In this year’s horror sequel Halloween Kills, Anthony Michael Hall will be playing the adult version of Tommy Doyle, one of the two children babysat by Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) in the original movie. Longtime fans of the series will know that Hall is not the only person to play an older version of the character, as Paul Rudd famously played the part in 1995. The role may now be changing hands once again, but from one Tommy Doyle to another, Rudd offered Hall his support in taking on the role.
Recently, Anthony Michael Hall spoke about his role in Halloween Kills in a new interview. The actor revealed that Rudd called director David Gordon Green during the shoot, and it sounds like he’s thrilled to have Hall playing Tommy Doyle next. After Rudd told Green how happy he was for Hall to step into the role, Green passed the word along to Hall himself with a text, and it seems like it was a great moment for the actor. As Hall explains:
“So one day, David Gordon Green texts me when I’m off – I wasn’t shooting that day – and he goes, ‘Yeah, I got a call from Paul Rudd, and he sends his best and he gave you his blessings – he’s really excited that you’re playing the part.’ I never met Paul Rudd but I thought that was really nice.”
Hall will be the fourth actor to take on the role of Tommy Doyle in the Halloween franchise. The character was first portrayed by child actor Brian Andrews in the original movie from 1978, alongside Kyle Richards as Lindsay Wallace. Rudd then took over the role in the 1995 sequel Halloween 6: The Curse of Michael Myers, playing an older version of the character. Rob Zombie’s 2007 reboot then brought in Skyler Gisondo to play the part, giving us our third Tommy Doyle. Reportedly, Rudd was also in consideration to reprise the role for Halloween Kills, though his role in Ghostbusters: Afterlife prevented the possibility.