The men behind the Michael Myers mask

It's Halloween this week. And what better movies to talk about at Halloween than, well, the 'Halloween' movies? After all, they boast one of the most terrifying characters in horror history - the seemingly immortal masked murderer that is Mr. Michael Myers (no, not the 'Austin Powers' guy). But just who was the original slasher; the Terror of Haddonfield? Who was the man behind the mask?

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Well, it turns out there were quite a few men behind that blank white mask. So let's sharpen our biggest butcher's knife and hunt them down shall we (metaphorically, of course)?

Nick Castle — 'Halloween' (1978)

As Castle and director John Carpenter were former film school classmates and good buddies (and because he could act), he was cast as Michael for most of the scenes in the original (for a measly 25 bucks a day). Weirdly, he went on to direct the 1993 Walter Matthau-starring family film 'Dennis the Menace'. But he wasn't the only Myers in the 1978 version...

Tony Moran — 'Halloween' (1978)

The brother of Happy Days's Joanie Cunningham, Moran was cast as Mad Mikey when he's de-masked at the end of the original film (poor Nick Castle must've have been gutted about it!). He was paid the princely sum of $250 for his couple of days on set, then immediately quit acting to become a mortgage broker. "I was Michael Myers" is a good claim to fame in the office though, isn't it?

Tommy Lee Wallace - 'Halloween' (1978)

Another friend of Carpenter's, TLW was Michael for the classic closet scene with Jamie Lee Curtis. He actually went on to direct 'Halloween III: Season of the Witch' too - ironically the only film in the series not to feature Myers.

Jim Winburn — 'Halloween' (1978)

Can you believe that four fellas played 'The Shape' (as Myers was originally credited). Jim was the creepy killer for just one dangerous scene, when he crashes out of a window. Poor ol' Jim must've drawn the shortest straw.

Dick Warlock - 'Halloween 2' (1981)

Kurt Russell's personal stuntman for nearly three decades, Dick has the honour of not only being the only Michael in the first 'Halloween' sequel, but having the funniest name in Hollywood.

George P. Wilbur - 'Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers' (1988) & 'Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers' (1995)

George became the first actor to play Mikey twice, pitching up in the fourth and sixth instalments. Originally he was only there to coordinate the stunts. How did he get the main part? "The producers were looking for a specific body type. I happened to be the right height and build so I fit the description." Wow, they knew how to make George feel special.

Don Shanks — 'Halloween 5' (1989)

Another stuntman to have worn the whitewashed Captain Kirk mask (have we mentioned that Michael's face is obscured by a cheap whitewashed William Shatner mask? Well we should have. Because it's true), Shanks is a towering chap of Cherokee blood.

Chris Durand - 'Halloween H20: 20 Years Later' (1998)

A stuntman. Can you see a pattern emerging here? Chris played 'Shapey' (as Myers became known on set) for this late '90s effort that saw the return of the franchise's original starlet, Ms. Jamie Lee Curtis.

Brad Loree - 'Halloween Resurrection' (2002)

Yet another stuntman. This time a Canadian one. Again, it really doesn't seem like the auditioning process was a particularly rigorous one. Loree remembers overhearing this conversation on the set one day, "How many guys did they go through before you decided on Brad?" a producer asked someone. "He was the first guy we met and interviewed and we just went with him," they replied.

Tyler Mane — 'Halloween' (2007) & 'Halloween 2' (2009)

Rob Zombie's recent remakes featured an altogether beefier masked man. At 6'9" and 300lbs, Tyler Mane is the only actor to play Double M in consecutive movies. The former pro wrestler took his casting seriously though, watching all the previous Halloween films back-to-back when he got the part.

And there are probably more to come. While there are no immediate plans for any more Halloween outings, as we all know - you just can't kill Michael Myers...