Halloween III: Season of the Witch

Play trailer

Halloween III: Season of the Witch

R

1982

1h 38m

Holiday

Horror

Mystery & Thriller

Sci-Fi

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

49%

Tomatometer

39 Reviews

31%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

Hospital emergency room Dr. Daniel "Dan" Challis (Tom Atkins) and Ellie Grimbridge (Stacey Nelkin), the daughter of a murder victim, uncover a terrible plot by small-town mask maker Conal Cochran (Dan O'Herlihy), a madman who's planning a Halloween mass murder utilizing an ancient Celtic ritual. The ritual involves a boulder stolen from Stonehenge, the use of Silver Shamrock masks and a triggering device contained in a television commercial -- all designed to kill millions of children.

Watch on Fandango at Home

Stream Now

Critics Consensus

Its laudable deviation from series formula not withstanding, Halloween III: Season Of The Witch offers paltry thrills and dubious plotting.

Read Critics Reviews

Chris Stuckmann

ChrisStuckmann.com

Absolutely atrocious. I admire the fact that they did try to propel the story in a different direction. But the story they chose was insanely boring.

Rated: D-

Nov 3, 2018

Full Review

Aja Romano

Vox

This movie is a dirty trick on all Halloween fans.

Oct 19, 2018

Full Review

Time Out

The end result is a bit of a mess but hugely enjoyable, and often (thanks to Dean Cundey's camerawork and John Carpenter's close supervision as producer) as striking visually as its predecessors.

Jun 24, 2006

Full Review

Bryce Hanson

Horror Movie Talk

The reality is, the critics got it right the first time. This film is not underrated. It is rated. It’s bad.

Rated: 2/10

Sep 18, 2025

Full Review

Patrick Cavanaugh

The Wolfman Cometh

Abandoning Michael Myers is the best thing the franchise could have done, as we got this silly and spooky experience that embraces the sinister side of All Hallows Eve.

Rated: 4/5

Sep 11, 2025

Full Review

Joe Leydon

Houston Post (Texas)

Silly and slackly paced, this film exists solely to wring the last few bucks from an exploitable title. This is a trick, and it's no treat.

Aug 27, 2025

Full Review

Read all reviews

Tyler S

Honestly, it was a fine film. It's just so hard to rank because it's so different than the rest of the franchise. I see where they were originally going, but now that this franchise stuck with the Michael Myers story, this was just a massive outlier. Again, fine film, just doesn't fit in the grand scheme of things.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

10/20/25

Full Review

Mania I.

A departure from the Michael Myers saga involving a toy factory that manufactures special Halloween masks that could mean the end of the world. I really enjoyed this. A catchy jingle that will be in your head for quite a while. Tom Atkins does a great job as a emergency room Doctor who actually uncovers the insidious plot. It's a fun watch but remember this is not a Michael Myers Halloween. John Carpenter's originally attention was to have an anthology every Halloween and have a different type of movie each year.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

10/19/25

Full Review

Diogo Z.

Still trying to get that jingle out of my head. I was just like the main character at the end: stop it, stop it, STOP IT!

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

10/18/25

Full Review

Vanessa L.

How dare they try to go off the main storyline! Fun fact: Jamie Lee Curtis IS in this one....

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

10/16/25

Full Review

Melissa L

I usually only watch any "Halloween" with Jamie Lee Curtis in it, and now I know why. This film was garbage.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

10/12/25

Full Review

Edward W

Not a stand up to the original, but love the anthology idea that this franchise was heading into. Shame they cancelled that venture. Enjoyable film and worth a watch.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

10/12/25

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Tommy Lee Wallace

Director

Tom Atkins

Daniel Challis

Stacey Nelkin

Ellie Grimbridge

Dan O'Herlihy

Conal Cochran

Ralph Strait

Buddy Kupfer

Michael Currie

Rafferty

View more videos

Halloween II

34%

63%

Halloween II

Watchlist

The Thing

85%

92%

The Thing

Watchlist

Halloween

97%

89%

Halloween

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Halloween

Psycho II

67%

62%

Psycho II

Watchlist

Q

72%

43%

Q

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

The Killer Body Count Guide

John Carpenter’s Halloween Audio Commentary

Halloween Costume Guide 2011

View more photos

Synopsis

Hospital emergency room Dr. Daniel "Dan" Challis (Tom Atkins) and Ellie Grimbridge (Stacey Nelkin), the daughter of a murder victim, uncover a terrible plot by small-town mask maker Conal Cochran (Dan O'Herlihy), a madman who's planning a Halloween mass murder utilizing an ancient Celtic ritual. The ritual involves a boulder stolen from Stonehenge, the use of Silver Shamrock masks and a triggering device contained in a television commercial -- all designed to kill millions of children.

Director: Tommy Lee Wallace
Producer: John Carpenter, Debra Hill
Screenwriter: Tommy Lee Wallace
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Production Co: Universal Pictures, Dino De Laurentiis Productions
Rating: R
Genre: Holiday, Horror, Mystery & Thriller, Sci-Fi
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 22, 1982, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 11, 2015
Runtime: 1h 38m
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

Most Popular at Home Now