John Carpenter, the multiple award-winning and legendary filmmaker and creator of the original Halloween films, will return to the franchise as executive producer on a new production of the iconic horror movie, Miramax and Trancas International Films announced jointly today.

Miramax and Blumhouse Productions will co-finance development and production, with Malek Akkad serving as producer under his Trancas banner and Jason Blum producing for Blumhouse. Miramax, which holds worldwide distribution rights, will determine its theatrical distribution partner at a future date.

The Halloween film franchise that was started in part by Carpenter and Moustapha Akkad in 1978 has spawned ten films generating a total of nearly $400 million in worldwide box office.

“38 years after the original Halloween I’m going to help to try to make the 10th sequel the scariest of them all,” Carpenter said in a statement.

“Trancas International is thrilled to be teaming up with Miramax on Halloween, one of the most enduring horror franchises in film," said Malek Akkad said. "We are also very excited to be working with Jason Blum and the whole team at Blumhouse. Together, along with the return of legendary filmmaker John Carpenter, we are eager to make a film that will be a milestone in the franchise’s legacy and that will excite the fans, young and old.”

“Malek Akkad’s legacy with the Halloween franchise accompanied by Blumhouse’s unprecedented talent in the horror genre lays the foundation of a formidable team to create the next chapter of this iconic fan favorite," said Zanne Devine, Miramax's EVP Film & Television. "Having John Carpenter godfather the reboot of the iconic franchise he helped create brings it full circle. We couldn’t be in better company bringing Halloween back to the big screen.”

“Halloween is one of those milestone films that inspired everyone at our company to get into the world of scary movies," Jason Blum said. "The great Malek Akkad and John Carpenter have a special place in the hearts of all genre fans and we are so excited that Miramax brought us together. We cannot wait to find and collaborate with the right filmmaker to give Halloween fans the movie they deserve.”

David Thwaites will oversee the reboot for Miramax with Carpenter and the companies planning to immediately go out to filmmakers and fast-track the project.

The Academy Award-winning John Carpenter has written, directed, composed and/or edited over 20 films over the course of his career. An international household name, he is probably best known for his iconic features Halloween, The Thing, The Fog and Big Trouble in Little China, to name a few.