This October brings the iconic mask of Michael Myers full circle, as Oscar-winning effects artist Christopher Nelson meticulously designed the new mask to look like the original 1978 mask aged over 40 years. The withered, deteriorated look of the new mask is effectively creepy and simultaneously invokes the nostalgia of the 1978 classic. While the original mask was a simple retooling of a William Shatner’s Captain Kirk mask, chosen for its lack of distinguishable facial features, the sequels that followed tinkered with the concept over and over, and mostly with weird results.
Spanning forty years, six sequels, and Rob Zombie’s two remake iterations of the icon, the mask of Michael Myers was in a constant state of change. In celebration of Halloween’s 40th anniversary and in anticipation of David Gordon Green’s Halloween, we look back at the many faces of The Shape.
Halloween (1978)
If we’re looking back at the many faces of Michael Myers, then it’s only appropriate to begin with the very first: the clown mask worn by a murderous Michael Myers, as a kid. But for the grown version of Myers, John Carpenter gave production designer Tommy Lee Wallace the instruction that the mask must be simple. Wallace rounded up four masks, one of which was Don Post’s Emmet Kelley sad clown face mask with red frizzy hair added to it. This one was an appropriate callback to the opening scene, but ultimately Wallace adhered to Carpenter’s wishes for the plainest option: William Shatner’s Captain Kirk mask. The eyebrows and sideburns were removed, the eyes cut open more, the hair teased, and the face painted matte white. And thus a horror icon was born. In the film, Michael Myers steals this mask from the hardware store after his escape from Smith’s Grove Sanitarium.
Halloween II
Surprise, this is the same mask from the original film. It aged a bit in the few years between films; Debra Hill kept the mask under her bed and her heavy chain smoking yellowed the mask a bit. The original actor of The Shape, Nick Castle, also was known to have stuffed the mask in his back pocket when not filming during the original production. In Halloween II, Dick Warlock took over the role. Considering he was shorter and stockier than Castle, he filled out the mask differently. So while it appears to be a different mask on screen, it’s one and the same.
Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers
Michael Myers was resurrected from retirement after Halloween III: Season of the Witch failed to resonate with fans. While this is one of the more fun sequels in terms of mythology and story, it, unfortunately, boasts some of the worst masks in the franchise. That’s correct; masks. The crew had to start anew with the mask, as Warlock took possession of the original after Halloween II production ended. They tried to recreate the look, with not so great results. The eye holes were smaller, the eyebrows thicker, and the mask’s expression incredibly odd. The “hero mask” was the main mask used during production; however, reshoots meant that two additional masks were used. The most glaringly noticeable is the mask that features a blond Michael Myers (a throwback to Ben Tramer’s mask, perhaps?). The second, seen in the scene where Michael Myers kills the sheriff’s daughter, features a mask that resembles the original a little better. Not much, though. The inconsistent masks and the weird design of them meant this sequel ranks among fans’ least favorite iteration of Myers.
Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers
In terms of story, this mask is supposed to be the same as the previous film. It’s clearly not. It’s also in the running for worst mask of the franchise. Director Dominique Otherin-Girard wanted to humanize Michael Myers, opting for a human interpretation of evil. An odd choice, considering that a large part of what makes Michael Myers feel like a true Boogeyman, or even a great white shark, is the emotionless mask. This version makes Michael Myers look angry, and the symmetrical tear-shaped eye holes are just weird.
Halloween 5 also marks a rare instance where Michael Myers wears an entirely different type of mask. In a car scene, Michael Myers kills a jerk teen and steals his mask, dubbed the Brute. He wears it for a very brief period before discarding in favor of his traditional mask.
Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers
Whether you love or hate the Cult of Thorn mythology introduced in this polarizing sequel, fans generally agree that this iteration of the mask is a major step up from the previous two entries. There’s a more obvious effort to return to the original look from the first two films in this mask’s design. The hair is a bit more wild and disheveled, but that’s okay. At least it’s not blond.
Halloween H20: 20 Years Later
This sequel wins the prize for most masks used in the film. When most of the films had one to two main mask used during production, this sequel had 4 or 5. There was a mask recast from the mask used in The Curse of Michael Myers, a mask designed and created by KNB FX, a Stan Winston company designed mask brought in for reshoots, and the embarrassing CGI mask.
Luckily, the CGI mask was used in only one scene of the film, and Winston’s version is the one seen in most of the film. H20 wins for having the worst mask continuity of the series, with Michael Myers’ look fluctuating throughout, but there’s some good mask work to be found within.
Halloween: Resurrection
On the one hand, this mask clearly hearkens back to the original. But on the other, this mask looks like Michael Myers might have taken to applying makeup. The design is similar to the 1978 iteration, but it looks like someone applied contouring and eyeliner to really play up Michael’s features. But hey, it’s still a step up from the masks in part 4 and 5.
Rob Zombie’s Halloween
As divisive as Rob Zombie’s remake is, the mask is universally loved. Though there are clear departures in narrative, this iteration of the mask feels very in line with the original. In this remake, Michael Myers obtains this mask right away, taking it from his sister’s boyfriend and wearing it while he murders her. When he retrieves it 15 years later from beneath the floorboards, it’s damaged and dingy in an effective way. This iteration of Michael Myers also had a penchant for making his own paper mache masks during his stay at the mental hospital.
Rob Zombie’s Halloween II
This mask’s design is a continuation from the previous film, showing even more wear and tear. It’s decayed, blood covered, shredded, and torn. Sounds great in theory, but it winds up revealing far too much of the human behind the mask. Considering the whole point of a mask is to hide the face wearing it, and that the mask is a big part of what makes Michael Myers so unnerving, you can bet this one wasn’t popular with fans.