Is Halloween Already Erasing The Reboot Trilogy?

An update on the newest project in the Halloween franchise helps clarify whether the reboot trilogy will be erased from the canon. The slasher franchise’s most recent installments were the trilogy of Blumhouse movies directed by David Gordon Green that premiered between 2018 and 2022. However, in 2023 it was announced that Miramax would be partnering with Trancas to develop a television show that would continue the franchise, with the possibility of expanding into a new cinematic universe.

The development of a new project in the franchise seems to contradict the conclusive ending of 2022’s Halloween Ends, which saw the decisive defeat of serial killer Michael Myers by his longtime target Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis). This isn’t entirely uncommon in the timeline of the Halloween movies. Different stretches of the canon have been erased at different times, including the seventh movie H20: Twenty Years Later ignoring the third through sixth movies and the 2018 reboot retconning everything but the original John Carpenter movie.

The Halloween TV Show Is Going Back To The Origins Of The Franchise

John Carpenter’s 1978 movie is the guiding force

The question of the possible erasure of the Halloween reboot trilogy seems to have been answered in a recent Deadline interview with Marc Helwig, the Head Of Worldwide Television for Miramax. He explained that the show will be focusing on expanding elements from Carpenter’s 1978 original. He described it as a complete “creative reset” that will explore characters from that movie and those in their periphery, with the potential to expand on those that have not been heavily featured in recent installments. Read his full quote on the topic below:

“The foundation of it is the original film, the John Carpenter movie, the characters of that film, and perhaps a group of characters that we haven’t really focused on that much in recent film versions or even in a number of them. It’s a creative reset completely and going back to the original film, as opposed to spinning out of any of the more recent film adaptations.”

This pronouncement still leaves the storyline of the upcoming show somewhat unclear. It seems highly probable that Halloween‘s Michael Myers will return in the show, as he is the primary antagonist of all but one of the movies, including the installments that do not feature Laurie Strode. However, if the plan is to largely eschew many legacy characters who have appeared in recent installments, the sheer amount of returning stars in the Blumhouse trilogy limits the number of in-canon characters from the original movie who are left to be explored.

Halloween Ends Is Still Considered The “Conclusion”

The show’s timeline likely won’t intersect with the trilogy

Regardless of which characters will be chosen to appear in the new show, the project does not ignore the canon of the Blumhouse trilogy. In his interview, Helwig shared that Halloween Ends is still considered the proper conclusion to the franchise and that the new show isn’t viewed as an “opportunity to go off the back of that.” This means that the canon of the trilogy will be preserved, which includes important developments like Myers’ death and divisive characters like Corey Cunningham (Rohan Campbell), the newfound acolyte of the serial killer.

Halloween Ends and its preceding two installments being in the canon does not mean that those storylines and characters will be involved in the show. It seems highly probable that the show will be a prequel set long before the events of the reboot trilogy, perhaps during the 40 years between Michael’s first attack and his return to Haddonfield in 2018. There is also a chance that it could be set during the time that Myers was in Dr. Loomis’ care after he was incarcerated as a young child, something that was not shown onscreen in the original movie.

What The Halloween Show’s Focus Means For The Franchise

The franchise’s path seems clear

Considering this update, it seems very likely that the road map for the Halloween show has already been drawn up. Helwig’s revelation implies that the show will be filling in gaps in the canon as opposed to telling a new story that contradicts those that have already been told in the original movie and the reboot trilogy. This likely won’t directly include Laurie Strode, who has canonically steered clear of Myers since the 1978 attack, but it allows the universe to expand without the erasure of any more of the franchise.

The fact that the new Halloween trilogy will not be retconned does lead to some wrinkles in the new show, however. The modern movies actively erased the canonical developments of every other sequel to the original movie, including the reveal that Michael and Laurie were siblings, Laurie’s children Jamie Lloyd (Danielle Harris) and John Tate (Josh Hartnett), and – for obvious reasons – Laurie’s death at Michael’s hands. The project will have to honor the legacy of the 1978 movie without acknowledging any of the early sequels that cemented that legacy, which could ultimately make the canon even more complicated.