version if Blatty’s most infamous work, The Exorcist, posted the news to his Twitter account.

The Exorcist III
Collector’s Edition Blu-ray
Director: William Peter Blatty
Screenwriter: William Peter Blatty
Cast: George C. Scott, Ed Flanders, Jason Miller, Scott Wilson, Nicol Williamson, Brad Dourif
Distributor: Scream Factory
Rated R | 110 Minutes
Release Date: October 25, 2016

“I have dreams of a rose, and falling down a long flight of stairs.”

Written and directed by William Peter Blatty (The Ninth Configuration), The Exorcist III is the latest cult curiosity to receive a two-disc Collector’s Edition Blu-ray from Scream Factory. Released in 1990, the film is based on Blatty’s 1983 novel Legion, which picks up several years later. The “true sequel” to William Friedkin’s 1973 film, The Exorcist III ignores the events of Exorcist II: The Heretic completely, despite its sequential title – the film was originally titled Legion, but was changed by studio executives to make the movie more commercially appealing.