John Carpenter calls Rob Zombie a lying “piece of shit,” hated his Halloween remake

Judging from some of his recent efforts, Rob Zombie still has a lot to learn about what makes the horror genre work. He should also take note that it’s never a good idea to mess with the legends. Entertainment Weekly recently dug up a video in which horror mastermind John Carpenter absolutely eviscerates Zombie and his 2007 Halloween remake (Carpenter directed the original 1978 slasher flick).

Speaking to a group of students at the New York Film Academy, Carpenter calls his would-be protege out as a liar and shoddy filmmaker. “He lied about me,” the director says, alluding to an interview Zombie had given about the production of his Halloween adaptation. “He said I was very cold to him when he told me he was going to make it. Nothing could be further from the truth. I said, ‘Make it your own movie, man. This is yours now. Don’t worry about me.’ I was incredibly supportive. Why that piece of shit lied, I don’t know.”

Like his iconic antagonist Michael Myers, Carpenter is out for blood in the clip. When asked for his thoughts on Zombie’s Halloween remake and its 2009 sequel, he really lets the daggers fly: “I thought he took away the mystique of the story by explaining too much about [Michael Myers]. I don’t care about that. He’s supposed to be a force of nature, he’s supposed to be almost supernatural, and he was too big.”

This isn’t the first time Carpenter has registered that particular complaint. When he signed on as the Executive Producer and Creative Consultant for the upcoming Halloween remake, he suggested that he wasn’t pleased with the franchise’s recent direction. “Halloween needs to return to its traditions,” he explained. “I feel like the movies have gotten away from that… 

Michael is not just a human being; he’s a force of nature, like the wind. That’s what makes him so scary.”

Speaking of scary (well, for Zombie at least), you can check out the full interview above. The evisceration starts around the 17-minute mark.