This week, director Rob Zombie has announced casting has been completed for the lead roles of Dr. Loomis and Michael Myers in his version of the classic horror film, Halloween.

Lengendary actor Malcolm McDowell will be taking on the role of Dr. Sam Loomis, the man who tries to stop the killings. McDowell is best known for roles in movies as varied as A Clockwork Orange and Star Trek: Generations. More recently, he has worked in a supporting role as Terrance on HBO's hit series, "Entourage." This casting is a real coup for Zombie, as he has often said A Clockwork Orange was his favorite film ever. As a fan of McDowell's work myself, I think he'll be able to add some new nuances to the role that was originally played by Donald Pleasance.

Also headlining in the role of Michael Myers, the killer who won't die, is actor Tyler Mane. Mane has worked with Zombie before, playing Rufus in The Devil's Rejects, and also had supporting roles in 2000's X-Men as Sabretooth and 2004's Troy as Ajax. I think Mane definitely has the stature to play Myers, but I'm not sure if he'll bring anything new to the role. Then again, he just has to be menacing - with the mask, acting with facial expressions is not an issue.

Zombie shared the news this week with his fans via his MySpace page. Casting has yet to be announced for the third lead role, the babysitter Laurie Strode, played in the original by Jamie Lee Curtis.

Zombie rose to fame as a member of the industrial grunge rock group White Zombie and then continued on as a successful solo performer. In recent years, he has earned respect in the horror community with his films, House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects.

I'm still not sure this classic movie needs to be remade, but I am going to keep an open mind. Zombie has impressed me with his previous movies and there may be a chance he'll bring something new to the story instead of just doing a scene-by-scene remake.

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