Moustapha Akkad, producer of the cult "Halloween" slasher series and the director of three of his own religious-themed films, died Friday after suffering injuries from the hotel bombings in Jordan.
Akkad, 75, and his 34 year-old daughter, Rima Akkad Monla, were in the lobby of the Radisson SAS in Amman when bombs went off in a simultaneous attack on three area hotels; Monla also died.
Akkad, a Los Angeles resident, had enjoyed a nearly 20-year career in filmmaking despite the difficulties of being Arabic and Muslim in Hollywood. The native Syrian began by directing his own Muslim-themed films: "The Message" (1976) and "Lion of the Desert" (1981). Following the resulting acclaim and religious controversy, Akkad turned to horror films, executive producing John Carpenter‘s legendary "Halloween" (1978).
After the seminal thriller took off, making stars of director Carpenter and actress Jamie Lee Curtis, Akkad went on to produce every one of the seven "Halloween" sequels; in fact, he is the only person connected to the franchise to boast credits on every one of the "Halloween" movies. An announced eighth sequel, "Halloween: Retribution," has been slated for a 2006 release by The Weinstein Co. and will be produced by Harvey Weinstein and his brother Bob, who worked with Akkad co-producing "Halloween: H2O" (1998) and "Halloween: Resurrection" (2002).
