By Spencer Coile
Although filming for the Halloween sequel began several weeks ago, fans of the horror movie franchise were given another jolt of excitement today when scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis took to social media and posted a photo from the set.
There's so much to unpack in the behind-the-scenes promo...
First shot! First day. Same slate. Same Laurie. David Gordon Green directing from his script. Happy Halloween 2018 everyone. See you 10/19/18 @halloweenmovie #HalloweenMovie pic.twitter.com/iSC7NOblEA
— Jamie Lee Curtis (@jamieleecurtis) January 30, 2018
Same slate? Same Laurie? There is so much to unpack here!
There is still very little known about the final(?) chapter in the saga between Laurie Strode (Curtis) and her knife-wielding brother, Michael Mayers. But here is what we do know: the screenplay (approved by creator John Carpenter) will take place 40 years after the original Halloween, and will be a direct sequel to the horror classic. That's right - nothing from Halloween II and beyond will exist. Which is fortunate, considering Laurie actually died in Halloween: Resurrection in 2002. And let's not even get into Rob Zombie's reinvention of the Halloween universe.
;)
So where does that leave us?
Ignoring many of the problems that befell the Halloween saga after its first film might offer a refreshing take on the series. Additionally, the use of the slate from the original film is a delightful surprise - not only because you can faintly read Carpenter's name under Green's, but perhaps this will mean a return to the classic scares and surprises Halloween offered. Danny McBride, who co-wrote the screenplay, claims:
I think we're just trying to strip it down and just take it back to what was so good about the original. It was just very simple and just achieved that level of horror that wasn't corny and it wasn't turning Michael Myers into some being that couldn't be killed. That stuff to me isn't scary. I want to be scared by something that I really think could happen. I think it's much more horrifying to be scared by someone standing in the shadows while you're taking the trash out as opposed to someone who can't be killed pursuing you.
And if all of that was not enough to make this Halloween sequel promising, also remember that Judy Greer will be playing Laurie's daughter, Karen Strode. With so little else known we still have months to fret over the details before October 19 rolls around. What questions or concerns or fantasies do you have?