Many scripts came through the office of executive producer Moustapha Akkad that tried to bring Michael Myers back to life. Originally planned for a fall, 2000 release, HALLOWEEN H2K: EVIL NEVER DIES was held up for a year. Miramax executives originally wanted to continue the series using a different storyline. However, poll results collected on this website showed producers that fans wanted Michael Myers back one more time!
The script, originally called HALLOWEEN: MICHAELMYERS.COM, was written by Larry Brand, with re-writes completed by Sean Hood. Casting began in April, 2001, while the script went through numerous re-writes. Director Whitney Ransick was originally attached to the project, but HALLOWEEN II director Rick Rosenthal finally took the helm. Cinema Secrets was enlisted to create the dreaded Michael Myers mask. Production began on May 14th 2001 in Vancouver, Canada, despite early intentions of shooting the film in Salt Lake City, Utah (home of previous sequels). A full scale replica of the original Myers house location was recreated on a stage. Jamie Lee Curtis shot scenes the first week, only staying for 4 days of work on the film. Numerous shots in the film required various video and computer visual effects. As one crew member realized, “We have a movie within a movie.” Some reshoots took place for the film to alter a few sequences.
“I’m proud to have created such a great and enduring character in a horror movie,” Jamie Lee Curtis explained. “And when I learned that Michael Myers still was not dead, I had to come back for HALLOWEEN RESURRECTION. I’m really interested in the idea that the only thing to fear is fear itself. So I wanted to take Laurie to a place where she can look at Michael and say: ‘You lose because I’m no longer afraid of you. Live, die, whatever, it doesn’t matter because the important thing is that your terrorism failed. You’re like nothing. You’re pathetic. You’re a wimp because I will not fear you.”
Rick Rosenthal was pleased to work with his longtime friend Curtis again. “She really captures just how haunted Laurie is by everything she has experienced and where it has brought her,” he revealed. Rosenthal was also excited about the new ideas the film was exploring. “The idea of having each character wear his own camera was a very exciting one and adds a real 21st century, dynamic sensibility to the story. There’s a feeling that it’s all happening in real-time and in real life. To my knowledge, nobody’s ever done this before, so that’s pretty exciting.”
The other actors in the film were excited to be a part of the HALLOWEEN name. “No matter how many times you’ve seen the mask, it makes your stomach just drop,” Bianca Kajlich recalled. Katee Sackhoff was a bit scared during shooting, as well. “…HE was walking down the hallway, and just his breathing started getting to me.”
Tyra Banks agreed. “Horror movies really freak me out,” she admitted. “I was hoping that being in a horror movie would make me less scared. But the minute I saw Michael Myers on the set, I couldn’t help but be spooked – it’s just that his mask is so life-like and yet he’s so devoid of emotion. That got to me.”
Overall, the cast had a great time together. “There was a really great chemistry on the set, and there was always this exciting energy,” Daisy McCrackin said. “Everything just clicked with this cast on camera and off,” recalled Busta Rhymes.
While the crew used a HALLOWEEN 8 working title, Miramax executives labeled the movie HALLOWEEN: THE HOMECOMING and altered the title to the final HALLOWEEN: RESURRECTION in early 2002.
Halloween Resurrection – © 2002 Miramax, LLC.