News

‘The Legend of Halloween’ Co-Author Onur Tukel on Re-Imagining a Classic

Published

3 years ago

November 2, 2020

It’s been just over a year since Onur Tukel and David Gordon Green first conceived of The Legend of Halloween, a “children’s book” adaptation of John Carpenter’s classic 1978 Halloween starring Jamie Lee Curtis. Tukel had seen that original film when he was nine years old, and it has remained a constant favorite for him since that time, and when he discovered his friend David was working on a trilogy of sequels, he reached out to see if he could spend some time on set.

“David’s a generous guy and he knew how much it meant to me to be part of it,” Tukel told iHorror in a recent interview. “When I was 22 or so, the first thing I ever shot on super 8 was a grainy black and white fan-film called Michael Myers Meets His Match. It was 25 years ago in Wilmington, NC. When I went to visit the set of Halloween Kills in 2019, they were shooting a scene in the same park I’d shot in 25 years earlier. It was surreal and beautiful.”

While working on Halloween Kills Tukel discovered that Green, like himself, loved to write little rhymes and verses and with accompanying drawings and together they produced a small volume titled It’s Halloween in Haddonfield, which they gifted to the cast and crew. Still, they wanted to do more, and specifically, they wanted to do something for the fans. They came up with a concept called The Legend of Halloween which would retell the classic first film in an illustrated children’s book format.

Green pitched the idea to producers Malek Akkad and Ryan Friemann who loved the idea and the co-authors went to work on the project in Spring of this year.

Onur Tukel and David Gordon Green created the new book, working together to honor the original narrative while creating something that still felt original.

They had no idea, at the time, but they truly had their work cut out for them. Not only did they have to find a meter and rhythm for the story, but they also had to determine what they could and could not bring in from the film.

“There are so many singular scenes in Halloween, but we just couldn’t include everything,” he explained. “So that was tough. There’s that great shot of Laurie looking out the classroom window and seeing the Shape watching her across the street. That’s not in the book. We knew there was certain things we could never capture from the original film, like the dread and portent of Loomis and Brackett exploring the Myers house. But we had fun figuring out how to adapt the movie in a way that diehard fans would enjoy. We wanted the book to have playful homages without blatantly copying the visuals of the movie. And of course, like the movie, we wanted the violence to be tasteful.”

What emerged was something that looked and felt to Tukel like an amalgamation of John Carpenter, Shel Silverstein, Charles Shulz, and Jules Feiffer and yet was somehow totally their own.

“We wanted it to be tasteful, with very little blood (like the original), but again, we wanted it to be just naughty enough that a youngster would get some subversive pleasure in reading it,” Tukel said.

While an official release date hasn’t been announced, The Legend of Halloween will no doubt be available sometime soon, and of course the author hopes the book is a success, but even if it isn’t, he says the experience was incredible.

“I hope the book has the success that the first movie had, of course,” he said. “I hope it sells 10 million copies and goes on to the be the most successful independent children’s book ever written! I hope the fans eat it up and demand another one and another one and we just keep making more. But if that doesn’t happen, I gotta say that I’m just happy this weird little book exists. Halloween is my favorite horror film, David’s one of my favorite directors, and to be part of something this unexpected is a dream come true.”

For more information on The Legend of Halloween, visit their OFFICIAL WEBSITE and look for this one-of-a-kind book coming to a bookstore near you!

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Movies

Trailer for ‘The Exorcism’ Has Russell Crowe Possessed

Published

18 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

The latest exorcism movie is about to drop this summer. It’s aptly titled The Exorcism and it stars Academy Award winner turned B-movie savant Russell Crowe. The trailer dropped today and by the looks of it, we are getting a possession movie that takes place on a movie set.

Just like this year’s recent demon-in-media-space film Late Night With the Devil, The Exorcism happens during a production. Although the former takes place on a live network talk show, the latter is on an active sound stage. Hopefully, it won’t be entirely serious and we’ll get some meta chuckles out of it.

The film will open in theaters on June 7, but since Shudder also acquired it, it probably won’t be long after that until it finds a home on the streaming service.

Crowe plays, “Anthony Miller, a troubled actor who begins to unravel while shooting a supernatural horror film. His estranged daughter, Lee (Ryan Simpkins), wonders if he’s slipping back into his past addictions or if there’s something more sinister at play. The film also stars Sam Worthington, Chloe Bailey, Adam Goldberg and David Hyde Pierce.”

Crowe did see some success in last year’s The Pope’s Exorcist mostly because his character was so over-the-top and infused with such comical hubris it bordered on parody. We will see if that is the route actor-turned-director Joshua John Miller takes with The Exorcism.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

News

Win a Stay at The Lizzie Borden House From Spirit Halloween

Published

20 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Spirit Halloween has declared that this week marks the start of spooky season and to celebrate they are offering fans a chance to stay at the Lizzie Borden House with so many perks Lizzie herself would approve.

The Lizzie Borden House in Fall River, MA is claimed to be one of the most haunted houses in America. Of course one lucky winner and up to 12 of their friends will find out if the rumors are true if they win the grand prize: A private stay in the notorious house.

“We are delighted to work with Spirit Halloween to roll out the red carpet and offer the public a chance to win a one-of-a-kind experience at the infamous Lizzie Borden House, which also includes additional haunted experiences and merchandise,” said Lance Zaal, President & Founder of US Ghost Adventures.

Fans can enter to win by following Spirit Halloween‘s Instagram and leaving a comment on the contest post from now through April 28.

The prize also includes:

An exclusive guided house tour, including insider insight around the murder, the trial, and commonly reported hauntings

A late-night ghost tour, complete with professional ghost-hunting gear

A private breakfast in the Borden family dining room

A ghost hunting starter kit with two pieces of Ghost Daddy Ghost Hunting Gear and a lesson for two at US Ghost Adventures Ghost Hunting Course

The ultimate Lizzie Borden gift package, featuring an official hatchet, the Lizzie Borden board game, Lily the Haunted Doll, and America’s Most Haunted Volume II

Winner’s choice of a Ghost Tour experience in Salem or a True Crime experience in Boston for two

“Our Halfway to Halloween celebration provides fans an exhilarating taste of what’s to come this fall and empowers them to start planning for their favorite season as early as they please,” said Steven Silverstein, CEO of Spirit Halloween. “We have cultivated an incredible following of enthusiasts who embody the Halloween lifestyle, and we’re thrilled to bring the fun back to life.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Spirit Halloween (@spirithalloween)

Spirit Halloween is also preparing for their retail haunted houses. On Thursday, August 1 their flagship store in Egg Harbor Township, NJ. will officially open to start off the season. That event usually draws in hordes of people eager to see what new merch, animatronics, and exclusive IP goods will be trending this year.

'Civil War' Review: Is It Worth Watching?

Movies

’28 Years Later’ Trilogy Taking Shape With Serious Star Power

Published

22 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Danny Boyle is revisiting his 28 Days Later universe with three new films. He will direct the first, 28 Years Later, with two more to follow. Deadline is reporting that sources say Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes have been cast for the first entry, a sequel to the original. Details are being kept under wraps so we don’t know how or if the first original sequel 28 Weeks Later fits into the project.

**Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Ralph Fiennes**

Boyle will direct the first movie but it’s unclear which role he will take on in the subsequent films. What is known is Candyman (2021) director Nia DaCosta is scheduled to direct the second film in this trilogy and that the third will be filmed immediately afterward. Whether DaCosta will direct both is still unclear.

Alex Garland is writing the scripts. Garland is having a successful time at the box office right now. He wrote and directed the current action/thriller Civil War which was just knocked out of the theatrical top spot by Radio Silence’s Abigail.

There is no word yet on when, or where, 28 Years Later will start production.