Jamie Lee Curtis Revealed Her Emotional Reaction To The "Halloween" Trauma Memes, And It’s Heartbreaking
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Warning: This post features discussions of substance abuse.
Jamie Lee Curtis is an icon, she's a legend, and she is the moment. I mean, is it really spooky season if the scream queen isn't front and center on the big screen in yet another Halloween movie? (The answer is no.)
Halloween Ends takes place 44 years after the traumatic events of the original film, which premiered in 1978. Naturally, it's being touted as the "final" chapter of the longstanding relationship between Laurie Strode and the — seemingly invincible — masked killer named Michael Myers. As a self-proclaimed horror buff myself, even I know that evil never dies.
Luckily, I had the honor of chatting with Jamie about the latest installment of the Halloween franchise. She shared what convinced her to come back to the role in 2018, her favorite scenes to shoot over the years, and, yes, we discussed those viral "trauma" memes. Check out our conversation ahead.
THEN: There are several iconic moments from the original Halloween movie. What was your favorite scene to shoot in the 1978 version?
Jamie Lee Curtis: I really loved the verisimilitude and ease of those first scenes of the girls walking down the street. There was such a reality to it. It put you in time and place. It was nostalgic; it made us all feel. I remember John [Carpenter] said to me, "I really want you to be vulnerable, and Laurie to be vulnerable." Honestly, I was 19. I was barely out of high school. I mean, I literally barely got out of high school. And the word vulnerable was a big word. I thought it meant weak. I was just sort of like, 'Okay, John, whatever.' But it's the reason why the movie really worked. John and Debra Hill, who cowrote it with John, really created a level of truth. So that when you bring in the fiction, when you bring in the monster, you really have cared about those people.
BuzzFeed: Did you get to see the original Halloween in theaters? If so, what was the reaction from viewers?
I saw the movie in a theater in Hollywood. It was a late-night screening and I remember it was pretty full. I remember sitting in the back, and I was watching the scene where Laurie gets the call from her friend who's being killed. Laurie checks on the kids and then goes across the street. And there's that long walk where Laurie is looking at the house; then, you're back on Laurie, and looking at the house, then back on Laurie. As she gets halfway across the street, a woman stood up in the middle of that theater and screamed, "Don't go in there! There's a killer in that house!" The entire audience was, like, released into that fear. And that's when I understood what John was talking about and why that movie works all these years later: that reality. And the fear and concern you have for Laurie Strode, which people have had for 44 years.
NOW: Halloween Ends has a lot of callbacks to the original film, for example, the blue shirt Laurie wears when facing Michael for one last showdown. I'd love to know: What was your favorite scene to shoot in this movie?
The scene that really stands out to me in Halloween Ends is what we shot on day one. It's interesting because day one of Halloween was the girls walking down the street and it was reflective of that time. Day one on Halloween Ends is Laurie in the supermarket, running into a guy she kind of liked. For a second, there is a moment where you see that Laurie has been working on her grief. For a second, you think maybe she might get a chance at happiness. And then she walks out the door, and it is shattered. That was the first scene we shot on day one.
Would you say that's one of the themes of this movie?
Halloween Ends talks about the societal poisoning of the victim. The fact that [Haddonfield] turns on Laurie Strode, who was a victim of Michael's attacks then and now. In Halloween Kills, they attacked the town and the community. In this one, they victimize the victim. The poisoning of that, I think, is a metaphor for so many things. Just how cruel people are to each other. For me, that really established what the movie was going to be about: a little bit of hope, and a lot of poison. And how are you going to resolve it?
THEN: Obviously, the Halloween films are scary to watch, but I'm curious what is it like behind the scenes for you on set with the Shape?
Nick Castle played the shape in 1978. We were making a movie in 17 days, and Nick was a very, very close friend of John Carpenter's. They had all gone to film school together. Nick wanted to be a director; he wanted to see how it's done. John basically invited him to sort of hang around. At one point, somebody needed to put on the suit. And that's how Nick got that job. Back then, when I was 19, I didn't understand the importance of it all. Michael Myers didn't exist yet. The Shape was just, I mean, he's called the Shape in the script. It was a figurehead. It didn't take on this sort of incredible reverence and spiritual power of Michael Myers.
Are you friends with any of the actors who've portrayed Michael over the years?
James Jude Courtney has worn the suit for years now. I respect both [Nick and James]. I don't want to know them very well. We keep our distance. I treat this very seriously, as you can tell. Do you know why? Because if I was, excuse my French, fucking around on set with everybody, then it's a joke. And it isn't a joke. Everybody takes it very seriously. There is respect on set. I'm not a method actor. Obviously, I'll see them and say 'hello' on set, but I am not going to pretend that we are close, because we shouldn't be.
NOW: You've been attached to this character, Laurie Strode, for over 40 years now. Did you ever give input on her storyline in any of the scripts?
No. I remember I got a call from Jake Gyllenhaal, who said his friend David Gordon Green wanted to talk to me about making a new Halloween movie. The conception was that 40 years have gone by since the events that took place on Halloween night in 1978. Laurie has never gotten any help or support for it. Think about it; by November 2, 1978, Laurie would have been back in school. At the time, they would have put a bandage on her arm and sent her back to school. Nobody would have ever talked about it, and Laurie would have never gotten any help.
That's a really good point. Is that what convinced you to come back to the franchise for the first time in years?
When David suggested the new Halloween movie would be about a woman who lives behind barbed wire, who's never had any help, whose family has been shattered, broken apart by Michael Myers, that appealed to me because that's the truth. That's what happens when you have untreated PTSD. That's what happens when you don't give someone the loving support they need. And that was the beginning of the movie.
I just thought that made a lot of sense to me. So I don't have input because they did the input for me. If they had come up with a different storyline, I probably wouldn't have done it. I felt that it gave respect to trauma. And I know the memes, and I've seen the memes. I appreciate it. But it also makes me cry.
Yes, the memes. I've seen them too. I'm curious — what is it about them that makes you cry?
Because Halloween gave voice to what has been going on for women throughout history. Laurie Strode is a fictitious example, but there are women all across the world in real life who are living with perpetrated trauma on them with zero support. No help. No grief counseling or familial support. And they are persevering through it. They have tenacity, courage, and a deep internal drive to exist and survive as human beings.
Yes, we can laugh about trauma and make jokes, and I totally go with it. And I've posted it many, many a time. But the reason I talked about it is that we were making a movie about it. And it was coinciding with the women's rising up all over the world saying 'me too.' and 'This has happened to me too.'
THEN: I personally connect to Laurie Strode because she represents tenacity, which is a quality that, unfortunately, a lot of queer people like myself have to have in the face of adversity against our existence. There have been many articles written about why queer people enjoy horror movies, citing that as one of the reasons. What are your thoughts on how your portrayal of Laurie Strode has impacted fans?
By the way, when I said women all over the world earlier, forgive me because I sort of gendered the experience of trauma, which is genderless. Trauma impacts anybody being oppressed. People like yourself, people who are made to feel marginalized, who are persecuted for whatever is their inherent truth. I'm the parent of a trans daughter, who is persecuted for her inherent truth. So, you're absolutely right — Laurie Strode represents perseverance, courage, tenacity, bravery, and the ability to stand tall; she represents that. I see it and I get it from people all over the world. And because they feel that way about her, they feel that way about me, because, at this point, Jamie and Laurie are intertwined.
What does that mean to you that such a huge part of your legacy is portraying a character who has such reverence and importance in fans' real lives?
You can only imagine the feelings, the number of times I burst into tears during these conversations, because this isn't fiction. This is life between us at this moment. And it's really important. What you're talking about is crucial.
NOW: Over the years, Laurie becomes less and less afraid of Michael Myers. In real life, what has been a fear that you were able to conquer?
Well, I'm sober for 23, coming up 24 years. You know, addiction is a motherfucker, and it has killed and continues to kill, regardless of gender, race, socioeconomic privilege, or lack thereof. Addiction knows no boundaries and kills indiscriminately. And addiction wants you dead, period. That is its goal.
For me, I have been able to look in the mirror and realize — through a couple of people telling me the truth or catching me in what I thought was a big JLC is so fabulous world — I had the ability, through the grace of God, to be able to look in a mirror and go, Oh, I'm dead. I'm going to be dead. It's going to get me to it no matter how groovy the JLC world is. It wants me dead. It's going to get me dead. So what really scares me? Although I'm sober, it's that lingering thing.
In Halloween Ends, we think Michael Myers has disappeared at the beginning of the movie. We say it: 'He's disappeared!' Well, addiction never disappears. It is right here. It's like the little cartoons of the devil and the angel on your shoulders. That's addiction. It's right there at all times. I'm afraid of it. And I am trying very hard, on a daily basis, to keep it away.
THEN & NOW: You are — and will forever be — one of my favorite final girls in any horror franchise. What have you learned about yourself from playing Laurie Strode?
You know, when you get old or older it's shocking how much time you spend by yourself. When I was a kid, when I was a teenager, I didn't know that. When we're young, we are surrounded by people all the time. We're in school; then, we have sports. Then, we have a family. We're just not alone in our thoughts. I'm married and I have raised two children from birth, and I'm shocked at how much time I spend alone. What I've learned from Laurie is that inner resolve, that inner strength, and that it's going to be okay. That I'm going to be okay. That I am okay. Because I'm not going to get it from other people no matter how much attention I get, and I get a lot of attention. I still spend lots of time alone.
Wow. That's really powerful.
I have also learned really to love myself and appreciate all my gifts and all of my being. Not because of the reaction I get from other people, but because of what I've now understood is me. And it's something I was very surprised at. Growing up, I just never thought you spent this much time alone. And you do. It is something that I've gotten comfortable with. I can be alone and be fine. And that's self-love. And I think Laurie Strode gave me it.
Thanks for chatting with us, Jamie! Be sure to check out Halloween Ends, now playing in theaters and streaming on Peacock!
Editor's note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, you can call SAMHSA’s National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357) and find more resources here.
