Summary
Quentin Tarantino was once on deck to write the sixth movie in theHalloweenhorror franchise, and while that never came to be, his core concept resurfaced in the last chapter of the reboot trilogy,Halloween Ends. TheHalloweenfranchise has gone through multiple iterations (and an upcomingHalloweenTV show) since the original, with different lines of continuity. While Rob Zombie’sHalloweenreboot from the late 2000s stands on its own, all other sequels and reboots (exceptHalloween III: Season of the Witch, which is a separate anthology) can be traced back toHalloween(1978) andHalloween II(1981).
While there have been 13Halloweenmovies made since the franchise began, none of them have ever come close to the quality of the original. Following the abysmal reviews for the four immediate sequels to the original, the (at the time) up-and-coming Quentin Tarantino was tapped to take onHalloween 6. Obviously that never came to fruition, and instead of a Tarantino-written sequel, audiences gotHalloween: The Curse of Micahel Myers, which is the worst movie in the franchise byRotten Tomatoes' Tomatometer. However, Tarantino’s main idea for the sequel wound up in the franchise anyway.
Halloween: What Unmasked Michael Myers Looks Like In David Gordon Green’s Trilogy
Here’s what Michael Myers' unmasked face looks like in Halloween Kills, the second installment in David Gordon Green’s Halloween trilogy.
Quentin Tarantino’s Halloween Idea Was Used With Michael Myers & Corey Cunningham
The concept of giving Michael a partner was at the center ofHalloween Ends
At the end ofHalloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers, a captured Michael is set loose from prison by a mysterious man in black who decimates the police station Michael is being held in. It would have been for Tarantino to figure out who the man in black was, and why he freed Michael from prison. PerIndiewire,Tarantino would have had the man in black and Michael start the movie on a road trip down Route 66, during which Michael would kill people at every stop they made.
Tarantino’s idea forHalloween 6is regarded as an inspiring element forNatural Born Killers, the 1994 Oliver Stone-directed romantic crime film that features a couple committing a series of murders on a road trip.
The concept of giving Michael Myers a partner wound up being a key subplot inHalloween Ends.InHalloween Ends, a young man named Corey Cunningham who is an outcast in Haddonfield discovers Michael hiding in the town’s sewers, is subsequently infected by Michael’s evil, and commits a series of murders at first with Michael’s help, and then using Michael’s mask himself. It’s not a direct execution of Tarantino’s original idea, butthe echoes of his original concept are definitely present.
Why Michael Myers & Corey Cunnigham’s Connection In Halloween Ends Was So Divisive
It contradicts everything that’s been established about “The Shape”
The connection between Corey Cunningham and Michael Myers was one of the most controversial elements of the much-malignedHalloween Ends, with many fans pointing out how unrealistic and impossible the connection was. Michael Myers began as “The Shape” inHalloween(1978), a faceless evil who attacks Laurie Strode seemingly at random, as they were not revealed to be siblings untilHalloween II. Having Michael Myers obey Corey’s wishes and work together with him as opposed to murdering him immediately wasan affront to everything that Michael Myers is supposed to be.
1978
96%
2018
79%
2021
39%
2022
40%
Furthermore, Corey is established as the main character, and is even able to overpower Michael Myers and steal his mask.Die-hard franchise fans found that borderline insulting, and while Michael did eventually kill Corey and reclaim his mask, the damage was done. While the idea of Michael’s murderous legacy being passed on to a new person in Haddonfield might have been effective,Corey’s story was in the wrong movie; it needed to occur well beforeHalloween Endsin the Blumhouse continuity so that it could be properly built up.
Halloween
TheHalloweenfranchise, created by John Carpenter and Debra Hill, is one of the longest-running horror franchises in cinema. Debuting withHalloween(1978), it introduced audiences to Michael Myers, a masked killer terrorizing the fictional town of Haddonfield on Halloween night. Spanning over 13 films, including sequels, remakes, and reboots, the franchise centers around Michael’s relentless pursuit of his original target, Laurie Strode.Halloweenhas become a cultural staple, inspiring the slasher genre and generating comics, novels, and video games, with a new television series currently in development.
