Alfonso Zavala, Jr.
Within the past few decades, Hollywood has released legacy sequels and reboots of many well-known film franchises. These include popular titles such as Star Wars and even Jurassic Park (now rebranded as Jurassic World). Many of these recent sequels have been met with extreme controversy due to characters, plot and storytelling decisions which changed canon for better or worse. (All you need to do is go online and watch videos and read comments to see this is true.) If Star Wars is a controversial fandom because of the direction the canon has gone, so is Halloween.
Since 1978, Michael Myers has been an icon in the horror genre and remains as relevant as ever. He is as synonymous as the jack-o’-lantern with the holiday of Halloween itself.[i] Indeed, Halloween’s legacy and impact upon horror cannot be understated, and numerous homages—even rip offs—have followed in its wake. While director John Carpenter originally intended Michael Myers to be in only a single standalone film, the character and his story have taken on a life of their own, with different iterations all attempting to expand upon the original film in the form of reboots and remakes.
Even now, at the time of the writing of this article, there are rumors about the creation of a Halloween television series. Much speculation surrounds this project, including the plot and the suggestion that characters from the original film will return. Also, there has been a recently confirmed official Halloween video game in development set to release sometime in 2026. This franchise has become legendary for the numerous script rewrites and unmade sequel ideas.
Numerous outlandish concepts, as well as ideas about exploring a world beyond Haddonfield and even beyond the iconic killer himself, have been recently uncovered through extensive interviews and books. Not least in this regard, Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982) is very divisive because of the route taken to attempt an anthology series for Halloween that did not include Michael Myers.
However, there is a still more polarizing entry which continues to stir up debate to this very day: The Unrated Producer’s Cut of Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995) – which is, at the time of this writing celebrating the 30th anniversary of its theatrical release.[ii] Screenwriter Daniel Farrands authored the lore surrounding this legendary cut. For years, this version has been on the dark web, with bootleg clips on YouTube. But ever since the Producer’s Cut of H6 received an official release on Blu-Ray back in 2015, and most recently on through Scream Factory! in 2022, I would argue that this entry has become the most controversial entry in the Halloween franchise, even more than Halloween III. The primary reason is because it includes a backstory for Michael Myers which answers a critical question: why did he kill?
Check out the trailer for the 1995 theatrical release of Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers:
Even the official Halloween social media accounts have asked fans their opinions on the ‘Druid Curse of Thorn’ backstory as the explanation behind Michael Myers’ evil. Mixed reactions always appear on these posts, with quite a few expressing their disapproval (in some cases, hatred) for the narrative. A common argument is that it is scarier not to have any backstory for Myers because it leaves him without motive, leaving things to the imagination.
The story was bold and very creative
In spite of this, the Producer’s Cut of Halloween 6 contains a supernatural origin story for the character that arguably makes him far scarier than an ordinary man in a mask who escaped from a mental hospital. Upon face value, the original story was simply a babysitter killer who roamed a quiet middle-class suburban neighborhood. The genius of the story that the Producer’s Cut explores is that it forever changes the way viewers see the original film. It changes everything. Many viewers assumed that Michael Myers was just a psychopath. However, beneath the surface, there was a calculated and methodical approach to his killing and victims. Every kill had a purpose, including those who were simply in the way. The ingenuity of him appearing to be insane masked his actual behavior and goals—which was to serve as a Chosen One empowered by a supernatural curse.
The Druid curse backstory revealed in the Producer’s Cut of Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers did not, in other words, demystify Myers. In fact, it remained faithful and consistent with the vision John Carpenter himself originally had for the character as a supernatural being. It was a narrative, moreover, that was lore rich, enthralling and thought-provoking with a grand conspiracy and eerie mystery. While some critics argue that the supernatural element did not fit Michael Myers, I have to argue the exact opposite.
The cultural and social history of Halloween was crucial
The dark and gothic tone of the Producer’s Cut and the Curse of Thorn added more mystique to Myers while also maintaining the atmosphere from the original film. Screenwriter Daniel Farrands worked with pure creativity and ingenuity. The historical context he uses in incorporating the Druids and their roles in officiating human sacrifices is the cornerstone of the Producer’s Cut and Curse of Thorn backstory. Halloween’s origins can be traced back to the Celtic festival of Samhain (sow-win).[iii] To fully understand the holiday and the franchise, the origins needed to be included.
The continuity worked
Sequels are supposed to acknowledge the first film in any franchise. Anything that was introduced before, such as characters, plot, setting(s), or other worldbuilding should be faithfully adhered to for continuity purposes. What Daniel Farrands did was return the franchise to its roots by having some characters from the original film make a comeback. Alongside Malek Akkad, the executive producer, he effectively tied the franchise together through the sequels in the Producer’s Cut of H6 using creativity and due diligence.
The truth behind Michael Myers was shocking and the ultimate plot twist
The mark of Thorn (left) was the sign that Michael Myers was a Chosen One (right) for the contemporary Druids of his time. The supernatural and witchcraft element of the Curse of Thorn backstory added a deeper meaning and layer to the character and franchise as a whole.
The Producer’s Cut re-introduces Tommy Doyle (here played by Paul Rudd), who was a small child in the 1978 film, being looked after by Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis). After Michael attacked Laurie that night, the eight-year-old Tommy was left traumatized. Now, seventeen years later, Tommy is grown up and has solved the ultimate mystery behind the masked killer who haunted him years before. He spent an undisclosed amount of time trying to figure out what was behind the mask. In a pivotal moment within the film, Tommy explains to another character, Kara Strode, that he has pieced things together and determined that Michael Myers is supernatural.
He makes the correlation between Michael’s actions from 1963 up until the present day by tracking the emergence of a constellation in the night sky. This specific constellation is in the shape of an isosceles triangle, which represents a rune symbol known as “Thorn.” Doyle figures out that every time Michael has re-appeared back in Haddonfield, it has coincided with this Thorn symbol constellation. Moreover, the adult Tommy Doyle determines that Michael’s murders were ritualistic in nature, committed as human sacrifices. The Thorn tattoo Michael was marked with in Halloween 5 (1989) could be best explained away by the fact that it only appeared on his wrist on Halloween and when Thorn summoned him. This is why Dr. Loomis and others did not notice it in earlier installments of the narrative, and it also functioned to mask the clandestine existence of the Cult of Thorn, its leader and true purpose.
It offers an explanation for a major plot hole and guardian for a horror icon
The mysterious Man in Black was the overarching antagonist of the Halloween saga via the Producer’s Cut and held a key role in Michael Myers’s life as his guardian.
Dr. Terence Wynn featured in John Carpenter’s original film. He was briefly seen at Smith’s Grove alongside Dr. Samuel Loomis (Donald Pleasence) discussing the aftermath of Michael’s escape. Originally portrayed by the late actor Robert Phalen, Wynn later returned in Halloween 6 and was played by the late Mitchell Ryan. Ryan’s performance elevated this background character. In the climatic ending of the Producer’s Cut, Wynn is revealed to be the mysterious man in black from Halloween 5 – and is Michael Myers’s guardian. Dr. Wynn was the one who orchestrated Michael’s escape from Smith’s Grove during the events of that movie. He also taught Michael how to drive; thus, answering a decades old question about how did he know how to drive?
The legacy of the producer’s cut and Curse of Thorn
As long as Trancas International Films holds the rights to Halloween and the character of Michael Myers, it will continue to hold the potential for future films and other projects (possibly). However, perhaps one of the most compelling stories ever told about Halloween has arguably already been made in the Producer’s Cut of Halloween 6. It was an entry and backstory that incorporated historical elements to strengthen and add more to a one-dimensional character that was meant to be nothing more than the antagonist of a single film. The Curse of Thorn backstory will perhaps never be revisited by the studio or another director. But fortunately, it is now available to stream and can be found on Blu-Ray and 4K discs. While the legacy of both the holiday and franchise continue to live on, so will the Producer’s Cut and the lore.
Notes
[i] David J. Skal, Halloween: The History of America’s Darkest Holiday (New York: Dover Publications, 2016), 20.
[ii] Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers (Unrated Producer’s Cut), directed by Joe Chapelle, (1995; Los Angeles, CA: Shout! Factory, 2022), 4K Ultra HD.
[iii] Barry Cunliffe, Druids: A Very Short Introduction (New York: Oxford University Press, 2010), 2-3.
Alfonso Zavala, Jr., is a Virginia Tech alumnus with an M.A. in History. Originally from a small town in a rural part of Washington State, he now resides in Richmond, VA. He has been a diehard Halloween fan since 2020. It was during the pandemic that he watched the Unrated Producer’s Cut of Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995) for the first time. Despite being aware of it beforehand, after finally watching it, he was convinced that the supernatural origin story for Michael Myers not only made sense but was a prime example of excellent storytelling in Horror. He champions the Druid Curse of Thorn backstory for Myers. As far as he is concerned it is the definitive story for Halloween and canon. Currently, Alfonso is completing an MLIS through Old Dominion University. He eventually hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in Film & Cinema Studies.
