New 'Halloween' Movie Alternate Ending Revealed

Warning - This Article Contains SPOILERS!

The new Halloween (2018) seems to bring 40-year showdown between unstoppable killer Michael Myers and Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) to a close for good. In the film's violent climax, Michael attacks the safehouse Laurie has been building and equipping for decades. The result of the battle (more on that below) seemed to leave the Halloween franchise in a very decisively final place - but now we're learning there was also an alternative plan for how the movie could've ended.

Want to see how the deleted scenes/ending look in the script? pic.twitter.com/6nAnSil7FK

— PDF Screenplays (@pdfscreenplays) October 22, 2018

This post on Twitter was made in response to one site's breakdown of the various deleted scenes in Halloween. As you can see, at one point in the drafting process of Halloween we got a very different ending to the showdown at Laurie's stronghold. When Allyson (Andi Matichak) arrives after her escape from the woods, she finds Laurie and Michael face-to-face. Laurie runs out of bullets, forcing her and Michael to go at it armed with knives. Laurie is gravely wounded, and (even though a page is missing) it's seems clear that her daughter, Karen (still named "Shanah" in this early version) finally utilizes the training Laurie forced upon her as a kid to put a crossbow through Michael's chest. The movie ends with an ambigous fate for both Laurie and Michael, as both are last seen knocking possibly on the verge of death.

In some ways, this alternate ending actually ties together a lot of the themes and character arcs from the film in much better fashion than the theatrical ending did. Laurie and Michael meeting each other on equal terms, and Karen/Shanah stepping up to embody the fighting spirit of her mother for a new generation, are both power themes to both end the movie on, and set up a possible sequel. However, it's also equally clear why that ending may have had to inevitably change.

Halloween was developed and shot at a time of sudden and rapid cultural change. Given the current socio-political climate and the #MeToo / #TimesUp movements, it's not surprising that director David Gordon Green went with an ending that saw Laurie's themes of abuse and trauma resolved by having her reclaim empowerment by outwitting her abuser and demonstrating her strength (and the strength passed down to the women of her bloodline) over him. After all, it's no mistake that some of the final images of the film are the effigy of Michael Myers being burned away, while the young female "hero" (Allyson) now holds claim to the bloody (and phallic) symbol of Michael's power (his killing knife).

What did you think of Halloween's ending? Let us know in the comments!

Halloween (2018) is now playing in theaters.