Its plot follows a post-traumatic Laurie Strode who prepares to face an escaped Michael Myers in a final showdown on Halloween night, forty years after she survived his killing spree.

After the release of Rob Zombie's Halloween II, the 2009 sequel to the 2007 remake of the original, two consecutive follow-ups went into development from former rights holder Dimension Films, respectively, but neither came to fruition.

Carpenter, who disagreed with the remake's portrayal of lead killer Michael Myers, planned on helping the studio to make the next Halloween film into what he believed to be more terrifying than the preceding sequels.

On October 29, 2018, infamous serial killer Michael Myers, who has been institutionalized at Smith's Grove Psychiatric Hospital for 40 years following his killing spree in Haddonfield,[a] is being prepared for transfer to a maximum-security prison.

[12] Tyler Mane would have reprised his role as Michael Myers from the first two films and Tom Atkins would have been cast as a psychiatrist, but Scout Taylor-Compton did not plan on returning as Laurie Strode.

[12] After disagreements over the budget and concerns that the film was being made too quickly, Bob Weinstein delayed pre-production until after Lussier and Farmer finished their work on Drive Angry.

[10][12] In June 2011, development resumed with a planned release date of October 26, 2012, but was again delayed when Lussier, Farmer and Weinstein decided to prioritize an abortive Hellraiser reboot.

[12][17] In February 2015, Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan were reported as writing a new Halloween film, described as a "recalibration" rather than a reboot, which Malek Akkad and Matt Stein were producing.

[21] On October 22, 2015, producer Malek Akkad revealed that the production of Halloween Returns had been postponed, citing "issues with studios and different variables", and stating that the extra time would result in a better film.

Blumhouse CEO Jason Blum called the original Halloween a milestone that had influenced the company to begin making horror films, "The great Malek Akkad and John Carpenter have a special place in the hearts of all genre fans and we are so excited that Miramax brought us together".

"[34] When the rights were acquired by Blumhouse, filmmaker Adam Wingard discussed making a new Halloween film, but ultimately dropped out after being sated by an email of encouragement from Carpenter, "I kinda walked away from it like, I just got everything I wanted out of this job.

[38] Rather than reboot the series again, they initially chose to focus primarily on continuing the mythology of the first two films when developing the story,[39] with Danny McBride stating, "We all came to the decision that remaking something that already works isn't a good idea.

[43] Displeased with Rob Zombie's re-imagining and added backstory of murderer Michael Myers, Carpenter wanted to take the character back to his more mysterious roots, describing him as "a force of nature.

[70] He was later joined by Rob Niter, both actors being announced to portray police officers, as well as British actress Rhian Rees, who was cast as a character named Dana.

Additionally, P. J. Soles, who had portrayed Lynda van der Klok, Michael's final victim in the original film, was cast in a spoken cameo role as a teacher.

[67] According to Danny McBride, the horror of the film aims to create a sense of tension and dread to the audience rather than relying on graphic violence;[79] the make-up and visual effects were provided by Christopher Nelson.

Collaborating with fellow make-up effects artist Vincent Van Dyke, some of his designs and concepts were initially rejected due to legal complications, which were later straightened out as he began his work on the film.

[90] The film had a presentation at San Diego Comic-Con in Hall H on July 20, 2018, with Jamie Lee Curtis, David Gordon Green, Malek Akkad, and Jason Blum in attendance.

Both Nelson and Vincent Van Dyke joined their design team, who used toolings from the screen-used mold of Michael Myers's mask to adapt it for mass market sale.

The site's critical consensus reads, "Halloween largely wipes the slate clean after decades of disappointing sequels, ignoring increasingly elaborate mythology in favor of basic – yet still effective – ingredients.

[98] Peter Debruge of Variety felt that the film brings the series back to its roots, calling it "an act of fan service disguised as a horror movie.

The fact it works as both means that [director] Green [...] has pulled off what he set out to do, tying up the mythology that Carpenter and company established, while delivering plenty of fresh suspense — and grisly-creative kills — for younger audiences".

[110] In his review for Bloody Disgusting, Joe Lipsett wrote, "All in all, Halloween is a worthy entry in the franchise [...] Everything really clicks at the finale, which makes sense considering the film exists to pit Laurie against Michael.

[111] Jonathan Barkan of Dread Central wrote, "Halloween pays loving and respectful homage to the 1978 original while making a very bold and decisive claim for its own existence [...] this is quite possibly the scariest Michael Myers has ever been.

"[112] In a mixed review, Eric Kohn of IndieWire criticized the film's dialogue and staging, but said "Carpenter's own Halloween was itself a bumpy ride, made on the cheap, but carried along by the director's firm grasp on his potent themes.

The new one works overtime to keep them intact, while communing with the first installment in every possible way — from that famously creepy synth score to the blocky orange credits that bookend the story".

[113] RogerEbert.com's Brian Tallerico gave Halloween two out of four stars, writing it "is admirable in its thematic relation to Carpenter's vision, but the no-nonsense, tightly-directed aspect of the influential classic just isn't a part of this one.

[115] Christopher Stewardson from Our Culture Mag wrote "Raising some interesting questions about indifference to escalating horror, Halloween draws Michael Myers in the modern world with consideration and calculated frights.

[117] The film received four Fangoria Chainsaw Award nominations: Best Wide Release, Best Actor (James Jude Courtney / Nick Castle), Best Actress (Jamie Lee Curtis), and Best Makeup FX (Christopher Nelson).

[122] Movies such as Candyman (2021),[124] Scream (2022),[125] Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022)[126] and The Exorcist: Believer (2023)[127] are frequently cited as taking inspiration of the film's approach to rebooting a horror franchise.