The success of “Halloween Ends” has put Michael Myers and Jamie Lee Curtis back in the spotlight, but it also provided horror fans with an opportunity to pause and appreciate John Carpenter. While Carpenter is no longer at the helm of the series (though he contributed music to all of David Gordon Green’s reboots), many cinephiles will always see him as the face of the slasher franchise he created.
In a new interview with Vulture, the unfiltered director and composer was asked about his thoughts on the “Halloween” franchise. As it turns out, he doesn’t have many of them.
“I don’t care,” Carpenter said when asked about the franchise’s legacy. “I really don’t care.”
The filmmaker explained that, despite creating Michael Myers, he doesn’t feel much ownership over the other films featuring the iconic slasher villain.
“The ‘Halloween’ movie I love the most is the one I made back in 1978, the one I directed,” he said. “Others are other people’s visions. That’s the way it goes. That’s what happens when you give up. I didn’t want to direct sequels. I didn’t think there was story left. Boy, was I wrong, huh?”
While Carpenter appreciates the money he receives when people remake his films, he doesn’t spend much time thinking about the quality of those remakes.
“There are two kinds of remakes for me,” he said. “One is where I’m the originator of the material. I wrote the screenplay. Two: It was an assignment from the studio. ‘We want you to do this.’ If it’s an assignment from the studio, they don’t pay me when they do a remake. They own the material. If I’ve generated the screenplay, they have to pay me. That’s the kind of sequel I like. My movie exists. Make your own. You want to pay me a bunch of bucks, fine. Have a great time.”
That lack of sentimentality extends to his existing films, as Carpenter also revealed that he has little interest in going back and rewatching his own work.
“Never. I don’t want to see it,” he said. “When I watch my old movies, I see the mistakes and the things I didn’t do and I start looking like, ‘What am I doing? That’s stupid. Why didn’t I do this?’ That’s painful. I don’t want to do that, so I don’t watch.”
In a new interview with Vulture, the unfiltered director and composer was asked about his thoughts on the “Halloween” franchise. As it turns out, he doesn’t have many of them.
“I don’t care,” Carpenter said when asked about the franchise’s legacy. “I really don’t care.”
The filmmaker explained that, despite creating Michael Myers, he doesn’t feel much ownership over the other films featuring the iconic slasher villain.
“The ‘Halloween’ movie I love the most is the one I made back in 1978, the one I directed,” he said. “Others are other people’s visions. That’s the way it goes. That’s what happens when you give up. I didn’t want to direct sequels. I didn’t think there was story left. Boy, was I wrong, huh?”
While Carpenter appreciates the money he receives when people remake his films, he doesn’t spend much time thinking about the quality of those remakes.
“There are two kinds of remakes for me,” he said. “One is where I’m the originator of the material. I wrote the screenplay. Two: It was an assignment from the studio. ‘We want you to do this.’ If it’s an assignment from the studio, they don’t pay me when they do a remake. They own the material. If I’ve generated the screenplay, they have to pay me. That’s the kind of sequel I like. My movie exists. Make your own. You want to pay me a bunch of bucks, fine. Have a great time.”
That lack of sentimentality extends to his existing films, as Carpenter also revealed that he has little interest in going back and rewatching his own work.
“Never. I don’t want to see it,” he said. “When I watch my old movies, I see the mistakes and the things I didn’t do and I start looking like, ‘What am I doing? That’s stupid. Why didn’t I do this?’ That’s painful. I don’t want to do that, so I don’t watch.”