The Halloween franchise and its main killer, Michael Myers, are revered by horror movie lovers for many reasons; one of which is the frequent, creative death scenes. With the series spanning six decades with several different writers and directors, there has been no shortage of variety. Whether Michael is slicing, stabbing, beating, or doing just about anything else to his victims, he makes it worth watching. From 1978’s original Halloween to the latest entry, Halloween Kills, these are the eight best death scenes in the Halloween franchise:
Warning: Spoilers for nearly every Halloween movie ahead!
8) The Least of the Best Death Scenes in the Halloween Franchise: Accidental Shooting — Halloween Kills (2021)
Halloween Kills explores a town in unrest as word has spread that Michael Myers has returned to Haddonfield after forty years of peace. During his return, Michael leaves a trail of bodies. In this feature, the bodies include a woman dressed as a nurse. She joins other survivors of Myers’s original 1978 rampage to fight back. However, her efforts against the boogeyman are short-lived in what is perhaps Michael’s most hilarious kill. Instead of stabbing or beating the poor woman to death, he simply knocks on a car door, causing her to accidentally shoot herself. While it is not the most gruesome or brutal death scene in the franchise, this entry from Halloween Kills is entirely unexpected and funny, making it worthy of inclusion on this list of the best death scenes in the Halloween franchise.
7) Ma vs. Michael — Halloween II (2009)
In 2007, Rob Zombie helmed a reboot of the Halloween franchise. Despite receiving mixed reactions, a sequel was given the green light, and with it, Zombie went full force, creating the most bloody and gruesome Halloween film to date. In this film, viewers see a short glimpse of a battle between horror icons: Michael Myers and Ma. Well… not actually. Although Academy Award winner Octavia Spencer played the intimidating role of Ma, in the movie, Ma, in Halloween II she is a nurse who falls victim to Michael Myers’s murder spree. Her death scene is especially violent as she spews blood all over the nurses’ office while Michael stabs her over and over again. While some versions of the character are fairly efficient when killing, Zombie’s version of Michael Myers is more like a wrecking ball, not just killing but obliterating whatever stands in his way, including Octavia Spencer’s nurse.
6) Impaled by a Shotgun — Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers (1986)
After terrorizing Laurie Strode in the first two Halloween films, Michael Myers next stalked and attempted to kill his niece, Jamie, in later films. This begins in Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers. While the movie is overall decent, it features one of the best death scenes in the Halloween franchise. At one point in the film, Jamie and her sister take refuge at the Sheriff’s house. However, this haven does not stay safe for long. Michael arrives and slaughters a deputy and the Sheriff’s daughter, Kelly. However, Kelly’s death is one of the more creative in the franchise. While Michael typically uses his brute strength or a knife, in this instance, he uses a shotgun. However, he uses it in the most Michael Myers way possible. Instead of pulling the trigger, he impales Kelly with the shotgun, killing her nearly instantly.
5) Jamie and the Corn Thresher — Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995)
In a remarkably daring move, the makers of Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers opted to add some mythology to the sixth installment of the Halloween franchise. In this story, Michael is a member of a cult. This cult desires to create a new, unbeatable killer with Jamie Lloyd’s baby. However, before this can happen, Jamie escapes. She hides her baby but is ultimately unable to outrun Michael, who finds her in an old barn. Without hesitation, Michael impales her on the blades of a corn thresher, but before life leaves her body, Michael activates the machine, causing the multi-pronged blades to twirl. As such, Jamie suffers one of the most excruciating albeit creative deaths in the Halloween franchise. But, as brutal as this scene is, it is not the only addition Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers makes to this list of the best death scenes in the Halloween franchise.
4) Electrical Explosion — Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995)
As gruesome as Jamie’s death scene is in Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers, it is just barely beaten by the death scene featuring Jamie’s adoptive father, John Strode. After venturing into the basement, John investigates his washing machine, which seems to be running for no reason. He creeps over, stops the machine, and pulls out bloody clothes. But before he is overcome by the shock of the bloody clothing, Michael appears behind him. Michael grabs John, lifts him, and forces him into an electrical panel, which inevitably electrocutes him. As lights around the home flicker and sparks fly from the panel behind him, John foams at the mouth until his head finally explodes. This scene is violent, filmed well, and grotesque in all the right ways.
3) Drowned in Boiling Water – Halloween II (1981)
Many of the great horror icons from the great horror franchises serve as a means to punish sinful teens. Oftentimes, slashers like Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees emerge before, during, or after young, dumb lovers engage in what one could call lovers’ activities. 1981’s Halloween II is no exception to this trend. During the film, a nurse and her boyfriend seek out some fun in a hot tub. However, after her boyfriend is killed off-screen, Michael attacks the nurse, drowning her in the hot tub’s boiling water. This scene is one of the best death scenes in the Halloween franchise because of its creativity and brutality. Not only does the nurse drown but her face is severely burned by the boiling water, making it truly one of the greatest.
2) The Mask Test — Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982)
Halloween III: Season of the Witch may be the only movie in the Halloween franchise without Michael Myers, but that does not mean it is short on some incredible death scenes. The film primarily follows a mystery surrounding the Silver Shamrock Novelties company. Despite their reputation as reputable Halloween mask makers, there is something sinister at work in their factory. Toward the end of the film, the protagonist, Dr. Chalice, is finally made aware of Silver Shamrock’s evil, apocalyptic plans while watching one of the best death scenes in the Halloween franchise play out. Triggered by one of their catchy commercials, a young boy becomes a victim of the witchcraft embedded in his Silver Shamrock pumpkin mask. The mask kills him nearly instantly, causing bugs and snakes to emerge from his eyes and mouth, not only killing him but his parents as well. This death scene is tragic, surprising, and most definitely inventive.
1) The Best of the Best Deaths in the Halloween Franchise: Michael Myer’s First Kill — Halloween (1978)
Of all of Michael Myers’ kills across twelve movies, his first kill from the original Halloween is by far the best. For first-time viewers, the opening of Halloween is an intriguing mystery. The audience follows the camera’s movements, which begin outside a house. Slowly, it moves closer, focusing on two teens making out through a window. Once inside, we see a hand reach into a drawer for a large kitchen knife. Before heading upstairs, the person whose view we are seeing grabs a mask and puts it on. Once up the stairs, we approach the young girl from before, and we see the knife stab her repeatedly as she screams. Back outside, the point-of-view the audience has been following is revealed to be a small boy in a clown costume, a boy by the name of Michael Myers.
This death scene is the one that started it all, and it remains one of the best. Unlike other kills in the Halloween franchise, the original murder of Michael’s sister Judith Myers is crafted and filmed well. As a bonus, the scene presents a terrifying and surprising sequence for first-time viewers. No death scene since has been able to capture the magic of the original’s opening since. For that reason, the stabbing of Judith Myers is the best of the best death scenes in the Halloween franchise.
Honorable Mentions for the Best Deaths in the Halloween Franchise:
- Michael Myers stomping Dr. Sartain’s head (Halloween – 2018)
- Michael Myers stabbing a man with a tripod leg (Halloween Resurrection)
- Although the kill occurs off-camera, the human head jack-o-lantern (Halloween – 2018)
- Teen girl stabbed multiple times after her leg is squashed by a dumbwaiter (Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later)
For more on the Halloween franchise, be sure to check out our ranking of the Halloween movies as well as future updates on next year’s Halloween Ends. Here at The Nerd Stash, we keep our followers up to date on all the latest movie, TV, and video game news!