James Winburn, the stuntman who performed scenes as Michael Myers in the 1978 movie Halloween, has died aged 85.
Winburn’s manager confirmed he died in hospital in LA on 19 November following an undisclosed illness.
One of the most notable scenes the stuntman performed in the movie saw Donald Pleasence’s Dr Samuel Loomis shoot Myers six times, causing him to fall off a balcony to his (seeming) death.
Winburn stepped in to film sequences in place of Nick Castle and Tony Moran, who both played Myers in the film.
He later returned as the iconic masked villain, also known as The Shape, alongside Pleasance and Jamie Lee Curtis in 1981’s Halloween II.
Winburn had attended the For the Love of Horror convention the month before he died. “We are extremely sad to learn of the passing of James Winburn,” UK-based Monopoly Events wrote on Twitter after news of Winburn’s death went public.
“James was an absolute pleasure to work and shared some amazing stories with everyone over the weekend. Our sincere condolences go out to his family, friends and fans.”
Apart from his work in the Halloween franchise, the actor also doubled for roles played by Stan Lee, David Hasselhoff and Peter O’Toole, to name a few.
He worked with Halloween writer-director John Carpenter numerous times, on movies such as Escape from New York and The Night Stalker.
Winburn also directed several films, including Miami Beach Cops, The Death Merchant and Evil Altar.
