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James Jude Courtney Recalls First Time Putting on Michael Myers Mask

The upcoming Halloween sequel has raised all sorts of hype within the horror community, and not just because we love all things slasher. It was also because it was stated multiple times that Nick Castle, who played the original Michael Myers, would reprising his role for the first time in 40 years.

Although there are times where Castle does don the mask, the physical requirements for the role are a bit on the extreme size. Enter James Jude Courtney, who joined Castle in filling the shoes of Michael Myers for some of the more intensive stunt and ‘heavy lifting’ scenes.

In an interview with Halloween Daily News, actor recalled the powerful experience of putting on Micahel’s mask for the first time:

“David [Gordon Green], Danny [McBride], Jeff [Fradley], Mike [Simmonds], Rawn [Hutchinson], and myself, we all walked off to a room to the side where nobody could see it, and Chris [Nelson] pulled out the mask, and he said, ‘Okay Jim, let’s put it on and see what it feels like. So I walk over and he puts it on me and fastens it in for me, and I was like, ‘Whoa.’ David goes, ‘What does it feel like, Jim?’ I said, (lowers voice to a near-whisper) ‘It’s perfect for killing.’ It was perfect.”

Courtney then continued, saying the experience of putting on that iconic mask was like something he never felt before. It was truly something he couldn’t forget:

“And all the sudden, this thing happened to me inside. I had already created the energy, I already knew the space, but man that was like afterburns, dude. And the love, it’s more than just the beauty of the art that Christopher created when he did the mask, it’s all that knowledge he put into it, and somehow he imbued all the history, the 40 years of history and all the work that all the people have done, and all the fans’ expectations and love. I felt all of that. I will never forget the first time I put that mask on.”

It may seem silly to some, but for those who know how much slashers such as Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees (who also dons an infamous mask) framed the horror industry, it was truly a powerful moment. It wasn’t just any mask – it was THE Michael Myers mask:

“When I put it on, everybody was just like, ‘Whoa. That’s all they could do was just make some kind of guttural response. There was no, ‘Hey that’s pretty good looking.’ There was none of that. David and everybody was just like ‘Whoa.’”