John Carpenter

The strongest human emotion is fear. It's the essence of any good thriller that, for a little while, you believe in the…

— John Carpenter

From early on, when synthesizers were first introduced into music, I liked the idea that you could get a big sound with…

— John Carpenter

It's a very good time for horror. This business certainly has changed, but there's still room for serious horror films. Look at…

— John Carpenter

Horror is always the same. It changes with the culture and changes with technology. The stories are always the same. There are…

— John Carpenter

Horror is a reaction; it's not a genre. Somebody's life would have to be in danger for it [story] to be a…

— John Carpenter

A lot of it [success] is luck. That's a huge part of it that no one wants to talk about. You just…

— John Carpenter

I don't watch my films. I've seen 'em enough after cutting them and putting the music on. I don't ever want to…

— John Carpenter

I just aim for basketball season to start. I don't really care about anything else in life.

— John Carpenter

One of my heroes is a composer named James Bernard, and oh my God... I can still listen to his music today…

— John Carpenter

What scares me is what scares you. We're all afraid of the same things. That's why horror is such a powerful genre.…

— John Carpenter

In Halloween, I viewed the characters as simply normal teenagers. Laurie, Jamie Lee's character, was shy and somewhat repressed. And Michael Myers,…

— John Carpenter

I can play just about any keyboard but I can't read or write a note.

— John Carpenter

We all question our sanity. Everyone has had an experience of loss of control of something.

— John Carpenter

“I met this six-year-old child, with this blank, pale, emotionless face, and the blackest eyes... the devil's eyes." ~Dr. Sam Loomis/Halloween”

— John Carpenter

I'm pretty happy with who I am. I like myself and what I'm doing. I don't need to be the world's greatest…

— John Carpenter

When somebody who makes movies for a living - either as an actor, writer, producer or director - lives to be a…

— John Carpenter

I stopped directing in 2001 for - oh, damn - four or five years, until I did the TV series 'Masters Of…

— John Carpenter

You play with everything you've got. I'm not a lover of cheap tricks. I've always loved playing with people, but there's no…

— John Carpenter

When I got into the movie business, working with actors was the one thing I was really weak at. I didn't know…

— John Carpenter

I'm always involved with casting my movies. I have final word on it.

— John Carpenter

Child pornography is taboo. There are really no such things as snuff films. That's a legend. But movies are like pieces of…

— John Carpenter

Horror found me. I got into the movie business to make westerns.

— John Carpenter

I don't want to be a part of the demographics. I want to be an individual. I wear each of my films…

— John Carpenter

When you have no money, you need invention.

— John Carpenter

I've gone through various periods with superheroes. They work in the right hands, but they don't work in other hands. It's tricky.…

— John Carpenter