Halloween Star Jamie Lee Curtis Named "Greatest Scream Queen of All Time" by MTV

Thanks to early efforts like Halloween, Prom Night, and The Fog, Jamie Lee Curtis became a beloved [...]

By Patrick Cavanaugh

Thanks to early efforts like Halloween, Prom Night, and The Fog, Jamie Lee Curtis became a beloved actress in the horror world as soon as her career was starting, with her legacy going on to establish the notion of a "Scream Queen," a distinction which the MTV Movie & TV Awards celebrated by bestowing her with the "Greatest Scream Queen of All Time" award this past weekend. Throughout her decades in the industry, the actress has delivered fans countless compelling performances across multiple genres, but with the distinction of having starred in seminal horror films in the '70s, '80s, '90s, '00s, '10s, and now the '20s, she has the rare distinction of starring in such endeavors in six straight decades.

"For me, the greatest partnership and the only reason I'm standing here today, is my partnership with Michael, so I'd like to bring him out," Curtis shared while accepting her award. "Don't be scared, they love you. Everybody – Michael Myers, my friend and often foe. Don't worry, we both had COVID tests and he's wearing a mask – the greatest mask ever."

She added, "We hope you enjoy the next two movies, Halloween Kills and Halloween Ends. Thank you guys, love you! He's so quiet!"

Not only has Curtis starred in horror films across six decades, she has specifically also starred in Halloween films across that timeline. Her tenure started in the original 1978 Halloween, which she continued in 1981's Halloween II, going on to return for Halloween H20: 20 Years Later in 1998 and Halloween: Resurrection in 2002, then returning again in 2018's Halloween. Halloween Kills was originally slated to hit theaters this past October, which would have added yet another decade in which she starred in a Halloween film, with its new 2021 release day still cementing this accomplishment.

With the 2018 Halloween ignoring the events of all films in the franchise other than the original, it presented new challenges for Curtis' Laurie Strode, which seem to have entirely revived her interest in the role.

"I know it's the thing that people say about women who fight back, is that we kick butt — you know, if you look at the first movie, Laurie wasn't anything like those women," Curtis told Variety back in 2018. "Laurie was a repressed, intellectual high school student with sort of romantic delusions. And she was forced, by circumstances way behind her control, to face her deepest fear, which is surviving a madman with a knife."

She added, "And then the woman you meet 40 years later is a woman who survived that trauma, for 40 years, trying to convince everybody in her populace that [Michael Myers] was coming back. She only kicks butt when again she is forced to, by the confrontation with Michael Myers."

Halloween Kills hits theaters on October 15, 2021 and Halloween Ends hits theaters on October 14, 2022.

Are you glad to see Curtis earn the honor? Let us know in the comments below or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

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