Halloween Kills, the slasher sequel, has the highest body count in the series so far, and previous Halloween films don’t even come close to matching it.
The follow-up to director David Gordon Green’s successful 2018 Halloween revival appeared in October 2021, after COVID-19 caused significant delays. While critics were divided on Halloween Kills, no fan can disagree that the sequel ups the ante in terms of onscreen gore.
The Number Of Kills
Halloween Kills picks up just where the 2018 film left off, with the largest body count of any Halloween film to date. With 20 deaths, the lacklustre Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers comes in second, but several of them happen offscreen in an explosion.
Meanwhile, in the unrated version of director Rob Zombie’s 2007 revival, there are a total of 22 deaths, but “only” 20 in the theatrical cut. In comparison, Michael kills 27 people in Halloween Kills, greatly surpassing both the original and reboot continuity marks.
Michael’s murdering spree is aided by two moments of mass murder in which he kills an entire mob of townspeople in one fell swoop, yet his body count is by far the highest the slasher has ever managed in one expedition.
Bloodier Than Ever, Gruesome Than Ever?
Not only is Michael deadlier than ever in this long-awaited Halloween franchise instalment, but the death toll isn’t restricted to the series’ villain. Another death occurs as a result of a case of mistaken identity, with an escaped asylum patient leaping out a hospital window after being pursued by an enraged mob.
Hawkins also mistakenly killed his buddy by shooting him while attempting to kill Michael in the 1978 flashback. Vanessa’s short-lived battle with Michael ended with her shooting herself in the head after Michael kicked a car door open on the barrel of her firearm.
Viewers can decide whether or not either of these two killings counts toward Michael’s tally, although even without them, Halloween Kills is his deadliest outing.
Rob Zombie’s Halloween Films
While Rob Zombie’s Halloween films were criticised for over-humanizing Michael, they did deliver in terms of increasing the death count of the original series’ more tame counterparts. Kills, on the other hand, not only outdoes Zombie’s two sequels but also makes Michael even less human in the process, with the character surviving many life-threatening injuries.
Michael Myers may be virtually unkillable, but the citizens of Haddonfield are all too mortal, as his record-breaking Halloween Kills body count demonstrates.
