When Kurt Russell and Keith David reunited at John Carpenter’s Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony, it wasn’t just a sweet moment. It was a full-circle experience for fans of the 1982 horror classic The Thing. Over 40 years after they played MacReady and Childs, the two actors stood side by side again, bringing back memories of one of the most famous endings in sci-fi history.
Russell looked at David with a big smile and said, “You look terrific.” Fans online couldn’t contain their excitement. One person wrote, “Two absolute icons and legends,” while another joked, “Somebody ask them if either one was The Thing all along!”
Kurt Russell and Keith David reunited to celebrate director John Carpenter
The first time Keith and Kurt have seen each other in 4 decades is right here for 18 seconds. pic.twitter.com/armeHxL2Tp
— 🔥 🏠 with a Y 🏠 🔥 (@wyntermitchell) April 4, 2025
The reunion happened on April 3, 2025, as part of the celebration for director John Carpenter, who was being honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Carpenter directed The Thing back in 1982, a film that has grown from a box office disappointment into a cult favorite.
In the final scene of the movie, Russell’s and David’s characters are left in the frozen wasteland, unsure if either of them has been taken over by the alien creature. That mystery still has fans debating to this day, and the reunion only added fuel to the fire. One fan commented, “This is the reunion I didn’t know I needed,” while another said, “Seeing MacReady and Childs together again is everything!” Despite playing several roles after The Thing, it is the only movie they both starred in together.
Kurt Russell celebrated John Carpenter
Kurt Russell paid tribute to Carpenter during the event. “There are very few directors whose work is instantly recognizable,” he said. “John Carpenter is one of them.”
Carpenter, now 76, kept his speech short and humble. “I was looking for a career in Hollywood. Well, I found my career. And today, I have found Hollywood,” he said. The reunion served fans a healthy dose of nostalgia. For fans of The Thing, it felt like watching history come alive.