The daughter of Janet Leigh and Tony Curtis takes up in ‘Halloween Kills’ the character created by John Carpenter in 1978, who made her queen of terror: “I won the lottery when I was twenty years old”
Jamie Lee Curtis (Santa Monica, 1958), daughter of Hollywood legends Janet Leigh and Tony Curtis, returns starring in ‘Halloween Kills’, which picks up right where ‘Halloween’ ended in 2018. Curtis is the queen of a revitalizing genre an industry in the bones, owner of one of the most iconic characters in Hollywood. Curtis is Laurie Strode or Laurie Strode is Jamie Lee, after 40 years playing the same role and facing the brutal murderer Michael Myers. If in 1978 ‘Halloween night’ became a classic, in 2021 we continue to consume that fantasy with current technology. This new chapter of the saga shows Strode facing his demons with his daughter and granddaughter, in a generational change that invites more chapters of the franchise. Laurie’s bravery is the trigger for a story full of life, bullets, horror, but, at the same time, it is one of the best deliveries. In Los Angeles we sat down to talk with the actress who made women fashionable in horror movies.
“Does Laurie know who her daughter’s father is?”
-Laurie has always been a liberal woman, who has moved around the world like a ball in the air without even knowing who the father of her daughter is. He has never had support.
-Did you think your legacy in the ‘Halloween’ saga was going to be so long?
-The last thing I thought a few years ago was that I was going to shoot another ‘Halloween’ movie, much less a trilogy. I was perfectly happy doing my job in the mountains where I live when the phone rang. It was Jake Gyllenhall, my godson, letting me know that his friend David (Gordon Green) wanted to talk to me about a new Halloween installment. I loved his take on the material, honestly that’s the truth. Doing a trilogy on female trauma seemed very powerful and appropriate in this composition that he has done.
-Do you think that ‘Halloween’ adapts to that cultural war that the world of good against evil lives?
-Yes, I agree with that idea. It is interesting how David understood five years ago that female trauma was going to become an important issue within society. Intuitively he knew how to understand the collateral damage that street violence can have in a city. I feel that life imitates art and art imitates life. I truly believe that when in the future someone studies this trilogy it will be a social testament, they will know who we are at this point in our life, even if we are talking about a horror movie.
-This new episode is closely linked to the #MeToo movement. Do you think your mother would have complained about Hitchcock?
-No way. I don’t think Janet would have recognized bad behavior from a director or colleague. I don’t want to speak for her, but she was a bit naive about the industry. The move would have upset him because, knowing her, any revelation of his industry would understand it as a betrayal. Women are brave. If in fiction we show what we are capable of, I believe that in reality we must also face it.
-Its consistency with this genre and this franchise are really impressive.
-The first thing I want to say is that I am happy that women who have crossed the 50 barrier can find work at this time, we see it more and more. Watch ‘Eternals’, with Salma Hayek leading a superhero cartel. I want to talk about my film, the depth of the character, its complexity. Laurie Strode is the best role an actor can find in his career. I won the lottery when I was twenty years old.
Jamie Lee Curtis in ‘Halloween Kills’.
-Why did you decide to interpret it again?
-I have been playing the character for 40 years and I feel that this team is part of my family. When David offered to return to the saga of ‘Halloween’, I did not hesitate. I love that this film talks about the family, the trauma of women, the black and white confrontation that exists in society.
-Is the Michael Myers mask reinvented?
-To me, Myers represents an enigma. The question we ask ourselves about what the devil really is is evident in the representation of the mask. By making it white, I think John and Debra created the idea that in the mask is each one’s personal vision of the devil. Not being able to see his expression invites us to invent his face. All the directors involved in the franchise have wanted to reinvent the mask in each chapter of the saga. It’s something the studios have spent huge amounts of money on, because they know it dehumanizes the character of Myers. It is a terrifying symbol that David uses from a new perspective.
-Do women lead the box office even in the pandemic?
-Of course. Laurie Strode has triumphed at the box office and will continue to do so because she is one of those women. Even in times of pandemic, this pioneer has managed to get the public to return to theaters.
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