The kid who inspired The Exorcist ended up helping first humans land on the moon

The kid who was the inspiration behind the possessed child in The Exorcist grew up to become a NASA engineer and helped to put the first humans on the moon.

There's a lot to unpack here, I know. Firstly, yes, the child possessed by a demon in the 1973 horror was actually inspired by a real person named Ronald Edwin Hunkeler.

It all started way back in 1949 in Maryland when Ronald - who was named in the media as 'Roland Doe' to protect his identity - had reportedly been experiencing paranormal occurrences.

The youngster claimed he had been hearing knocking and scratching sounds coming from behind his bedroom walls.

Later, the family's minister Rev Luther Schulze reported that the Hunkeler's floors were 'scarred from the sliding of heavy furniture', and 'a picture of Chris on the wall shook' every time the teenager was nearby.

Warner Bros.

Eventually, Ronald's family sought the help of a Catholic priest who performed 'between 20 and 30' exorcisms on him.

While there was no 360 degree head spinning, horrific projectile vomiting, or levitating involved, a Washington Post report from the time reads: "The boy broke into a violent tantrum of screaming, cursing and voicing of Latin phrases - a language he had never studied - whenever the priest reached the climactic point of the ritual, 'In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, I cast thee out.'"

William Peter Blatty, who wrote the the novel and the subsequent film adaption of The Exorcist, after reading about Ronald's - or Roland's - paranormal case.

It wasn't until his death in 2020 - over half a century after the reported exorcism - that Ronald was publicly named as the young boy who inspired the film.

Ronald, who died of a stroke just one month before his 86th birthday, had gone on to work as an engineer for NASA.

The genius even contributed to the famous Apollo missions of the 1960s, and helped to put humans on the moon in 1969 by patenting the technology that helped space shuttle panels withstand extreme heat.

After working with the space agency for more than 40 years, Ronald retired in 2001.

Warner Bros.

Throughout his adulthood, the engineer lived in fear that people would find out the truth about his past.

A woman who had been Ronald's companion for almost 30 years before his passing recalled: "On Halloween we always left the house because he figured someone would come to his residence and know where he lived and never let him have peace."

Speaking to the New York Post, Ronald's companion, who asked not to be named, added: "He had a terrible life from worry, worry, worry."

She also said that, despite the sensational reports, Ronald never really believed that the had been possessed by a demon.

"He said he wasn’t possessed, it was all concocted," she said. "He said, ‘I was just a bad boy.'"

Ronald's story went on to inspire one of the most popular horror films ever made - even winning the first Academy Award Best Picture nomination for the genre.

While most of the unusual occurrences from Ronald's case can now be explained, there's one thing that still remains a mystery.

Ronald's companion recalled that, just before he died two years ago, a priest had arrived at their home to give Hunkeler his last rites - even though neither of them had called one.

“I have no idea how the Father knew to come,” she admitted, “but he got Ron to heaven."