For the diehard horror aficionados out there, the bit of trivia being discussed today may already be known to you. But for those who don’t dig as deep into the material or may be seeing Halloween III: Season of the Witch for the first time this fall, there’s no better time to give them this explanation.
As you begin viewing your slasher marathons on either home video or cable television, there’s a good chance the Halloween franchise will make it into your rotation. And if you wind up binge-watching the entire series, then you may be confused as to why the iconic Michael Myers is entirely absent (save for a small nod you’ll have to see for yourself) from the threequel.
Basically, the explanation that’s been offered for the longest time is that Halloween had been envisioned by the producers to be an anthology series of sorts. In other words, once Michael had been dispatched for all intents and purposes upon the conclusion to Halloween II, the creators would move on and tell other spooky tales revolving around October 31st.
Well, as it fate had it, the change in direction didn’t go over as well with moviegoers as intended. The general public had understandably gotten attached to the Shape and wanted more of him. As such, he was taken off the bench as soon as possible for Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers, and the rest is history.
Still, Halloween III: Season of The Witch holds its place in the annals of horror history, and it remains a cult classic to those who enjoyed it. Heck, there’s even been a fan-made sequel. And when it comes to references in other media, extreme metal outfit Cradle of Filth paid their own tribute with their remastered cover of Samhain’s “Halloween II” in the form of “Halloween III: Season of the Bitch.”
But if Michael is more of your thing, you can next catch him in Halloween Kills when that arrives in theaters on October 16th, 2020.