Myers heads into uncharted territory
Since his father’s untimely passing in 2005, Malek Akkad has been tasked with overseeing Michael Myers’ legacy since the killer’s rebirth in Rob Zombie’s 2007 Halloween remake. When this writer last spoke with the amiable producer in early ’07 and asked if a follow-up to the redo was inevitable, Akkad had smiled after a long draw on his cigarette and said, “Never say never.” Two years later, Akkad and Zombie are back for H2 which sees much of the remake’s ensemble cast returning.
Last night, on the frigid Georgia set where ShockTillYouDrop.com witnessed a fraction of the sequel’s finale, Akkad once again fielded the unavoidable topic of the franchise’s future. “This is taking it to a place the fans have never seen before,” he admitted. “To me, that’s exciting because it’s a whole new side to Michael, a whole new look to Michael. Where we go from here is anyone’s guess, we’re just focusing on this one right now.” Should it carry on, it sounds like distributor Dimension Films – who has the right to produce future chapters – will have to mine for new ideas. “I think Rob has ended it in a way that is very satisfying and complete. It feels like these two films are Rob’s take. We’ll address it if we see the possibility to go forward later, but the potential’s there.”
Akkad is cognizant of the disparate fan reactions surrounding Zombie’s chosen vision for Myers and Haddonfield, but he doesn’t think it’s fair to let these opinions sway the creative decisions currently fueling the series. “This is a Rob Zombie film and I believe in that 100%. I want to give him all of the tools he needs. If [fan opinions] affect what he does, I highly doubt it. He writes the story he wants to tell and ultimately, obviously we want the fans to love it. But I think you fall into a trap if you try to please everybody. There are going to be the die-hards that are never going to be happy unless it’s frame-by-frame John Carpenter’s version. The thing we talked about before we did the first version, we wanted something completely different. This is Rob’s version.”
Source: Ryan Rotten, Managing Editor
