LOS ANGELES, - A unique interpretation of the classic slasher movie “Halloween” broke the record for a new release during the Labor Day holiday weekend, according to studio estimates issued on Sunday. Michael Myers is joining the ranks of James Bond and Batman: characters whose film franchises have been rebooted.
“Batman Begins would be one of the best ways to describe it,” Zombie says. “It’s still the story of Batman. But the way it unfolds and in the story ¬leading up to it, there’s so much more than you’ve been given before.”
The original Halloween, about masked killer Michael Myers, launched the career of actress Jamie Lee Curtis. It made over $60m (£30m) worldwide - a record for independent film at that time.
Two other films debuted in the top 10. The martial arts movie parody “Balls of Fury” came in at No. 3 with a modest $11.6 million, while the Kevin Bacon vigilante thriller “Death Sentence” barely registered a pulse at No. 8 with $4.2 million. Their respective studios said the results were in line with expectations.
“Halloween” distributor Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer expects its film will hit $30 million when sales for the Monday holiday are included. Observers had expected it to make $20 million for the four-day period. Final data will be released on Tuesday.
The three-day sum smashes the $16.5 million Labor Day opening record set two years ago by “Transporter 2,” which added $3.6 million on Monday. The all-time record for the four-day period is $29.3 million set by 1999’s “The Sixth Sense” in its fifth weekend.
Zombie’s Halloween, the ninth film in the series, focuses on the grim childhood of psychopath Myers.
Zombie said revisiting the original was the only option for him in taking on the Halloween series. Zombie, who thinks the franchise devolved over its seven sequels, jokes, “I don’t want to direct No. 9 of anything.”
Despite its success, the former Miramax Films chief doubted there would be another “Halloween” film.