Michael Myers is finally returning to the big screen in Dimension Films’ Halloween Returns, though Bloody Disgusting reports that – contrary to previous information – the horror slasher update won’t be rolling cameras this month. Instead, it’s expected that production will kick off in the fall to properly capture the look and feel of Halloween.
The site has also unearthed some killer details about the plot of the franchise “recalibration,” which The Collector helmer Marcus Dunstan is directing from a script he wrote with his Saw collaborator Patrick Melton.
Apparently, Halloween Returns is being eyed as a standalone pic designed to reintroduce audiences to Michael Myers years after his original killing spree. That means the original John Carpenter flick and probably its sequel are canon, but the other sequels and Rob Zombie’s remakes will most definitely not be (which is a very smart call).
This new film picks up with some fresh blood in the form of a group of Haddonfield teens, including the 18-year-old child of one of Myers’ victims and the child of a cop who has been consumed with the pursuit of Myers for years. With the killer finally on death row, the two kids, both holding personal vendettas against Myers, sneak in to watch his execution. When events take a turn for the unexpected and Myers escapes, however, the pair find themselves in grave danger.
Whether these two kids are going to be one-off victims or the new faces of the franchise remains to be seen, but Dimension is banking on Halloween Returns to revitalize the series after Zombie’s unremarkable pair of movies sent interest plummeting. With cameras rolling this fall, it’s a safe bet that we’ll see the latest Michael Myers outing by next Halloween, or possibly even earlier, but we’ll keep you posted.