Rohan Campbell, star of Halloween Ends, was warned by director David Gordon Green that he might receive backlash for his role in the movie. Halloween Ends marks the thirteenth and last installment of the Halloween trilogy begun by the director in 2018. While it supposedly marks Laurie Strode's last appearance, it may not be the end of Michael Myers. Green also directed Halloween (2018) and Halloween Kills (2021). Halloween Ends released on October 14 in theaters and on Peacock. At the box office, Halloween Ends made less than initially predicted but still managed to break a streaming record for Peacock.
The movie stars Jamie Lee Curtis and James Jude Courtney, actors who are of course very familiar to fans of the franchise. But in an unexpected move, Halloween Ends added Campbell to the mix as Corey Cunningham, a brand new main character. Many were surprised, confused, and even upset that a new main character was introduced for the very last Halloween movie when they were expecting it to mainly be focused on Laurie Strode (Curtis) and Michael Myers (Courtney) having one last battle. Corey has a lot of screentime in Halloween Ends, superseding even that of Michael Myers himself.
Now, Campbell shares with Variety that Green went out of his way to warn him that he might receive a lot of hate for his role in the movie. Even Campbell himself wasn’t aware of how prominently Halloween Ends would feature him - before he first read the script, he assumed his character would die by page 10. He was cast three years ago and had to keep his role under wraps the whole time, as Green didn’t want to give away the bold screenwriting and casting choice. But once the movie came out and fans found out about Campbell’s prominent role in the movie, Green predicted some fans might be upset with Campbell. Check out Campbell’s quote, below:
“When David offered me the role he was like, ‘I need you to know that a lot of people are going to really, really, really not be happy with what we’re choosing to do here. You’ll probably hear a lot of that.’ Jamie [Lee Curtis] reached out and said the same thing.”
Why Corey Is A Divisive Addition To Halloween Ends
Fans and critics alike did end up criticizing how heavily the film focuses on its new characters. Green’s prediction was correct - Campbell’s character specifically has been the focus of a lot of the backlash. Many have noted that the film feels unfocused, leaving them feeling lost in terms of figuring out the movie’s tone and what it was actually about. Not to mention, Michael Myers himself barely had any screen time. Some have even gone so far as to say that the movie doesn’t even feel like it was part of the Halloween franchise at all.
All that being said, some fans and critics actually found the movie’s departure from the franchise's patterns to be refreshing. They felt making such a bold choice was a risky move that ended up paying off and making for a more interesting movie. Corey's role also underscored some important themes of the franchise so, while he may have been a divisive addition, he still managed to be an integral part of Michael Myers' saga. Regardless of if Halloween Ends is truly the franchise’s last movie, it will certainly be remembered as one of the series’ most divisive entries.
Source: Variety