The horror genre is in a bit of a renaissance at the moment. Rather than stale and predictable sequels, filmmakers have been making original and terrifying additions to the genre. Some of the best projects from recent memory came to audiences from Blumhouse Productions, including Get Out, Happy Death Day, and the Purge franchise. Now the studio is turning its head toward classic properties, with a new Halloween sequel currently in the can and arriving this October. With OG actors like Jamie Lee Curtis and Nick Castle returning, Halloween is retconning all of the sequels out of existence. But according to writer Danny McBride, the other movies will be referenced throughout the new sequel.
This picks up after the first one. The Halloween franchise has kind of become a little bit of like choose your own adventure, you know like there's some many different versions, and the timeline is so mixed up, we just thought it would be easier to go back to the source and continue from from there. It was nicer than knowing you're working onHalloween 11, it just seemed cooler, 'we're making Halloween 2'. We do [reference the other movies]. For fans, we pay homage and respect to every Halloween that has been out there.
Well, this is exciting. While the Halloween sequels will no longer be canon for the upcoming movie, it appears that we'll get references and homages to nine sequels that followed John Carpenter's original. The question is: how?
Danny McBride's comments to Flickering Myth are sure to be exciting for the hardcore Halloween fans out there, who might be miffed that none of the sequels were going to be included in the new movie's mythology. There were some real moments of greatness in the sequels, especially H20. That sequel featured a heavily flawed and alcoholic Laurie Strode, and also introduced her son. But that's all going to be left in the past, with Laurie now having a daughter and granddaughter in the new timeline.
Of course, the Halloween franchise isn't new to changing its timeline and ignoring sequels. The fourth and fifth movies revolved around Laurie Strode's secret daughter Jamie (who was given up for adoption), but when Jamie Lee Curtis returned to the franchise in H20, Jamie was written out of existence. Meanwhile, Halloween: The Curse of Michael Meyers brought back the character of Tommy Doyle (played by Paul Rudd) from the original film, although he was never seen from or referenced again.
Fans will just have to patiently wait while the editing process begins for Halloween. With principal photography wrapped, the new sequel has never felt more near. But ultimately it will arrive in time for the Halloween, so cinephiles and horror fans will have to patiently await its release.
Halloween will arrive in theaters October 19, 2018. In the meantime, check out our 2018 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
