Rob Zombie Opens Up About His ‘Halloween’ Films

This year’s Halloween is the first new chapter in the series since Rob Zombie‘s Halloween II, marking nearly a decade leaving fans wanting more Michael Myers. Zombie’s films are divisive entries in the franchise’s mythology, as it attempted to reinvent the character in the filmmaker’s signature style. The filmmaker recently opened up about how he feels about the two projects, admitting that he preferred his second effort more than his first.

“To be honest, I would rather be doing my own thing. But I am still proud of both Halloween movies. I prefer the second one, which might surprise people,” Zombie shared with GamesRadar. “But the problem is that when you do a remake you can never get a true judgement on what it is you have done. I think it’s the same deal when someone remakes A Nightmare on Elm Street or anything else – it’s just too hard to completely break the formula.”

In the original Halloween, a young boy kills his sister on Halloween night, resulting in him getting locked up in a mental institution, only to break out 15 years later. In Zombie’s film, audiences saw what could disturb a child to the point of murder, as well as the ensuing investigation by a psychiatrist into the boy’s mindset.

While some fans weren’t interested in seeing this new interpretation of the character, Zombie detailed the difficulties of delivering something that was unique while also appeasing fan expectations.

“Everyone knows Michael Myers and a lot of the fans want the same thing again, but maybe with a small twist – like when they did the eighth one and he’s part of a virtual television programme or something,” the filmmaker recalled. “One thing that I got a lot of was, ‘This is what it should have been,’ or, ‘He should have done it like this,’ but if that is the barrier we set then you cannot ever do anything. I really wanted to rework what Halloween was.”

Regardless of what anyone thought about either of his films, Zombie is most proud to have made a movie he was interested in and put his personal stamp on.

“I kept being asked, ‘Hey, should we show this to Carpenter or so and so from the original and see what they think?’ And my response was just, ‘What the f-ck do I care?’” Zombie claimed. “When I get asked what my advice is in this business I tell people to just focus on what they want to do because if you start worrying about what other people think you are screwed [laughs]. I am oblivious to all that. I love Halloween and I wanted to do my own thing with it. Whether people like my Halloween or don’t like it is irrelevant to me. At least it has my own personal stamp on there.”

The new Halloween is in theaters now.

What do you think about Zombie’s comments regarding his Halloween films? Let us know in the comments below or hit up @TheWolfman on Twitter to talk all things horror and Star Wars!

[H/T GamesRadar]