Halloween Reboot: Title & Director Confirmed

Some months after word got out that the ‘Halloween’ series was set to be ‘recalibrated’ (no, we’re still not sure how that differs from a remake or reboot), some surprising new details have emerged about the new film.

It was reported this Saturday by Moviehole, and confirmed Monday by Dimension Films and Trancas International Films (via Shock Till You Drop), that iconic masked maniac Michael Myers will return in… ‘Halloween Returns.’

Hmm… given that Halloween has a tendency to return every year, this strikes us as a rather ill-judged title. But we suppose it can work insofar as it establishes this as what would seem to be a standalone sequel to the original two (not unlike ‘Superman Returns,’ although that isn’t necessarily the most promising point of reference…)

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According to the brief synopsis Moviehole shared (which Dimension and Trancas International have neither confirmed nor refuted), ‘Halloween Returns’ is set 18 years after the events of the original 1978 ‘Halloween’ - and potentially 1981′s ‘Halloween II,’ which was set the same night.

Moviehole’s synopsis describes 'Halloween Returns' as a “standalone film set to reintroduce audiences to Michael Myers years after his initial rampage.

Reportedly the film “will pit a new group of Haddonfield youngsters against Myers. The now 18-year-old child of one of Myers’ victims plays a central role along with the child of a cop whose long been obsessed with Myers’ case, even putting it before his own daughter.

“Myers is now on death row and the two kids with their own personal vendettas against the killer sneak in to watch his execution. But when things go awry and Myers escapes, the pair, along with their friends, find themselves in the firing line.”

The other big news, announced by Dimension and Trancas International, is that ‘Halloween Returns’ will be helmed by Marcus Dunstan, director of ‘The Collector’ and its sequel ‘The Collection,’ and one half of a successful horror writing duo with Patrick Melton. The duo have also penned ‘Halloween Returns.’

Melton and Dunstan previously co-wrote ‘Saw’ parts 4 to 7, the ‘Feast’ trilogy, and ‘Piranaha 3DD.’

This will be the twelfth film in the famed slasher series, and the first since 2009′s ‘Halloween II,’ writer-director Rob Zombie’s divisive follow-up to his already divisive 2007 remake.

Thus far all indications have been that this latest incarnation of ‘Halloween’ will not in any way acknowledge the reboot cycle. Setting the film 18 years after the original murders would also seem to preclude the possibility of Scout Taylor-Compton returning as Laurie Strode a third time, despite the actress expressing an interest in returning.

Dimension’s Bob Weinstein enthuses, “Michael Myers has taken a long break from the big screen and we know fans are eager to see him return.  We are excited to be back in business with Trancas and look forward to bringing one of the scariest installments of this classic franchise to audiences worldwide.”

Trancas International’s Malek Akkad (son of original series producer, the late Moustapha Akkad) adds, “The legacy of Halloween is something that Trancas is very proud of, and I look forward to working together again with Bob and Dimension to continue that tradition.”

'Halloween Returns’ will shoot in July; no release dates have been announced yet.

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Picture Credit: Dimension Films