Michael Myers may have gone too far this time. While horror fans have stuck by The Shape as he’s murdered his way through the town of Haddonfield and beyond over the past 40 years, Halloween Kills is turning out to be controversial for a number of reasons. Many feel that the sequel goes too far with its bloodlust and offed too many characters. Including an innocent couple fans wished Michael had left alive. Spoilers for the movie incoming…
At one point in the film, Myers returns to his childhood home and kills the unsuspecting gay couple that lives there. Though minor characters, this couple was a rare bit of LGBTQ+ representation in the Halloween franchise, so folks weren’t pleased they were butchered. In fact, it’s led to Michael being labelled “homophobic” on social media.
We could handle all the murders, but now it’s time to cancel Michael Myers.
He’s lost all our respect.
It’s a weird coincidence that Kills‘ release comes the same week as Syfy’s Chucky TV series kicked off, featuring a scene in which the evil doll shows acceptance for his gender-fluid child (see Seed of Chucky for context).
Chucky might be a serial killer, but he’s not a monster.
This is an unexpected development.
On the other hand, some people are defending Michael against the homophobia accusations. They’re even trying to argue he showed the gay couple respect he doesn’t to others.
He’s actually a non-discriminatory serial killer.
Obviously, (most of) these reactions to Michael’s actions are tongue-in-cheek, but other aspects of Kills have resulted in more serious grumbles. One petition calls for the scenes of Myers brutalizing some firefighters to be removed, while many are disappointed in the death of a prominent female character during the film’s climax.
If you haven’t done so yet, you can catch Halloween Kills in theaters and on Peacock now.