John Carpenter is one of the most influential directors of all time, not just in the horror genre, either. Though he did create one of the greatest slasher franchises in history, “Halloween,” and just an incredible horror film, “The Thing,” the director also has films like “Assault on Precinct 13,” “Escape from New York,” “They Live,” and “Big Trouble in Little China.” The man is, without a doubt, a living legend. So, if he wants to sit around and watch basketball and play video games, let the man do whatever he wants!
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In a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, Carpenter talks about what’s ahead for his film future. Most recently, he produced and composed the score for the upcoming “Halloween” reboot/sequel. Before that, his last directing gig was in 2010 on the film “The Ward.” But with filmmakers like Clint Eastwood (aged 88), Martin Scorsese (aged 75), and Steven Spielberg (aged 71) still pumping out hits, 70-year-old Carpenter is still in his prime.
But while he’d love to direct something new, he’s just not rushing into things.
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He jokes, “I would love to direct something, if it’s the right thing to do at my age. I’m not going to make another ‘Thing,’ I’ll tell you that. I’m not going to the Arctic again. I’m not going to do that. I want to take it easy. I want to enjoy myself!”
When the interviewer hinted that maybe he should skip the Arctic and go to Hawaii, Carpenter seemed to be okay with that idea, but said there are two major things preventing him from directing anything right now — the upcoming basketball season and video games.
He explains:
“I’ve wanted to do something in Europe and I’ve wanted to do something in Venice. I haven’t gotten a story for it though. What a place! What a strange place! And Venice is sinking! Wow. But I don’t know. I’d love to do something in Europe. That would be fun to do. There are two important things in my life, though. Basketball, when the season starts, and video games. And to play video games you have to sit in a chair and not really get up and do anything. I love that. That’s my job now, to sit around and do nothing!”
So maybe, just maybe, if the right project comes around, Carpenter will get behind the camera yet again. However, it better be good because LeBron James just signed with the Lakers and the holiday video game season is right around the corner, and it sounds like the filmmaker is perfectly content with that.
“Halloween” hits theaters on October 19.
Here’s a clip from Carpenter’s upcoming score for “Halloween:”
