Jamie Lee Curtis has thanked her godson Jake Gyllenhaal for rebooting her Hollywood career.
Jamie Lee Curtis has thanked her godson Jake Gyllenhaal for rebooting her Hollywood career
The ‘Halloween’ actress, 63, said the actor, 41, is responsible for getting her to star in the reboot of the horror franchise that made her name, which she said has led to a career renaissance.
Jamie told NME about agreeing to reprise her role as terrorised babysitter Laurie Strode from John Carpenter’s 1978 ‘Halloween’ hit in director David Gordon Green’s 2018 take on the slasher film: “It wasn’t even a thought in my head to do another ‘Halloween’ movie.
“I didn’t want to, but then I got a call from Jake Gyllenhaal, my godson who I’ve known since he was a little boy. Jake had worked with David Gordon Green and he said David wanted to speak to me. So I told him to pass my number along and the phone rang again just a minute later.”
Jamie added about David’s version of ‘Halloween’: “David had hidden an indie drama in the middle of a horror film. He made something intimate that was layered in bloody tissue and exploding heads. I read it in about an hour and called him back immediately, ‘OK, let’s go’.”
David’s ‘Halloween’ had the highest-grossing opening weekend for a film with a female lead over the age of 55 in history and was soon picked up for another two sequels also starring Jamie.
Jamie added: “There was no mention of a trilogy when we started in 2018. I didn’t think I would do it ever again. Later, David mentioned that there were these three stories – ‘Halloween’, ‘Halloween Kills’ and ‘Halloween Ends’. And here we are.
“I am a creature of habit. I am at my core loyal – and I’m loyal to Laurie. I will look back on my life and think that was a good quality.
“That film (‘Halloween’ 2018) changed my entire life. More so (thank the original.) At 63, I have an entire career.
“Now I’m a producer. I’m a writer, I’m a director, I’m an active boss, I’m a creative partner. I can collaborate with artists in a way that I’ve always dreamed of. I never expected to be making the movies that I’m making now.
“I’m looking at this as a decade of creativity, 60 to 70, that I never expected.
“I always knew I was an incredible collaborator, but all of a sudden my life has exploded creatively.”