The Bonkers Halloween Reboot We Never Got To See

The "Halloween" franchise has seen more reboots, remakes, and reimaginings than you could shake a kitchen knife at. Rob Zombie famously dove deep into the history and mythology of Michael Myers with his entries, while David Gordon Green's "Halloween," a direct sequel to John Carpenter's 1978 film, was praised for reintroducing the original Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) to the franchise. Between those two visions, there was almost another reboot that would have taken things in a totally different direction.

While speaking with Bloody Disgusting, screenwriting duo Ben Collins and Luke Piotrowski of "The Night House" fame spilled all the gory details on a "Halloween" reboot that they pitched in the early 2010s. With their concept, the pair aimed to, as Piotrowski put it, "really dump out the box, look at that first movie and be like, 'Why is the first movie good?'"

For them, the answer wasn't necessarily in the franchise lore that would come to define the many sequels, but in the horror of Michael Myers himself. They noted that in the first movie, Michael was referred to as The Shape and the scares came from the fact that he was an unstoppable and unknowable killing machine. From there, a new visceral and stripped-down vision for the "Halloween" franchise was born.

Here's what else the duo had to say about their "Halloween" reboot that never was.

Collins and Piotrowski extensively laid out their plans for a "Halloween" reboot during their talk with Bloody Disgusting. The crux of their concept was, as Piotrowski said, "Very much kind rebranding the idea of The Shape as an urban legend."

He went on to elaborate that the urban legend in question would revolve around a spate of murders that take place each Halloween in different communities around the United States. "People think there's a connection," Piotrowski elaborated, "and it might all be the work of the same killer who they've taken to calling 'The Boogeyman' or 'The Shape.'"

Of course, The Shape is very real, and the film would focus on the destruction he unleashes in one unsuspecting town on Halloween night. This concept would also introduce an entirely new cast of characters to keep things fresh. 

The way Collins and Piotrowski framed their idea is a pretty stark contrast to both the Rob Zombie and David Gordon Green entries. While those reboots approached the lore from two very different angles, both directors' films are very focused on exploring and expanding on the history of the franchise's characters and the events that shaped them. Collins and Piotrowski's version, on the other hand, would have completely taken the franchise down to the studs and then built a new mythology from there.

Unfortunately, the pair never got the chance to put their own stamp on "Halloween." But you will be able to see them tackle a different horror franchise when the reboot of "Hellraiser" they penned arrives on Hulu.