John Carpenter Doesn't "Take the Time to Find Out" About New Horror Movies

With his work directing films like The Fog, They Live and Halloween, John Carpenter quickly cemented his legacy as one of the greatest horror filmmakers of all time. The filmmaker hasn't directed a movie since 2010's The Ward, which makes fans curious as to what has excited him about the horror genre recently, yet Carpenter admitted that he's been too busy to watch contemporary horror films.

"I was doing music for several years here, so I've been busy. I wasn't thinking about that," Carpenter told Rotten Tomatoes about recent horror films embracing nostalgic themes. "I've watched the movies they've sent out every year, the screeners for the Academy. I enjoy those. I get to catch up on some of the mainstream stuff. But the horror stuff, I don't. There's so many horror films being made at all sorts of levels. There's just so many of them. And I'm sure a bunch of them are really good. I just don't take the time to find out."

In a rare occurrence, the horror film Get Out was nominated for multiple Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Carpenter was clearly excited about the genre getting recognition, especially given his current collaboration with one of GetOut's producers.

"It's great! I tell you, that's the genius of Jason Blum," the filmmaker said of the nomination. "Oh, I don't know, what am I talking about? I'm happy, really happy. I think that's terrific."

Carpenter helped set the mold for the slasher subgenre with 1978's Halloween, yet he hasn't had a direct involvement in the franchise in over 30 years. That all changes with the upcoming sequel to Halloween, which Blum relatively easily convinced Carpenter to get involved with.

"Well, they asked me," the filmmaker confirmed of why he returned to the franchise. "You know, the rights went back to Miramax and Malek Akkad talked to me and he wanted me to do something. And then Jason Blum, who's the biggest horror producer in Hollywood, talked to me. He was going to produce it. They were willing to pay me, which is always a good thing, so I said yes."

In fact, it seems as though his deliberate avoidance of the franchise is what inspired him to finally return after all these years.

"I talked about the Halloweens for a long time, the sequels — I haven't even seen all of them," Carpenter confessed. "I don't even know what really was there — but finally it occurred to me: Well if I'm just flapping my gums here, talking about it, why don't I try to make it as good as I can? I could offer advice. I could talk to the director. I like the director very much. I like the script. So, you know, stop throwing rocks from the sidelines and get in there and try to do something positive."

The upcoming sequel will be hitting theaters on October 19.

[H/T Rotten Tomatoes]