Translating Malevolence in Popular Culture: From Jinn to Demons in Cross‐Cultural Portrayal of Evil Entities

ABSTRACT This article explores the representations of evil spirits in popular feature films, shedding light on perceptions of those entities in different cultures. The article analyzes two movies: Under the Shadow (2016), which explicitly focuses on a Middle Eastern evil entity, the djinn, and The Exorcist (1973), which translates a different type of evil into the djinn. In Islam, the djinn can be either good or bad, while Western cultures often portray them as malevolent spirits. This analysis contributes to ongoing discussions in cultural studies by addressing the complexities of cultural adaptation in cinema.