John Carpenter's Halloween introduced the world to a new serial killer through Michael Myers, who contrary to other slashers had no real reason to go after Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) and friends. Subsequent films tried to explain what was wrong with Michael or what drives him to commit so many murders, and a fan theory suggests that the real villain is actually Dr. Loomis, who basically made Michael Myers.
Though Halloween wasn’t popular with critics when it was released back in 1978, it helped popularize slasher films in the 1980s and played a very important role in developing the genre. This has prompted critics and viewers to reevaluate the film over the years, now considering it one of the best horror films ever made and one of the most influential. Halloween has gone through different retcons and a remake (courtesy of Rob Zombie), but the first one continues to have a special place in film history and in the hearts of fans, who have analyzed it over and over again, coming up with different interpretations of Michael Myers, his actions, and those around him.
One particular interpretation of Halloween suggests that the real villain of the story is Dr. Loomis, who pretty much made Michael Myers into what he is: a serial killer. For this, is important to keep in mind that Halloween wasn’t planned to have sequels, instead being an anthology series of films with Halloween at the core of every story. Now, back to the film, very little is known about Michael Myers because that’s what Carpenter and Debra Hill wanted, with Dr. Loomis offering some backstory to the now-famous slasher. At the beginning of the film, six-year-old Michael Myers stabs his sister to death, and when he’s found outside his family’s home, knife in hand, he looks pretty shocked – which wouldn’t be the expression of a kid with an evil nature, as Loomis later describes him.
What happened between that day and the beginning of the events of Halloween is something only Michael and Loomis know, and as Michael hasn’t said a word in years, Loomis is the only one who can tell what happened. The author of this theory/interpretation suggests that Loomis was lying when he described Michael as a person with “the Devil’s eyes”, which doesn’t really match with the terrified and confused kid standing outside his house. Loomis, then, saw young Michael Myers as the personification of evil because that’s what he wanted – “treat him like a killer and he becomes a killer”. The author then compares Loomis’ actions to those of Victor Frankenstein, as Michael was his experiment just like the creature was Frankenstein’s.
Loomis’ methods to turn Michael into this evil human he was envisioning are open to interpretation, though the author suggests he could have told Michael he was evil and the devil himself while also reminding him constantly of what he did on that Halloween night. This interpretation puts Halloween (and with that the 2018 film as well) under a new light, as Michael would not only be the villain but also a victim, with Dr. Loomis being the one responsible for everything.
