Halloween Franchise Timeline
Choose a path before the timeline splits.
Halloween does not have one clean chronology. The 1978 original becomes the shared starting point for three different sequel paths, while the Rob Zombie remakes begin again from scratch.
Pick one continuity below and follow it from left to right. Halloween III: Season of the Witch sits outside every Michael Myers timeline as a standalone anthology story.
Where every timeline begins
Three branches share the 1978 original. One starts over completely.
The 1978 original is the shared evidence. Open a case file to jump directly to that continuity's complete watch order.
The four Halloween timelines
Each row is self-contained. Shared films are repeated so you never need to mentally cross-reference another branch.
Original / Thorn timeline
The longest original continuity follows Laurie, Jamie Lloyd, and the Thorn mythology.
Halloween
Michael Myers returns to Haddonfield and stalks Laurie Strode on Halloween night.
Read entry
Halloween II
The same night continues as Michael follows Laurie to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital.
Read entry
Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers
Michael returns to Haddonfield and hunts Laurie’s young daughter, Jamie Lloyd.
Read entry
Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers
Jamie’s connection to Michael deepens as another Halloween night turns violent.
Read entry
Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers
The Thorn mythology closes the original sequel path around Michael’s evil.
Read entryH20 timeline
H20 ignores parts 4–6 and brings Laurie back twenty years after the first two films.
Halloween
Michael Myers returns to Haddonfield and stalks Laurie Strode on Halloween night.
Read entryHalloween II
The same night continues as Michael follows Laurie to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital.
Read entry
Halloween: Resurrection
A live internet broadcast enters the Myers house while Michael waits inside.
Read entryBlumhouse / H40 timeline
This legacy-sequel trilogy ignores every sequel and continues directly from the 1978 original.
Halloween
Michael Myers returns to Haddonfield and stalks Laurie Strode on Halloween night.
Read entry
Halloween Kills
Haddonfield rises against Michael as the 2018 Halloween night continues.
Read entry
Halloween Ends
Laurie and Michael’s legacy reaches its final confrontation four years later.
Read entryRob Zombie timeline
Two remake films reconstruct Michael’s origin and tell a self-contained alternate story.
Halloween II
Trauma and violent visions drive the remake continuity toward its conclusion.
Read entryHalloween III: Season of the Witch
A standalone anthology experiment with no Michael Myers and no connection to the four timelines.
Why the same movie appears more than once
The 1978 original anchors the Thorn, H20, and H40 branches. Halloween II belongs to both Thorn and H20. Repeating those titles inside each row makes every viewing path complete and prevents a misleading single timeline.
Halloween Timeline Frequently Asked Questions
How many Halloween timelines are there, and why does the same movie appear more than once?
There are four separate continuities: the original Thorn timeline, the H20 timeline, the Blumhouse/H40 timeline, and the Rob Zombie remakes. Halloween (1978) anchors three of them, and Halloween II (1981) belongs to both Thorn and H20, which is why those two films show up more than once across this guide.
How many Halloween movies are there in total?
Across all four timelines plus the standalone Halloween III: Season of the Witch, there are 13 unique films. Several titles are counted in more than one timeline, so the real total is lower than adding up each branch separately.
Where does Halloween III: Season of the Witch fit in the timeline?
It doesn't. There's no Michael Myers, no Laurie Strode, and no connection to any of the four continuities. It's a standalone anthology entry that shares only the Halloween title, so it sits outside every timeline rather than at a point in one.
Which order is best for a first-time viewer?
Start with Halloween (1978) and Halloween II (1981), since both anchor three of the four timelines. From there, pick one continuity to follow rather than switching between them, and treat Halloween III as an optional standalone watch rather than part of the sequence.
Which Halloween timeline has the highest-rated movies?
By HorroRated's verdicts, Halloween (1978) is rated Legendary and Halloween (2018), the start of the Blumhouse/H40 line, is rated Highly Recommended, the two highest scores in the franchise. The Rob Zombie timeline scores lowest overall, with both entries landing at Worth a Look or below.
Do I need to watch Halloween 4, 5, and 6 to understand the H20 timeline?
No. The H20 timeline ignores those three films entirely and retcons Laurie Strode's death into a faked identity change instead. You can start the H20 continuity straight from Halloween II without watching the Thorn sequels first.
Does the Blumhouse/H40 timeline require watching any other sequels first?
Only the 1978 original. The H40 timeline treats Halloween (2018) as a direct sequel to the first film alone, ignoring every other sequel released between 1981 and 2009.