‘Halloween’ Sequel Gets an Official Title and Director

We’ve heard plenty of rumors about a new installment in the Halloween franchise for quite some time now, but today brings official word on the future of the series. The newest installment has been formally titled Halloween Returns, with The Collector director Marcus Dunstan attached to co-write and direct.

Per Variety, Dunstan will co-write Halloween Returns with his longtime collaborator Patrick Melton. The pair made their feature debut with Feast, the result of the third season of HBO’s Project Greenlight, produced by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. Dunstan will also direct the new Halloween sequel, which marks the 11th installment in the long-running franchise.

According to Shock Till You Drop, Halloween Returns is more of a direct sequel to 1981's Halloween II, and will connect to that film via the character of Deputy Gary Hunt, the officer who teams up with Dr. Loomis to track down classic serial killer Michael Myers. In the new sequel, which will presumably also take place in the original town of Haddonfield, Illinois, Hunt has become the sheriff.

In addition, Moviehole offered up this rumored plot for Halloween Returns:

The now 18-year-old child of one of Myers’ victims plays a central role along with the child of a cop whose long been obsessed with Myers’ case, even putting it before his own daughter. Myers is now on death row and the two kids with their own personal vendettas against the killer sneak in to watch his execution. But when things go awry and Myers escapes, the pair, along with their friends, find themselves in the firing line.

Dunstan and Melton collaborated on both The Collector and its sequel, The Collection, and are also responsible for writing the screenplays for the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh installments in the Saw franchise.