The latest Halloween film arrived this past weekend and it is also available to stream for subscribers to Peacock Premium for the next 60 days. The twelfth film in the franchise picks up right after the conclusion of David Gordon Green’s 2018 Halloween, which left Michael Myers burning alive in an abandoned building. Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) escaped alongside her daughter Karen (Judy Greer) and granddaughter Alyson (Andi Matichak), but Halloween Kills doesn’t give the family much time to relax before Myers reemerges with a vengeance.
The multiple timelines within the slasher franchise that’s been running for over four decades can get pretty confusing, but the second film in Green’s trilogy only canonizes events from the 1978 original. Original Halloween writer/director John Carpenter had originally envisioned the franchise as an anthology series, and approved 1982’s Halloween III: Season of the Witch, in which Myers was absent (save for an Easter egg where 1978's Halloween is a movie running on TV, which makes the continuity even more confusing). Although he’d publicly expressed his disappointment with the direction the franchise had gone, Carpenter became more involved with Green’s films and even returned to contribute to the soundtrack.
The latest film reintroduces characters that have appeared throughout the franchise. Tommy Doyle was one of the young children Laurie babysat in the original film, and an older Tommy played by Paul Rudd appeared in the sixth film, 1995’s Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers. Halloween Kills recasts Anthony Michael Hall in the part. Haunted by his childhood trauma, Tommy organizes a resistance movement alongside other survivors, including Dr. Loomis’s original assistant Marion Chambers (Nancy Stephens). Stephens makes her return to the saga after appearing in 1981’s Halloween II and 1998’s Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later.
Kyle Richards also reprises her role from the 1978 original as Tommy’s best friend Lindsey Wallace, as does Charles Cyphers as the former Haddonfield sheriff Leigh Brackett. Brackett’s daughter Annie (played by Nancy Kyes) was one of the original victims of the Myers massacre. Tommy’s original childhood bully Lonnie Elam reappears as well, with Robert Longstreet stepping in for 1978’s Tristian Eggerling. Elam’s son Cameron (Dylan Arnold) had previously appeared in the 2018 film.
Previous Halloween sequels had picked up where their predecessors left off, but the new films’ serialization is unique. Green’s trilogy is set to conclude with the final entry Halloween Ends, which is scheduled to hit theaters next year. There has not been any word on whether Halloween Ends will be available to simultaneously stream on Peacock Premium as well.
Although it didn’t have a post-credit sequence akin to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, 2018’s Halloween did give fans a reason to stick through the credits. Myers’ survival was teased as the final credits rolled with his iconic heavy breathing, and fans may wonder if the latest film offers a similar tease of what’s to come in Halloween Ends. However, Halloween Kills does not have a post-credit scene or teaser. Fans will have to wait until next year to see the dramatic conclusion to Halloween Kills’s jaw-dropping final moments.
However, additional Halloween Kills scenes may be coming soon thanks to David Gordon Green's director's cut set for the Blu-Ray released. Green revealed that his extended version will include an alternate ending.