Why John Carpenter Has No Interest In Doing A Thing Remake

Kurt Russell in The Thing
(Image credit: (Universal Pictures))

We wouldn't be counting down the days until the ultimate face-off between Michael Myers and Laurie Strode 40 years in the making with the upcoming Halloween if it wasn't for iconic director John Carpenter. He's also the man behind memorable films such as The Thing, Big Trouble in Little China and Escape from New York. Carpenter hasn't returned to the director's chair since his 2010 film, The Ward but says he's game to keep directing, though under some conditions:

I would love to direct something, if it's the right thing to do at my age. I'm not going to make another Thing, I'll tell you that. I'm not going to the Arctic again. I'm not going to do that. I want to take it easy. I want to enjoy myself!

It looks like you can count John Carpenter out of any exotic or extreme destinations for his next project. Might I pitch doing a sequel for The Thing in the Bahamas? It would be a perfectly comfortable and enjoyable for the 70-year-old director if it's all about location, location, location! In his interview with Entertainment Weekly, Carpenter showed an interest in doing something in Europe, Venice specifically. He loves the odd nature of the sinking city, but doesn't have a story to work with just yet. He has also recently developed two new interests, basketball and video games! Carpenter said, 'I love that! That's my job now, to sit around and do nothing!' (So definitely not retired!)

Jokes aside, the incredible director has gifted audiences so much already and deserves to bask in the fruits of his labor! And if he does find the right project that he feels compel to direct, his fans would certainly be thrilled. John Carpenter was hard at work composing the gripping music for the new Halloween including an updated theme for "The Shape". When the new Halloween filmmakers David Gordon Green and Danny McBride penned the script for it, they also approached Carpenter to take a look and gave them notes on it, also offering them advice to make it "relentless." According to CinemaBlend's Sean O'Connell, the new sequel is exactly that.

While you can cross off The Thing as a potential next project from John Carpenter, the director isn't likely to do sequels to any of his other cult classics since he hasn't done them already. He only directed one sequel for Escape from New York with 1996's Escape from L.A. so expect something unexpected. After Halloween, another one of Carpenter's famous directorial projects is returning to the big screen. A sequel to Big Trouble in Little China is currently in the works starring Dwayne Johnson, but Carpenter isn't set to be involved.

A new Halloween, heavily influenced by John Carpenter's classic, comes to theaters on October 19.

Sarah El-Mahmoud
Staff Writer

Sarah El-Mahmoud has been with CinemaBlend since 2018 after graduating from Cal State Fullerton with a degree in Journalism. In college, she was the Managing Editor of the award-winning college paper, The Daily Titan, where she specialized in writing/editing long-form features, profiles and arts & entertainment coverage, including her first run-in with movie reporting, with a phone interview with Guillermo del Toro for Best Picture winner, The Shape of Water. Now she's into covering YA television and movies, and plenty of horror. Word webslinger. All her writing should be read in Sarah Connor’s Terminator 2 voice over.