If you’ve seen Michael Myers of Halloween fame walking around Angus and been a little freaked out, that's exactly what a 42-year-old fan of the classic horror movies is hoping for.
As Oct. 31 approaches, fans of Halloween — both the movie and the day — like Christopher Deen are showing their love of the genre and the season.
Deen had recently purchased an authentic Michal Myers mask and put together a costume that makes him look identical to the popular psychopathic character.
Michael Myers is, of course, the main character in the Halloween series, which is mainly focused on an escaped asylum patient who terrorizes his hometown and the teenagers who live there.
Deen and his family moved to Angus just over a year ago and, as a fan of horror movies for many years, knew he wanted to get the spirit of the season up in his new town.
“We moved from Mississauga and it just seemed like there were less and less people decorating, less kids knocking on our door and it felt like the Halloween spirit had kind of died," he says.
Deen noticed that Angus was a little more lively with his favourite time of year and wanted to add to it.
“It was still lacking, though. I remember skipping four houses here and there when taking the kids trick-or-treating because people weren't handing out candies,’ Deen says.
It's been about a week since Deen started going out in public and ramping up his social media presence with a Facebook page and Instagram account, both called 'Michael Myers Lives In Angus'.
“My kids were a little scared and now that so many people have started to see it and it is gaining traction, I think they're more embarrassed about it,” Deen says with a chuckle. “It's fun to embarrass the kids every now and then though. My wife loves it.”
It isn’t just walking around town and taking photos, though. Deen has recently got some special requests.
“The really cool thing is I have gone to some small businesses to help get their name out. I really love that because I am a big supporter of supporting local,” he says. “I’ve even had people ask me to come by and scare the heck out of their husband.”
Deen says the main character of the Halloween movies is his favourite of the slasher flicks and that he really appreciates the 2007 remake by Rob Zombie, liking it more than the original Halloween.
“Myers is definitely my favourite of the scary movie characters. I love that there is so much mystery behind him,” Deen says. “We don’t really know what drives his anger and his killing spree. He’s almost like this awkward, emotionless stalker.”
Deen says that while he's still building a decoration collection for his house, he hopes people will come out on Halloween to Legion Way in Angus.
“My kids got some creepy costumes, as did my wife. My brother-in-law is coming as Pennywise (from IT), my sister-in-law is coming as the character from Saw,” he says. “It's not so much a haunted house, but more like and event on our street.”
