Halloween fans are excited to see Jamie Lee Curtis go up against Michael Myers once again, but the actor playing that role made sure that only happened in front of the camera. Apparently, while on set, James Jude Courtney, the actor who plays Michael Myers in the upcoming film, found that Jamie Lee Curtis wasn't exactly giving him a warm welcome, so he made sure to avoid her as much as possible. As Courtney explained during a set visit several months ago...
We don't interact. And I get it. I've seen her stand off-ish with me and so I chose to step away, because of the nature of what we're doing. They let me know that when she gets in in the morning, and she gets the wig on, she's in character, and she's in character all day long. That's her method and so it makes perfect sense to me that she doesn't really want anything to do with me. She's gracious and kind on set, and everybody loves her to death, but I don't anticipate she and I having a conversation 'til this is done.
On the one hand, the two people who likely spend the most time on camera in Halloween not interacting at all outside of filming seems a bit odd, but if Jamie Lee Curtis was in character the entire time, then it makes some sense. For Laurie Strode, Michael Myers is the most terrifying thing in the world. Based on what we've seen in the trailers, even decades after the events of the first film, she is scared of him. If you're trying to keep that fear real by staying in character, then you also can't hang out between takes with the guys you're supposed to be in fear of.
On the one hand, from what James Jude Courtney tells Entertainment Weekly, it sounds like he was a little bummed out that he had to keep his distance from Jamie Lee Curtis. He seems to respect her as a person and an actress. Still, while he probably would have loved to have gotten to know her better on the set, he was more than willing to do what he needed to do in order to make the movie work better.
I just want her to have her space because, man, what we're doing, it's intense stuff. And for her to be in the place that she's in --- I'm the predator, she's got a massive range of emotions to deal with and a whole history. I really love watching her work. But I watch her at a distance or I watch her on monitors. I try not to get too close to her.
Since these comments came during a visit to the Halloween set earlier this year, one hopes that once shooting wrapped these two were able to actually meet each other. Hopefully, by now they're old friends who are looking forward to the release of their new movie. We'll get a chance to see the performances they put together by not knowing each other when Halloween hits theaters October 19.
