9
Jan
MIB Worm Alien Puppet Display
Custom display of an original MIB worm alien puppet from Men In Black 2.
This intentionally split in half body of an MIB worm alien is a puppet used in the scene after the “worm guys” twister party with Rosario Dawson. The pieces came from Prop Store’s amazing Rick Baker Auction and was here for display and a bit of conservation work. Like many foam latex movie prop puppets, there were several areas where the stress of the movements of the puppet had weakened the material over time, and a bit of missing skin on one leg. This meant that the puppets needed some areas of the foam latex rebuilt and patched. There were also a couple of his smaller arms which also need to be reattached but the original arms were all present.
In addition to display work and custom mannequins, our studio is renowned for our groundbreaking work in restoration of original movie props. So prior to making the display, our client asked us to make a few repairs to help conserve the prop. We filled in the missing skin areas making sure to match the texture of the original sculpture and surrounding material. Once the patches were finished we painted only the patches to seamlessly blend with the puppet’s skin. At the client’s request we also detached the control wires from the belly of the puppet, so that they wouldn’t be as obvious on the display. We internally reinforced several joints as well.
We took our inspiration for the display from the scene after the Twister party when Will Smith’s character Agent J finds the injured worms. Since our client wanted to hang this display on the wall, we added several supports to the puppet torso and legs to secure them to the base. The unique shape is made to fit a spot on our client’s wall that has an angle ceiling. We began with a laminated wood base with the front covered in shag carpeting like the Worm Guy apartment in the movie. To that we added a bit of a Twister game mat. We then mounted the two pieces of the worm’s body, and finished the display with several cigarette butts! Those worms have some bad habits! And of course, if you should you find yourself with a halved alien puppet in need of display or restoration…
Have an original movie or television prop in need of a unique or themed display? Email or call today and let’s discuss your project!
Been awhile since you watched J and K defend the Earth?
