The Great Advice John Carpenter Gave The New Halloween’s Writers

Michael Myers in the new Halloween movie

16 years after the disappointing run of Halloween: Ressurection, Jamie Lee Curtis is once again playing OG scream queen Laurie Strode. Blumhouse's Halloween will arrive for this year's titular holiday, and fans have finally gotten their first look at the upcoming sequel through the first trailer. Halloween will focus on a Laurie Strode who has lived in fear for the past 40 years, and will be a direct sequel to John Carpenter's classic original movie. Carpenter is returning to write the new sequel's music, and he gave its director/writer David Gordon Green some great advice. When I was speaking with Green on the set of Halloween, he revealed the wisdom the horror legend imparted,

His advice was brilliant: make it relentless. He had notes, which is something I was extremely nervous about, we worked very hard on the script, we were all very excited. It's one thing for three movie nerds to geek out over the opportunity of maneuvering within this property, another to basically go kiss the ring of the godfather and see how that goes.

Does anyone else have chills? A relentless Halloween movie is something that even the most casual of fans can get behind, especially when it has the blessing of John Carpenter. And if the first trailer is any indication, Michael's age is not going to slow down the pace of the movie at all.

David Gordon Green's comments show how much everyone involved in Blumhouse's Halloween really loves the franchise. His co-writers Danny McBride and Jeff Fradley have made their intentions to honor the original film clear, and you could feel that type of excitement and reverence during filming. The fans should be especially excited that John Carpenter was able to give his feedback, and it really seems like Blumhouse is bringing the property back to basics for this sequel.

It should be interesting to see exactly how Halloween ends up being relentless. Rather than being a gore fest like the Rob Zombie movies, Blumhouse's flick is reportedly focusing on suspense. That being said, Michael Myers is still probably going to tear his way through a few sinning teenagers. The younger generation is being brought into the story through Laurie's granddaughter Allyson, and smart money says her buddies aren't going to fare very well. Finding the right mixture of action and tension is going to be a challenge, but the film's first trailer makes it seem like a thrilling ride, and sitting swan song for Jamie Lee Curtis' Laurie Strode.

Now comes the time where we sit and wait for the fall months, and Michael Myers' killing season. But seeing a Halloween movie on the titular holiday is a treat for even casual fans, and one that has the potential to be a game changer for the franchise.

Halloween will arrive in theaters on October 19th, 2018. In the meantime, check out our 2018 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.