Horror icon Michael Myers is on the verge of retreating to the shadows once more, with The Wrap and Bloody Disgusting reporting that Dimension Films has lost franchise rights to Halloween, effectively scuppering plans for the long-gestating Halloween Returns sequel/reboot.
Originally pegged to start production in July, question marks began to loom large over the production of Dimension and Trancas International Films’ reintroduction of the dormant franchise, which was to be helmed by Marcus Dunstan with a script by Patrick Melton. Sources close to the project now claim that Dimension has lost its hold on the Halloween IP, with Miramax Films stepping in to shop the property to other Hollywood studios.
At least, that’s according to The Wrap, revealing that Dimension had pumped the brakes on Returns long before today’s news broke. In fact, back in October, franchise producer Malek Akkad cast doubt over the progress of the sequel, stating to Daily Dead that “unfortunately things happen in Hollywood where you have issues with studios and different variables—we’ve had to take a step back and now we’re trying to refigure this beast that is the new ‘Halloween.’”
With the rights to Halloween up in the air, Bloody Disgusting’s scoop has spawned a guessing game of which studio will take the plunge. As the outlet points out, both Warner Bros. and New Line have bolstered their roster of horror icons in recent years, holding the license to Jason Voorhees, Freddy Krueger and Leatherface. Could Michael Myers be rubbing shoulders with his demented peers before long? Time will tell.
Despite Dimension’s best intentions, Halloween remains as dormant as ever, though will Miramax Films be able to set up the franchise at a new studio to salvage Halloween Returns? We’ll keep you posted as this story develops.