Jamie Lee Curtis Says The Original Halloween Made Her A Real Actress

Laurie Strode in the original Halloween

The horror genre has been on a hot streak for the past few years, as new and exciting properties were introduced, resulting in both critical and box office success. Many of the most recent hits come from Blumhouse Productions, which has recently set its eyes on the classics of the genre. A new Halloween movie will arrive in theaters in a matter of weeks, bringing back franchise favorites Jamie Lee Curtis and Nick Castle as Laurie Strode and Michael Myers respectively-- plus a new soundtrack by the legendary John Carpenter. Halloween will mark Curtis' fifth movie as Laurie, who is arguably the OG scream queen. Curtis recently spoke to the process of filming John Carpenter's original film, and revealed how her role as Laurie ultimately made her a real actress. As she tells it,

The fact that [director John Carpenter] cast me as the intellectual, thinking, quiet girl, at a time when people asked me what size jeans I wore, made me understand that I was an actress and really what it is, is I became an actress. I don't think I was an actress before. I think I was just a performer and I became an actress on Halloween.

Well, that was certainly honest. While Laurie Strode is the role that Jamie Lee Curtis is best known for, she doesn't actually have a ton of common with the Halloween protagonist. And because John Carpenter cast Curtis against type, it helped transform her into the acclaimed actress we know and love today.

Jamie Lee Curtis' comments to Too Fab are sure to illicit some feels from the hardcore Halloween fans out there. Laurie Strode is an iconic figure in the horror franchise, and Curtis' performance had vulnerability, sensitivity, and a surprising edge. It ended up being a star-making moment for the young actress, resulting in her long career in the business. Leaning to how become someone else is key to any actor's job, and for Jamie Lee Curtis, she learned this skill attempting to survive Michael Myers' terrifying first attack.

Blumhouse's upcoming Halloween is going to focus on the version of Laurie Strode that we met in John Carpenter's original movie. Ignoring all of the sequels and various canon changes, the upcoming slasher is set 40 years after Michael Myers' rampage through Haddonfield. Laurie has been waiting her entire life for her attacker to escape Smith Grove Sanitarium, fortifying her home into a safe house and training with firearms. Michael and Laurie will come face to face one more time, with the new Halloween already has very positive reviews ahead of its wide release.

Halloween will arrive in theaters on October 19, 2018. In the meantime, check out our 2018 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.