The Boogeyman has defied death many times before, but he may have finally met his match in Laurie Strode.
Editor's Note: the following contains major spoilers for Halloween Ends.
The infamous Michael Myers has endured a lot over several decades of films across multiple timelines. Even as he has been shot, stabbed, and blown up, he has kept coming back to continue his reign of terror. With Halloween Ends, the concluding chapter of the most recent trilogy, the question has been whether he will once again manage to survive a long-awaited final showdown with Jamie Lee Curtis’ Laurie Strode. The film gave us the most definitive answer that any has yet and, if it wasn’t already clear, is something this piece is about to spoil. If you haven’t already seen the film, best go do so now and come back to this after. If you have, strap in as we dive into more of the more explosive ends for Michael.
The short answer is that yes, Michael does definitely die. While there have been some fake-outs in prior films, including one moment where he seemed to get decapitated when it actually was a different person entirely, this film goes out of its way to make sure it is clear that he is indeed dead. It came following the aforementioned confrontation with Strode where both really went at each other. This took place after Michael spent four years essentially living in a sort of reserved state underground. When he was awoken from his semi-slumber, he began making a comeback and getting back on his usual grind of murder. Laurie, while still ready for Michael to come for her, had been largely trying to put the masked killer behind her and move on with her life. That all got thrown out the window when he shows up in her home. For those new to this, that rascal Michael does this type of thing a lot and isn't particularly considerate of others' personal space when he gets his mind set on murdering.
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Doing a dedicated job of destroying as much of her lovely kitchen as they could, Michael and Laurie just keep smashing away at each other. Eventually, it ends with The Boogeyman being done in with his own weapons of choice. Laurie stabs him through both hands, pinning him to the kitchen table. She then goes to the fridge and for one magnificent moment it almost seems as though she is going to leap atop it to jump down on Michael like she was in a wrestling match. Alas, this does not happen. However, she does still use the fridge by smashing it down on Michael in order to further keep him in place. He thrashes around, though is unable to break free. Laurie then proceeds to start cutting into Michael as this isn’t her first rodeo, and she knows that he will keep coming back unless you are absolutely sure that he is dead. In the middle of this, he manages to free one of his arms and lunge at her. It does completely shred his hand, but he also manages to grab Laurie.
However, just when he seems like he may turn the tables on her, her granddaughter Allyson (Andi Matichak) joins in on the fun and saves her. Laurie then proceeds to continue ensuring Michael is dead by cutting into him once more. Not satisfied that this is enough, she then joins in with the rest of the Haddonfield police department who showed up at her home to take what remains of Michael and destroy him for good. They tie him to the roof of their car and create a darkly hilarious image as they begin driving down the street. As the community sees them passing by, they all decide to join in. Continuing on, they eventually arrive at the local scrapyard. Michael is removed from the roof and put on the edge of a giant crushing machine. In triumphant fashion, Laurie stands up on top of the machine and gives the final push that sends him down into the hungrily awaiting blades. If he was even still alive, Michael is then completely destroyed in the blink of an eye as the crusher makes short work of him. His body is literally consumed and ground up into nothing that would even be recognizable. Anything that is left of him is simply mush and, most importantly, we and the many other witnesses actually see this happen with our own eyes. There is no sort of fake trap door or trickery playing out that we can see in this extended sequence. For all the ways that Michael has managed to evade his demise time and time again, there is just no way that he is getting out of this one in the current timeline that this most recent trilogy is taking place in.
Doubters may say that previous films have managed to retroactively explain away what seemed like certain death and pick right back up as though nothing had happened. While that is certainly true in past incarnations, no other story has killed him off as comprehensively as this. The only way that Michael is going to be coming back is if there is some sort of magical resurrection or a new timeline is created. There was no body swap, no possible means of escape. He is absolutely and definitely dead. The only potential wiggle room would be if the film takes a more subversive understanding of the ending and establishes that there could be a new Michael who takes up the mantle by putting on the mask. Horror films have done this before and it could be a potential metaphorical carrying on of the killings. With that being said, the flesh and bone being that was Michael Myers is nothing more than a bloody pulp. Other characters certainly could call themselves by the same name and continue on the violence if they ever decide to make another movie. What they won’t be is the same exact killer from before, as that being has been obliterated. For the first time in any of the films in the franchise, Michael Myers has met a permanent end from which there is no coming back.
Halloween Ends is in theaters and streaming on Peacock.
Chase Hutchinson is a Senior Features Writer for Collider. His work has also appeared in a variety of publications including The Stranger, The Portland Mercury, The Inlander, The Seattle Times, and The Boston Globe. He lives in Tacoma, WA (it is near Seattle, though still very much its own thing) where he works as a writer and journalist. You can find him on Twitter at @EclecticHutch.
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