Summary from the Official Website for Halloween
Fangoria magazine reported
that Debra Hill almost fainted when approached with the idea for a third
HALLOWEEN film. The only circumstance under which Carpenter and Hill would
create a third entry is if it were not a direct sequel. "This is a 'pod'
movie, not a 'knife' movie," she said. Tommy Lee Wallace, who served as
director on the film, can be heard during the Silver Shamrock commercials, as an
announcer. "It is our [Carpenter, Hill, Wallace] intention to create an
anthology out of the series, sort of along the lines of NIGHT GALLERY, or THE
TWILIGHT ZONE, only on a much larger scale, of course," he said.
The movie was written originally by Nigel Kneale, but
he requested to have his name dropped from the credits. The budget for the film
was set at $2.5 million. Producer Debra Hill, associate producer Barry Bernardi,
and Wallace settled on a remote California costal town, Lolita, to film the
movie. The mask factory was actually a milk factory. Due to health standards, no
explosions or smoke could take place inside the factory, so the crew moved to
Don Post's studio, the legendary mask maker who created the masks for the film.
"The effects in this aren't bloody. They're more bizarre than gross,"
said star Tom Atkins. Also in the cast was actor Dan O'Herlihy, who Debra Hill
referred to as "Mr. Halloween."