What should you know about the Halloween 2018 movie?

In 2018, Halloween stalked its way into cinema screens. The slasher movie, focused on the return of iconic serial killer, Michael Myers, as he ventured back to his hometown of Haddonfield after decades of being locked up in an institute.  

In the movie, Myers has spent 40 years at the Smith’s Grove Psychiatric Hospital, following a murder spree he committed in 1978. However, after managing to escape confinement, he returns to his old neighbourhood to pick up where he left off.

Chief amongst his goals is to hunt down Laurie Strode (as played by Jamie Lee Curtis) – a former victim who managed to escape Myers’s reign of terror back in ‘78. But what Myers doesn’t know is that Strode has spent decades preparing for his return, and is ready for a final showdown.

Now, if you’re familiar with the above premise then chances are you are familiar with Halloween 2018. But just how familiar with the movie are you? A little bit? A lot? Not quite sure? Well, don’t worry, because in this post I am taking a look back over the movie with 18 facts about Halloween 2018.

The little nuggets of information contained in this post will provide you with some background details about the movie, as well as a few insights into the Halloween series. So, whether you’re a long-time fan or you’re a newcomer, there’s plenty to learn.

Let’s get started…

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Calling the shots

Halloween 2018 was directed by David Gordon Green. If you’re not familiar with Green as a horror director it is because prior to 2018, he was known for helming dramas and comedies!

Some of Green’s movies include Pineapple Express (2008), Your Highness (2011), and The Sitter (2011) – which are certainly not horror movies!

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The joke’s on you

David Gordon Green’s appointment as director of Halloween 2018 was not the only left-field choice for the movie. One of the film’s writers was Danny McBride – a writer and actor, best-known for comedic appearances in films such as Tropic Thunder (2008), Your Highness (2011), and Sausage Party (2016).

McBride wrote the script for Halloween 2018 along with David Gordon Green and Jeff Fradley.

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The legacy

Although Halloween 2018 is a direct sequel to the 1978 slasher movie, Halloween, picking up the story 40 years after the events of the original film, in reality the movie is the eleventh entry in the Halloween series. The ten previous movies include: Halloween (1978), Halloween II (1981), Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982), Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1988), Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers (1989), Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995), Halloween H20 (1998), Halloween: Resurrection (2002), Halloween (2007), and Halloween II (2009).  

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Push the button

Hang on a minute. If Halloween 2018 is the eleventh movie in the series, how is it a direct sequel to the original? Simple: Halloween 2018 pushes the reset button on the franchise and ignores every movie from the Halloween timeline, with the exception of the original!

So, for audiences who have never watched Halloween II or Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers etc, it’s not a problem – simply watch the original movie, before jumping straight to the 2018 film and you won’t have any issues understanding what’s going on!

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Rewind

Onto the film now, and shortly after the movie begins, a credit sequence takes place which shows an image of a crumpled pumpkin transform into a full-sized Jack-o-lantern. How was this piece of technological wizardry achieved?! Very simply, actually.

The visual effects team achieved this visual effect by filming a pumpkin as it decays. The footage was then played back in reverse, allowing the pumpkin to effectively rewind the decaying process.

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Faking it

Halloween 2018 looks pretty seasonal, right? Well yes, it does; however, while the movie might go to great lengths to convey the Halloween season, Halloween 2018 was actually filmed during the months of January and February, with some additional shots captured in June.

The film’s only connection to the month of October was the film’s release date.

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Paying dues

While Halloween 2018 does ignore almost all of the Halloween movies that came before it, it should be noted that it still manages to pay homage to the abandoned sequels.

At multiple points throughout the film, Halloween 2018 makes brief nods to its own legacy, such as including the Silver Shamrock masks from Halloween III: Season of the Witch and namechecking Halloween: Resurrection. However, these references are purely in-jokes for fans, and nothing more.  

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A step back in time

Halloween 2018’s homages and self-referential nods and winks aren’t just confined to the sequels, the film is also littered with visual references to 1978’s Halloween. Certain shots are used in Halloween 2018 which replay events from that original movie, that fans will easily spot.

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Casting call

While the biggest focus of Halloween 2018 is the return of Jamie Lee Curtis in the role of chief protagonist, Laurie Strode, Curtis is not the only actor to return to the franchise. Nick Castle – the actor who played Michael Myers in the original film – briefly played Michael for one scene in the 2018 movie.

P.J. Soles also pops up in the role of a teacher. Soles previously played Laurie’s friend, Lynda, back in the ’78 film.

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The man behind the mask

Although Nick Castle returned to the role of Michael Myers (as stated above), the actor behind almost all of Michael’s scenes in Halloween 2018 is James Jude Courtney. Courtney is credited as ‘The Shape’ during the end credits of the movie, which is how Michael is credited in the original movie.

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Who was that?

During the course of Halloween 2018, there are a couple of references to Dr. Sam Loomis – Michael’s former psychiatrist who played a key role in the original Halloween, as well as its subsequent sequels. In those movies, Loomis was played by Donald Pleasence, who sadly passed away in 1995.

For Halloween 2018, Loomis is represented through court drawings and sketches, as well as a voice recording. This voice is not Pleasence, but instead actor Colin Mahan, doing a Pleasence impersonation.

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Sartain

With Loomis no longer physically present in the Halloween movie series, Michael gains a new psychiatrist in Halloween 2018, in the form of Dr. Ranbir Sartain – a former student of Sam Loomis. For those not familiar with any of the previous Halloween movies, Sartain is a completely new character, created entirely for Halloween 2018 and has not appeared in any of the other movies.  

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Child support

For Halloween 2018, Judy Greer joined the cast to take on the role of Laurie Strode’s daughter, Karen Nelson. Due to the convoluted nature of the Halloween movie timeline, Karen is technically Laurie’s third child, following Jamie Lloyd (Halloween 4) and John Tate (Halloween H20).

However, because Halloween 2018 ignores all of the previous sequels, Karen is Laurie’s only daughter. So, if you’re wondering where Jamie and John are, you need to remember that these characters no longer exist in the 2018 timeline.  

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The Halloween connection

And sticking with Greer for a moment…

If you’re a fan of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, you’ll recognise Judy Greer as Maggie Lang – ex-wife to Scott Lang aka Ant-Man, as played by Paul Rudd. But did you know that Rudd is no stranger to the Halloween movie series himself?

Long before he was Ant-Man, Rudd took on the role of Tommy Doyle for Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995). So, before appearing on screen together, both Rudd and Greer have had their fair share of dealings with Myers over the years.

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Lonnie

During the course of Halloween 2018, the film introduces the character Cameron, who is referred to as the son of Lonnie. But who is Lonnie?

Fans of the original ’78 film will be familiar with Lonnie, as he was one of the kids who bullied a young Tommy Doyle.

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Miles to go?

Recognise the face of Dave in Halloween 2018? You should – that’s actor Miles Robbins who has appeared in movies such as Blockers (2018) and Daniel Isn’t Real (2019), and on television via The X-Files. He is also the son of Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins.

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Sounds familiar

If the music of Halloween 2018 sounds familiar it is because it is co-written by John Carpenter. Not only did Carpenter direct the original Halloween, he also wrote the film’s score (as well as the score for Halloween II and III).

Carpenter agreed to return for the 2018 film to co-write the new soundtrack, along with his son Cody Carpenter and his godson Daniel Davies. The 2018 score takes inspiration and themes from the original, while updating the sound for a new era.

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Smash hit

And finally… upon release, Halloween 2018 was both a critical and commercial success, which went on to take over $255.6 million at the box office, from a budget of $10 million – $15 million.

Due to the success of the movie’s opening weekend, director David Gordon Green and Universal Pictures quickly announced that more films would follow, including Halloween Kills (2021) and Halloween Ends (2022). These two entries would continue on from the events of Halloween 2018 and conclude the Michael Myers/Laurie Strode story.

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Thank you for taking the time to read this post about Halloween 2018 – I hope the information has proved useful and has got you in the mood for a spooky movie. For more posts that you should also find useful, be sure to check out the recommended reads below.

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