Halloween Kills, the first of two sequels to David Gordon Green's Halloween (2018), returns to Halloween II's Haddonfield Memorial Hospital, but the medical institution promises to provide a different setting than in its predecessor. Written and directed by John Carpenter, Halloween (1978) starred Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode, Nick Castle as Michael (credited as The Shape), and Donald Pleasence as Dr. Sam Loomis. The slasher movie was such a hit it spawned 12 more films, though many of the sequels received negative reviews. The many Halloween sequels also include a 2007 remake by Rob Zombie and Green's adaptations, which abandon all but the original's canon. Halloween Kills was originally scheduled for release in October 2020, but due to COVID-19, fans will have to wait another year to watch Laurie and Michael face off once again. The trilogy will conclude in 2022 with Halloween Ends.
Directed by Rick Rosenthal, Halloween II was released in 1981; in that regard, Halloween Kills new release date honors Carpenter's original sequel. The story picks up exactly where the first movie leaves off. Dr. Loomis searches the small town of Haddonfield for escaped mental patient and serial killer Michael Myers, while a traumatized Laurie is admitted to Haddonfield Memorial. As the movie's events unfold, nurse Marion Chambers reveals to Loomis that Laurie is Michael's younger sister, providing a motive for why Michael returns to his hometown and hunts down the beleaguered babysitter. Meanwhile, Michael tracks down Laurie to finish what he started, killing multiple staff members along the way. Laurie escapes after setting Michael ablaze, similar to the ending of Green's Halloween movie.
While Halloween Kills' storyline has been largely kept under wraps, a teaser trailer posted online on October 29, 2020 provides a few clues about how Haddonfield Memorial Hospital factors into the plot of Halloween Kills. Gone is the dark, creepy, mostly deserted setting of Halloween II. Michael also abandons his preferred butcher knife in favor of scalpels and syringes. However, Michael won't have as much luck going undetected this time around. There's a lot of quick cutting in the trailer that shows Laurie, her daughter Karen Nelson (Judy Greer), and granddaughter Allyson (Andi Matichek) at the brighter, more populated hospital. There's a shot of Laurie shouting "Michael!" as she's surrounded by a small crowd of people, who appear to be watching Michael commit some unspeakable act. Apparently, word gets out as to Michael's whereabouts because another clip shows an angry mob assembled outside Haddonfield Memorial. It feels as if the hospital will play a huge part in the movie's finale.
Danny McBride, who co-wrote the screenplay with Green, told Empire in July 2020 that the events in Halloween Kills take place the same night, picking up where the first movie ends, just like in Halloween II. McBride stated, “Events in the film bring together a lot of characters who were in the 1978 film who we didn’t see last time. They gather to try, once and for all, to take down Michael to stop this madman.” In the first movie, Laurie has been waiting and preparing for another inevitable showdown with Myers at great personal cost. This time around, Laurie won't be the central character. Green stated, “This first one was more about Laurie’s life of isolation after Michael and her attempts at revenge. It was personal. This is more about the unraveling of a community into chaos. It’s about how fear spreads virally.”
While the original Halloween only left a handful of survivors, many will be back. The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Kyle Richards will reprise her role as Lindsey Wallace, the young charge of Laurie's best friend and Myers' victim, Annie. Anthony Michael Hall will take over the role of Tommy Doyle, who was played by Brian Andrews in the original and Paul Rudd in 1995's Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers. Nancy Stephens is returning as Marion Chambers and Charles Cypher as Sheriff Leigh Brackett. Whether they'll play into the hospital setting remains unknown, but as more details release about Halloween Kills, it's clear that paying homage to Carpenter's original movie was on Green's mind while working on his trilogy.
