Judith Myers
Judith Myers is a character in the Halloween film series. The character first appeared in the opening scene of the original Halloween film of 1978 which was directed by John Carpenter. She was introduced as the older teenage sister of Michael Myers but not much background information was provided about her. Much has been left to the fans imagination. But Judith was noteworthy for being the first murder victim of Michael Myers in the original series. In the remake, Halloween 2007, which was directed by Rob Zombie, the character Judith had a much larger role but she was not Michael's first murder victim.
Featured in: Halloween (1978); Halloween (2007)
Played by: Sandy Johnson; Hanna Hall
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Halloween 1978 film Directed by John Carpenter
Judith Myers was born on November 10, 1947. She lived in the fictional town of Haddonfield, Illinois. On Halloween 1963 she was responsible for babysitting her 6 year old brother, Michael. However, she was more interested in entertaining her boyfriend than keeping a close eye on her little brother. Once she confirmed with her boyfriend that they were alone except for Michail being around they went upstairs to Judith's bedroom where they could have sex. Meanwhile Michael stood outside of the house and watched his sister and her boyfriend through the living room window. After Micahel saw the light go off in Judith's bedroom, he walked around the house and through the back door where he entered the kitchen and pulled out a large butcher knife from a drawer. He then walked through the dining room and living room to find the boyfriend standing on the stairs and saying good bye to Judith who was standing on the upper landing of the stairs. Unfortunately the boyfriend didn't see Michael retreat back into the living room to hide out until he left. As soon as the boyfriend left, Michael ascended the stairs and donned a clown mask that had been discarded onto the floor. He then entered Judith's bedroom to find her singing and combing her hair in front of her vanity while only wearing underwear. When Judith saw Michael's reflection in the mirror, she spun around in her chair to see that he was holding a larger butcher knife and cried out "Michael?!" Her brother did not respond and began stabbing Judith numerous times in which she screamed "No, no! Ow! Michael! Ow! Ow! Michael! Oh, ohhh..." as she threw her fists onto her vanity desk and recoiled in horror. Eventually Judith fell off of her chair as she lost her strength and onto her bedroom floor. Michael then exited Judith's bedroom and left her on the floor bleeding to death. After he walked down stairs and out the front door with the butcher knife in his hand he was discovered by his parents who had just arrived home from a night out. Michael's father pulled the clown mask off of his head and said "Michael?" Meanwhile the mother remained silent. However, both parents stared at Michael in apparent shock.
Fifteen years later when Michael escapes from the mental asylum and returns to his hometown of Haddonfield, it is learned that the Myers house has been vacant not long after Judith's murder in 1963. However real estate agent Strode hasn't been able to sell the house due to it's criminal history. However, when Laurie Strode places a key under a mat on the porch of the old Myers house that her real estate father plans to show to some prospective buyers on Halloween day, Tommy Doyle says "That's a spook house. Ronnie Elamb told me awful stuff happened there once." This indicates that the children of Haddonfield think that the house is haunted. Sometime in the afternoon when Dr. Samuel Loomis (Michael's psychiatrist) goes to the local cemetary, he asks the groundskeeper to take him to Judith's plot. When they finally approach Judith's plot, they find out that her headstone is missing. The groundskeeper blames it on kids for trying to make a prank but Dr. Loomis knows that it's conclusive proof that Michael has indeed returned home. Later that night Michael places Judith's headstone behind Annie Brackett (another one of his murder victims). At some point that night, Samuel Loomis and Sheriff Lee Brackett walk through the old Myers house to find further evidence that Michael returned to Haddonfield. While in the house they walk through Judith's bedroom where Loomis tells Sheriff Brackett that this is where it happened and points to where Judith had been sitting when the crime was committed.
Halloween 2007 film Directed by Rob Zombie
In the remake, Judith Myers lived in a dysfunctional home environment. She resided with her mother, Deborah, who worked as a stripper in the Rabbit in Red Lounge and was in a relationship with a verbally abusive boyfriend named Ronnie White. She also resided with her 10 year old brother Michael Myers and little sister, Angel (also known as "Boo"). Due to the environment that she lived in she was a promiscuous teenager, outspoken, rebellious and sexually active. On Halloween night before Deborah leaves to go to work, she asks Judith to take Michael trick or treating. But once Deborah leaves, Judith chides Michael for being too old to go trick or treating and lets him know that she plans to spend the evening entertaining her boyfriend, Stephen. Upstairs in Judith's bedroom Stephen mentions Ronnie White and refers to him as Judith's father where by she corrects him and reveals that her biological father is in heaven. As they prepare to have sex, Stephen pulls out a white mask saying that he thinks it would be fun to have sex while wearing the mask. However, Judith disagrees and the mask is tossed aside. After they finish having sex, Stephen goes downstairs and sits at the kitchen table to have a sandwich. However, Michael sneaks up from behind and beats Stephen over the head with a baseball bat until he dies. After that he goes into the living room and sneaks up behind a sleeping Ronnie who is sitting in a reclining chair in front of the tv. Michael quickly wraps duct tape around his mouth and around his head before he slits his throat. He then ascends the stairs and donns the white mask that he finds on the floor and enters Judith's bedroom. Michael observes Judith resting on her bed listening to her walkman and gently runs his hand up her leg to get her to turn around and look at him. When Judith turns around she screams "Michael! What the F*** are you doing in here?!" When Michael doesn't answer, Judith smacks him in the face only to get stabbed in the stomach. Judith looks down in surprise and then looks up at Michael and stares at him in shock before getting to her feet. She stumbles out of her bedroom and down the hallway in a desperate attempt to flee from Michael. However, Michael catches up with her and stabs her in the back until she falls onto the floor where he continues to stab her until she dies. Michael then goes downstairs and sits outside on the stoop with his little sister, Angel, in his arms until Deborah comes home and finds out about the murders. When the emergency medical team remove Judith's body from the house to the ambulance, Deborah screams and cries. Later on in the film just as in the original, Michael steals Judith's head stone.
Trivia
- According to John Carpenter's 1978 Halloween film, Judith was 15 years old when she died. Her tombstone had her birthdate listed as November 10, 1947 and she died October 31, 1963. Judith died only ten days before her 16th birthday.
- In the original Halloween film, Michael Myers was 6 years old when her murdered Judith in 1963. That would indicate that he was born in the year 1957.
- Judith's death has been mentioned by many characters within the original Halloween franchise.
- A novel titled "Halloween" (copyright 1979) by Curtis Richards (a pseudonym that was used by the author Dennis Etchison) was published. It was based on John Carpenter's Halloween film of 1978. In a scene exclusive to the novel, six year old Michael Myers is trick or treating with a group of children and they all stop at the Myers residence. After someone rings the doorbell, Judith answers the door and teases the children by saying "And what if I don't give you any candy? What are you going to do?" Michael replies "We're going to kill you." Whereby a shocked Judith says "Michael? Was that you? Because that's not funny and when mom and dad get home I'm going to tell them." Michael tells her "I'm not Michael. I'm a clown." Then Judith sees her boyfriend's car approaching and quickly gives the children some candy and money and hurries them off. Fifteen years later when Laurie Strode drops off the key at the Myers house, Michael stares at her through the door window and thinks that she resembles Judith.
- In the 1979 novel, Judith's middle name is revealed as being "Margaret" according to her head stone. Also in the novel when Dr. Loomis went to the cemetery where he subsequently found out that Judith's headstone was missing, it was stated that she was buried in "Haddonfield Town Cemetery".
- In the film Halloween II: More of the Night He Came Home (1980), police alert Dr. Loomis that Michael had snuck into the elementary school and ask him to shed some light on the evidence that Michael had left behind. One piece of evidence was a drawing that Michael drew and left on a desk. It was a drawing of himself as a little boy with Judith (she had a pink sweater and blue skirt just like in the opening scene of the original Halloween film of 1978) and his parents standing outside of his childhood home. However, he stabbed his drawing of Judith with a large butcher knife which penetrated through the desk.
- In the film Halloween V: The Revenge of Michael Myers (1989 film), Jamie Lloyd (portrayed by Danielle Harris) agrees to help Dr. Loomis and law enforcement trap her uncle Michael Myers. Dr. Loomis had Jamie renact the final moments of her Aunt Judith before she died in the old Myers house. Jamie was placed in her Aunt Judith's bedroom with a police officer and was instructed to comb her hair in front of a vanity set. But when Michael breaks through Judith's bedroom door, the officer uses a rope to tie around the window sill and tries to get Jamie to climb out the window but instead she manages to run past Michael and out of Judith's bedroom. Michael then ties the rope around the officers neck and throws him out of the window where he hangs and dies.
- In John Carpenter's Halloween film (1978), the Myers house was a white victorian era two story house and the filming location was in Pasadena, California. The house used in that film has been relocated to another street within Pasadena and is now a chiropractors office.
- In Halloween V: The Revenge of Michael Myers (1989 film), the Myers house was a huge vacant victorian era mansion and the filiming location was in Salt Lake City, Utah.
- In Halloween: H20, Judith's death is briefly mentioned just like in previous Halloween films. It is brought up by Laurie Strode (also known as Keri Tate) when she reveals her true identity to her boyfriend, Will; and Laurie says Judith was 17 years old at the time of her death. According to John Carpenter's Halloween (1978), however, the dates on Judith's tombstone are November 10, 1947 – October 31, 1963 making her 15 years old at the time of death. It is believed that the writers of Halloween: H20 changed Judith's age so that it would correspond with the character Laurie Strode's age from the original Halloween film of 1978.
- An alternate opening scene that was deleted for the Halloween: Ressurection film featured a home video of the Myers family having a barbeque in there backyard and it showed Judith playing with a hula hoop and holding her baby sister who would later grow up to be Laurie Strode. This video clip can be viewed on Youtube by searching "Halloween Ressurrection Alternate Opening Scene.
- Many comic books have been published and a few of them feature Judith Myers and or mention her.
- A fan made film titled "Judith: The Night She Stayed Home" was published and filmed on sight at the Myers House of North Carolina which is an exact replica of the Myers house used in John Carpenter's 1978 Halloween film.
- Another fan made film titled "Michael Myers: Rise of the Boogey Man" features the character Judith Myers. It's a prequel to John Carpenter's Halloween and takes place in 1963. It begins earlier on Halloween and features Judith taking Michael trick or treating. It shows what happens just before Michael murders Judith.