After more than four decades portraying Laurie Strode in the Halloween movie franchise, Jamie Lee Curtis looks set to say goodbye to Michael Myers. The public will soon be able to watch the latest standoff between the two when Halloween ends will premiere on October 14. The expected final has been a long time coming, as Curtis has been performing Laurie for 45 years. in a interview with Entertainment Weeklythe actress said of her character:
“I now have to cut her loose and let her live in the minds and hearts of the fans who have supported her. I can now go and do my own thing.”
The horror icon also discussed her experience filming 1978 Halloween, the film that propelled her to scream queen status. In the early 1980s, following the film’s success, Curtis starred in a number of horror cult classics, including The Fog, Prom Night, Terror Trainand Halloween II. In 1983, she appeared in the John Landis comedy Trading places, paving the way for a successful career in different genres. While Curtis is the daughter of actors Janet Leigh (psychosis) and Tony Curtis (The Rebels), she told EW that she never really had “aspirations” to act. Of course, she was then cast as Laurie Strode, and the rest is history. During her interview, the actress spoke fondly about her experience on the set of Halloween:
“I remember how much I loved being part of that group of young filmmakers. I’d been on television before, where it was all older union teams, and [on Halloween]the oldest person on the crew was John Carpenter, and he was 30. So it was a bunch of young guys, and me, and they were playing Steely Dan’s ‘Hey Nineteen’ and I was 19. It was just beautiful.”
Halloween was directed and scored by John Carpenter. The influential filmmaker returned to the franchise in 2018 and is an executive producer and composer Halloween ends. Of her experience working with Carpenter on the 1978 film, Curtis recalled:
“John is such an interesting man. He’s kind of a gentleman – he often says ‘darling’. My experience with him was that he was quiet and very focused on what he needed. The film was made very quickly, there was no hanging out a lot, not much talking, a lot of work.”
Scream Queen and beyond
Curtis’ memorable film credits include: A fish called Wanda, Freaky Friday, True Lies, Knives Out, and everything everywhere at once, among other things. In early 2015, Curtis appeared in the television series scream queen as Dean Cathy Munsch. Although the series received high praise from the media, it was canceled after two seasons. Curtis will next appear in Eli Roth’s border areasand Disney’s haunted house as Madame Leota. And while Curtis seems ready to see Strode leave, regarding her return for the future Halloween movies, she said before, “To never say is stupid.”
Halloween ends premieres in theaters and on Peacock on October 14.