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John Carpenter changed the face of horror forever with Halloween in 1978, but unless you’re a huge slasher fan, most have mocked the silly sequels that came after. We’re up to a whopping 11 of them now, but the silliest and most ridiculed is 1995’s Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers, the sixth film in the franchise. This was the third film in the Cult of Thorn trilogy, with Michael Myers being reduced to a guy controlled by a mysterious man in black and his followers. Still, no matter how flawed Halloween 4 and Halloween 5 were, there were still reasons to enjoy them. Donald Pleasence was back as Dr. Loomis, and although Jamie Lee Curtis was no longer around, her character of Laurie Strode was given a daughter fittingly named Jamie Lloyd (Danielle Harris). She was the heart and strength of those two movies, but in the sixth film, Harris was recast for the cruelest of reasons.
Jamie Lloyd Holds ‘Halloween 4’ and ‘Halloween 5’ Together
The Halloween downfall began immediately with Halloween II. John Carpenter changed Michael Myers from a Boogeyman with no motivation to making him the long-lost brother of Laurie. Both Michael Myers and Dr. Loomis are burned to nothing in the end, so the decision was made to make Halloween III: The Season of the Witch an anthology film that had nothing to do with the Shape. After that bombed, making just $14 million at the box office, Myers was brought back in Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers. As it turns out, he and Loomis both lived, with the good doctor just having a few scars while Michael is in a coma at the hospital.
When Michael is being transported in an ambulance, he learns he has a young niece named Jamie. Since Jamie Lee Curtis was no longer doing horror films, Halloween 4 introduces her daughter, an orphaned girl living with an adopted family because Laurie was written off as having died in a car accident. Although just a child, Danielle Harris crafted a convincing character who is lost and lonely, but also strong and fights when the Boogeyman comes for her. Even when Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers went off the rails the next year, Jamie Lloyd kept the plot grounded.
Danielle Harris Fought To Be In ‘Halloween 6’
In 1995, Dimension Films had the rights to the Halloween franchise and looked to bring it back after a six-year hiatus. Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers saw the return of Donald Pleasence as Dr. Loomis, and Jamie was there too, but it wouldn’t be Danielle Harris playing her. When Halloween 6 was getting ready to film, Danielle Harris’ age caused a problem with the film’s producers. In a featurette titled “Jamie’s Story,” Danielle Harris spoke about what went wrong. One day, a casting call went out for Halloween 6, looking for an 18-year-old to play Jamie. Harris was only 17 and couldn’t work the longer hours, but her agent still called her to see if she was interested. Harris was, but producer Moustapha Akkad said Harris would need to get emancipated. Harris did that, spending three to four thousand dollars of her own money in the process, but as Harris recalls, “I remember everything starting to change.”
Jamie Lloyd Is Killed off in a Humiliating Storyline
What started to change was when Harris was told about the new script, in which Jamie has now been kidnapped by the Cult of Thorn and impregnated by Michael Myers. Just as bad, Jamie would be killed off in the first act. Danielle Harris was confused, saying, “This is not what I wanted to do. I don’t want to die like this.” The final insult was that Harris would be offered a mere $1,000 for a week’s work when she had spent much more than that on court fees to be able to do the role in the first place. When Harris was told that Jamie was just a scale character, and she wouldn’t be getting more money, the actress told them, “I guess I mean nothing to you then.” J.C. Brandy was later cast as Jamie in Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers. Her role is just like it was described to Harris, with Jamie giving birth to Michael’s baby before he kills her off. While it was a very disappointing end to such an important character, it’s good that it wasn’t Danielle Harris playing her. Seeing her die so flippantly would have been too much for a Halloween fan to take.
Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers is available to stream on Paramount+ in the U.S.
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