Halloween Kills Producer Points Out Why It's Good Paul Rudd Didn't Return as Tommy Doyle

Regardless of how horror fans feel about Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers, the film is retroactively notable as it marked Paul Rudd's first major film role as the adult Tommy Doyle. Ahead of production on Halloween Kills, a number of casting announcements revealed that various stars from previous Halloween entries would be returning to battle Myers, inspiring hope that Rudd might return, only for Anthony Michael Hall to take over the role. While producer Malek Akkad was also disappointed that Rudd didn't return, he also noted that the actor has become such a huge star, he could see this casting decision possibly distracting audiences from the core story being told. Halloween Kills is in theaters and on Peacock now.

"It would have warmed my heart and definitely there's some disappointment there," Akkad shared with ScreenRant about Rudd not returning. "But I ultimately think that Anthony Michael Hall fulfills this role in a way that's maybe less jarring for the narrative and maybe won't take people out of it. Because Paul Rudd is so big for a lot of things like comedy and whatever, he's a fantastic actor, I think it turned out this way for a reason and we're so excited. Anthony Michael Hall does a knockout performance, it's definitely gonna be one of the fans' favorites."

In addition to The Curse of Michael Myers being notable for it being Rudd's breakout performance, it's also notable for being Donald Pleasence's last appearance as Dr. Samuel Loomis, as well as the overall production seeing a number of complications as a result of reactions to test screenings.

The original plot for the sixth entry in the series was meant to tie up loose ends regarding the glimpses of the Cult of Thorn from the previous two films, which explained how Myers managed to have supernatural killing abilities. Additionally, the film concluded with Loomis finally defeating Myers thanks to the help of runes and rituals, with Loomis himself taking the otherworldly powers previously contained within Michael into himself.

These more ambitious concepts didn't resonate well with audiences, resulting in nearly 30 minutes of the film being reshot to be a more traditional slasher. Complicating matters further was the death of Pleasence after principal photography wrapped but before reshoots began, resulting in a much more lackluster demise for Loomis' character.

"I was so excited to have Paul reprise that role and would have been wonderful in a way," Akkad recalled of working on Curse of Michael Myers. "Like you said, that was my first producorial role and even in the casting of Paul, I remember it just like it was yesterday. He hadn't done a film, I'm pretty sure it was his first film at that point, so we're both kind of starting and what a spark he had, then you know the difficulties we had on six -- don't get me started."

Halloween Kills is in theaters and on Peacock now.

Do you wish Rudd had returned to the series? Let us know in the comments below or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things horror and Star Wars!