The Michael Myers mask in the Halloween films is actually a reused one based on William Shatner.

A few years ago – back when Wikipedia and Google weren’t available on people’s mobile phones – I remember telling this to someone and they didn’t believe it.

However, aside from being on the IMDb and Wikipedia, Shatner himself has confirmed it in this video with his daughter. He even admits to once going out trick or treating in one.

Tommy Lee Wallace, the production designer and co-editor on Halloween, said that he was charged with finding a mask for Myers in the original film.

Aiming for a mask with a creepy ‘blank face’ he went shopping for one in Hollywood and found a Captain Kirk Halloween mask that seemed to fit the bill.

Wallace cut out larger eyeholes, removed the eyebrows and sideburns, and made the hair look weirder and painted it white.

For most of the film Myers, or ‘The Shape’ as he’s referred to in the credits, is played by actor Nick Castle (above).

In the DVD extras on the Halloween DVD box set John Carpenter claimed that the mask didn’t really look like Shatner, but joked:

“I guess I owe the success of Halloween to William Shatner.”

The inspiration for the ‘faceless’ style was the creepy French film Eyes Without a Face, directed in 1960 by Georges Franju.

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