Michael Myers won't be here to terrify us all once again this Halloween after all, as the release of Halloween Kills has officially been delayed by a whole year. Although the cut of the movie is practically complete with the trailer rumored to debut sometime soon, John Carpenter has revealed in a new statement that the concerns over the state of movie theaters this year has led to Universal Studios putting Michael back on the shelf until Halloween time in 2021, forgoing its original planned release date for October 2020.

"We write this to you heartbroken over the fact that the delay of our film is even a discussion, but there's one thing that a career in the film industry has prepared us for, it is the unexpected," John Carpenter says in the statement, adding that they had "discussed and struggled" with how to best present Halloween Kills to old and new fans of the franchise alike. "If we release it in October of this year as planned, we have to face the reality that the film would be consumed in a compromised theatrical experience. After weighing our options, we have chosen to push the film's theatrical release by one year."

John Carpenter has also tweeted a new teaser for Halloween Kills, with Laurie frantically calling for Michael to burn, which you can take a look at below.

For what it's worth, the delay has also allowed for some good news as well. Along with the traditional release of the sequel, Universal will also release an IMAX version of Halloween Kills when it premieres in theaters next year. "We are sound mixing with one of the greatest design teams that can slash, scream and creep their way under your skin. We're going to have time to complete the film with the quality that fans deserve," Carpenter explains. Additionally, the Master of Horror also says that preparation has begun on Halloween Ends, so even though Michael Myers won't be in theaters in 2020, there's still going to be plenty for fans to look forward to.

Halloween Kills will continue the story from the events that occurred in David Gordon Green's 2018 Halloween movie, bringing back Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Greer, and Andi Matichak as Laurie, Karen, and Allyson Strode. James Jude Courtney and Nick Castle will also again be sharing the role of Michael Myers. The movie will also see the returns of original Halloween stars Kyle Richards, Charles Cyphers, and Nancy Stephens. Franchise newcomer Anthony Michael Hall will also star as an older version of Tommy Doyle, the young boy babysat by Laurie in the original movie.

Instead of premiering on Oct. 16 of this year, Halloween Kills is now officially scheduled to premiere in theaters on Oct. 20, 2021. Additionally, word has come in that another anticipated horror sequel, The Forever Purge, has also been pushed back from its original July 2020 release date. That movie will instead premiere in theaters on July 9, 2021. These aren't the only movies to see major delays, as Ghostbusters: Afterlife has already been given a new release date for March 2020 when it had originally been set to open this week. This news comes to us from John Carpenter on Twitter.