In the wake of the critical and commercial failure that was Halloween 3: Season of the Witch, franchise overseer Moustapha Akkad hoped to return the horror property to its former box-office glory by reviving Michael Myers. John Carpenter and Debra Winger, the two chief creative minds behind the original Halloween, pegged novelist Dennis Etchison to write a script for the potential Halloween 4. Dennis Etchison had some familiarity with Carpenter and Winger's creation, having authored the novelizations for the franchise's first two entries. Etchison obliged, and delivered a script far more cerebral and surreal than what eventually graced cinema screens.
Though the script was never produced, it did develop a reputation among horror fanatics and franchise obsessives as something of a lost gem. With the David Gordon Green Halloween trilogy now at an end, the influence of Etchison's wild unmade sequel is easy to find woven into the fabric of the rebooted triad of sequels.
What Happens in Etchison's Unmade Halloween 4?
Etchison's Halloween 4 bears a significant resemblance to Halloween Kills in particular. As revealed in interviews, the story revolves around a Haddonfield tormented by the memory of Michael Myers' babysitter killings. Halloween has been banned town-wide, with all emblems and signifiers hinting at its mere existence removed from the boundaries of the quiet suburb for good. After a decade of the entire population of Haddonfield doing their best to suppress the haunting memory of Myers from the public consciousness, visions and freak occurrences begin to hint that perhaps, somehow, The Shape has returned.
The script is full of surrealist dream sequences and a twisted magical realism that culminates in an attack on a drive-in movie theater playing horror movies on Halloween night, much to the chagrin of Haddonfield's governing bodies. Michael is subjected to a hail of gunfire amid this rampage, but instead of being killed, the bullets are absorbed. All the town's rage and every bit of vengeful violence enacted against Michael serve to strengthen him. The Shape grows, transforming into a 12-foot tall supernatural behemoth that tears the drive-in apart.
Etchinson's Halloween 4 Shares Halloween Kills Themes
The similarities to Halloween Kills are clear, especially thematically. David Gordon Green's 2021 sequel also deals with the concept of Haddonfield's collective fear and trauma. And while the ghoulish holiday from which the franchise takes its name isn't banned in Green's conception, the survivors of Michael Myers' original attacks do gather together in a celebration of their remaining lives. The same barely veiled rage and paranoia found in Etchison's script infects the proceedings and spills outward to the rest of the population when Myers is confirmed to have returned. The films share secondary protagonists, too, as Tommy Doyle plays a major role in the unmade sequel, the same way he does in Halloween Kills.
Halloween Kill's Climax Mirrors the One in the Unmade Screenplay
The most notable piece of influence, though, lies in Etchison's climactic drive-in slaughter. The wild bit of magical realism that grows Michael to gigantic (and seemingly invincible) heights at the drive-in occurs as a result of the festering wound that is Haddonfield's hatred toward The Shape. All of that trauma, fear, and anger only serve to strengthen the boogeyman. Whether he is really there or not doesn't matter. His power lies in the fearful minds of his hometown's inhabitants.
During a similarly explosive finale in Halloween Kills, Laurie Strode makes direct reference to Michael drawing his power from the hatred and fear of his victims. This is mirrored by a simultaneous sequence in which Michael rises from the brink of death to dispatch a vigilante mob (led by Tommy Doyle, no less) hell-bent on his destruction. Despite having been beaten, stabbed, and shot relentlessly, Michael appears more powerful than ever. And while The Shape doesn't literally grow to the height of a giant, his terrible legend certainly does. Michael is imprinted on the town forever, and not even certain death can stop him.
For an unproduced screenplay, Dennis Etchison's script has achieved a much longer life than expected. Its influence on Halloween Kills is as surprising as it is undeniable. As David Gordon Green is clearly a fan of even apocryphal contributions to Halloween canon, Halloween Ends may yet reveal some nods to Etchison's Halloween 4, as well.