By Lexi Stewart
Calling all cinephiles and creature enthusiasts! It's that time again! Buckle up because we're about to journey through the year's most stunning feats of practical and makeup effects in film and television.
The year 2023 has been tumultuous for the film industry, with the WGA and SAG strikes casting a long shadow over productions and crew. Yet, amidst the uncertainty, some remarkable works of art still emerged. We saw stunning creatures brought to life, awe-inspiring prosthetics, and breathtaking special effects that pushed the boundaries of what's possible. These artists are the unsung heroes of the film industry, working tirelessly behind the scenes to create the magic we see on screen.
Thanks to your votes, these annual countdowns are always a community-driven celebration of the year's most outstanding achievements in this field. Are you curious to know which practical wonders stole the show this year? Read on to find out!
(Images via Universal)
10. The Last Voyage of the Demeter
A lonely ship, the Demeter, braves stormy seas. Its cargo? Fifty mysterious crates, promising a voyage far from ordinary. Forget the Dracula you think you know with fancy balls and charming smiles. Director André Øvredal's recent film, The Last Voyage of the Demeter, takes us on a different journey. "The Demeter" isn't about a grand gothic spectacle. It's a stripped-down, raw experience—a descent into madness where the crew fights for survival against an unstoppable evil.
In a recent behind-the-scenes featurette, Øvredal explained, "I wanted our Dracula to feel different, more animalistic, more feral. Like an addict, he needs his blood. I wanted him to feel like he is fragile [but] also desperate and dangerous." Seasoned creature makeup designer Göran Lundström (The Batman, House of Gucci) took on the task of the Nosferatu-inspired raw Dracula makeup, and who better to transform into such a monster than the acclaimed creature actor Javier Botet, who spent five hours in the makeup chair every day. Notable features of this design include crinkly paper-like skin and the omission of eyelids on the creature to reveal the eyeballs fully.
Lundström was adamant about designing a character familiar to audiences' knowledge of the source material but could still stand against the previous Dracula versions. He told MovieWeb, "...the inspiration for Bram Stoker's Dracula [the Gary Oldman one] is obviously a bat on a human being. So when you merge the two, you get something new. But when you do the same thing on another person, you get something that resembles the Gary Oldman one, and then you have to figure out, 'How do we avoid making them look too similar?' Because their concept is the same. So we're basically trying to avoid other inspirations as much as we can."
Saying yes to the job was not a difficult decision for Lundström. "When you're being asked to do something that cool, it's really hard to turn it down. This is like, one of those dream jobs."
(Images via HBO)
9. The Exorcist: Believer
We have been graced with a new tale in the Exorcist universe, as 2023 has undoubtedly been a year of reeling viewers in with nostalgia, especially in the horror genre. In The Exorcist: Believer, the demonic chills return with a twist. Single father Victor Fielding faces a nightmare no parent should: his daughter, Angela, and her friend Katherine, exhibit the same horrifying symptoms of possession that once terrorized Regan MacNeil. Yet, this isn't a simple echo of the past. [Director] David Gordon Green's film delves into uncharted territory compared to the previous chronicles.
Oscar-winning special makeup effects designer Christopher Nelson (Suicide Squad, Halloween Kills, AHS) was responsible for creating classic makeup gags with a new twist for the supernatural revival. Along with hell-burnt blistered feet, neck twisting, and head spinning, the director also wanted to include the infamous green projectile vomit but tweak it to look black and swampy. Nelson said to Variety, "[There's one shot in the movie where] we had a tube that ran up the side of Lidya's face and goes into her mouth, like a cup facing outwards. I put a plastic bag that I made with pulled textures and gross veins all over it, tucked it into her mouth, and, on cue, I filled it up with this black liquid to grow out of her mouth and onto the floor. I love the sickness of it."
Despite the 'over-the-top' and unreal makeup throughout, Nelson swears by proper reference to use as a foundation for designing. "I use a lot of medical and pathology books for what we do," Nelson said. "A lot of medical references and news footage and some things that you wish you could unsee." The Exorcist: Believer is Blumhouse's follow-up to the original, which is now celebrating its 50th anniversary.
(Images via Blumhouse)
8. Five Nights at Freddy's
This year, Josh Hutcherson and Matthew Lillard faced off against creepy puppets in Blumhouse's new horror flick, Five Nights at Freddy's. Inspired by the infamous horror video game series, this movie brings the animatronic nightmares to life with, get this, actual puppets! 'Five Nights' has been scaring gamers for almost a decade, and animatronics are the main villains. Consequently, it seemed only fitting for the Jim Henson Creature Shop to create the animatronics for the film. Forget CGI - these monsters move like the real deal, thanks to some seriously skilled puppeteers.
Born from the visionary mind of Jim Henson in 1979, the Creature Shop blossomed from a workshop for The Dark Crystal's fantastical beings (think Skeksis!) into a puppetry powerhouse. Project Supervisor and Lead Designer Robert Bennett from Jim Henson's was able to work alongside the original game developer Scott Cawthon, and they used the files directly from the game as their starting base. "We worked closely with [Director] Emma and Scott to develop different colors and textures to bring them into the real world. He was there from the very beginning until the very end. He was the one that we all went to to make sure that we were staying true to his vision."
The villains came alive in various ways with different versions of each character. Some versions were completely animatronic, while others had limbs that required puppeteering to breathe life onto the screen. Director Emma Tammi elaborated to The Hollywood Reporter, "Sometimes we'll have a stunt performer inside the suit to create even more movement ability. It was a real trial and error process in terms of the design and build phase."
Five Nights at Freddy's is one of those projects that showcases the art of animatronics and puppeteering, and focusing on the practical effects is what, in turn, gives the film its charm. "It's a fun world to live in and immerse yourself in, both in the game and the movie, and I think there are details in every little corner of our set and every frame of our film that I hope will be a feast, especially for the fans, to be able to keep watching and finding new things and really treasure it," said Tammi.
(Images via Paramount)
7. Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves isn't just a movie; it's a love letter to a game that's captivated imaginations for decades. From its humble beginnings as a niche tabletop experience in the 1970s, Dungeons & Dragons has blossomed into a global phenomenon, inspiring countless novels, video games, and theme parks.
Bringing the fantasy world to life on screen meant finding wizards of a different kind. Director Jonathan Goldstein knew that practical effects were paramount, so the quest led him to Shane Mahan, Lindsay MacGowan, and Alan Scott, co-founders of Legacy Effects. Mahan, a veteran of creature creations for films like Jurassic Park and The Shape of Water, readily accepted the challenge. Shane admitted he knew little about the source material but was immediately intrigued. He told SWSCA, "There have been so many medieval-set fantasy, dark films. I think we've been down the road of dark and dismal, you know? We never get to do a spooky sort of comedy. Not for a long time. So that was really appealing. I think it was the right choice for the fans."
The film features practical and digital elements with the characters and creatures. Still, directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein were interested in doing as much as they could practically on set. "That really worked wonderfully because they could see and understand what they were going to get, what's a prosthetic makeup or a hybrid costume, what could be this, what could be that. What do you need to do to alter it? To make it actually function? Then, from there, they had the confidence to let our team go," said Mahan.
As a result, some fantastic creations came to fruition with characters like Gorg, the Chancellors, and the Tabaxi cat people, to name a few—Legacy Effects utilized modern and traditional methods for their work. For example, character concepts were sculpted digitally with 3D software and brought to life in foam latex - the tried-and-true material used before silicone became the standard. Advancements in technology also meant that they could link facial recognition to the suit performers to bring the animatronic heads to life. A great example of CGI being used to enhance, not replace, practical effects.
(Image credit: Lucasfilm)
6. The Mandalorian Season 3
In a galaxy far, far away, Season 3 of The Mandalorian blasted onto Disney+ this year with a familiar mix of heart-pounding action and quiet moments of wonder. Pedro Pascal's stoic bounty hunter, Din Djarin, continues his quest to reunite the child Grogu with his kind.
Season 3 proved that the best stories are sometimes told not just through pixels but through the tangible magic of physical craftsmanship. Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni brought in their favorite FX wizards to continue the Mando journey. Legacy Effects created various practical effects for The Mandalorian, including creatures, prosthetics, and animatronics. Most notably, they are responsible for the Child (Grogu) animatronic puppet, which has more lifelike facial movements this season than any previous one, thanks to Supervisor John Rosengrant and the team.
Rosengrant said he and his team were committed to creating practical effects that would look as realistic as possible. "We wanted to make sure that the audience could believe that these creatures... were real. We didn't want them to look like they were created in a computer."
(Images via Warner Bros)
5. Evil Dead: Rise
Please keep it coming with that nostalgia! This year, a fresh wave of terror washed over the Evil Dead franchise with Evil Dead Rise. This fifth installment takes a sharp departure from the cabin-in-the-woods formula, plunging us headfirst into the urban jungle of Los Angeles. We meet estranged sisters Beth and Ellie, their reunion interrupted by the malevolent rise of flesh-possessing demons known as Deadites.
Director Lee Cronin cranks the gore factor to eleven and honors the franchise's legacy while carving his distinct path. It's a demonic possession, infusing the class formula with fresh scares and a unique perspective. The gruesome 2023 franchise entry upped the gore factor exponentially, and a big part of that came from some of Oceania's big creative players, including Luke Polti, Adam Johansen (ODD Studio), and Jason Docherty (of WETA Workshop origins.)
There are some gnarly moments throughout, using tried and true gorey effects gags - one of which involves a cheese grater and A LOT of blood. The shoot was short and fast, and the team often worked weekends to get the job done. Senior prosthetic artist Tristan Lucas told MPA, "It was a crazy schedule. Long days, long weeks, and lots of working on the weekend at the workshop to get stuff done. We try to accommodate as much as we can. There's not much we'll say no to. Our head of department, [prosthetics designer] Luke Polti, has always reinforced the idea it's our job to get what they want on the screen. As long as we're not killing ourselves or working for free, we should do what we can to get it done in a healthy way."
Lucas praises some of the cutting-edge technology available to help make their job easier. "The advancement of 3D scanning and 3D printing is a huge one. Now, you can have someone in LA who needs a head scan done, and you can get it done there and emailed to you. You can print out their head and start working instead of having to get something physically shipped halfway across the world. It's a huge benefit. Those technologies are changing so fast."
(Images via Shudder)
4. Creepshow Season 4
Dust off that Creepshow comic - the beloved TV adaptation is back! Season four unleashes a fresh anthology of chills and thrills in 2023. Inspired by George A. Romero's cinematic gem, the iconic horror series cracks open six new tales of terror. Prepare for vengeful dolls, killer appliances, and a sinister carnival where wishes come true at a twisted cost. This season, the legacy of scares continues with a potent blend of gore and gallows humor, featuring established genre icons like Tom Atkins alongside a new generation of scream queens and kings.
Bringing Creepshow back for a fourth season demanded a true maestro of macabre. Enter veteran makeup effects icon Greg Nicotero, backed by his and Howard Berger's acclaimed team from KNB EFX. When Shudder greenlit the revival, they didn't just hand Nicotero a brush – they entrusted him as showrunner. As a lifelong fan of Romero, his love for the franchise runs deep. "My obligation is to keep [George Romero's] legacy alive and the legacy of other filmmakers, directors that I work with that I love that are no longer with us, plus directors that I've admired – John Carpenter, John Landis, etc," he explains. "I think the stories in and of themselves, you know, the thing that makes Creepshow different than most other anthologies is there aren't any rules. You can have one that's a comedy, you can have one that's suspenseful, you can have one that's got a dark end, you can have one that's fun, and that'll fit within the world."
The season is chock full of crazy moments like the monster in the episode "Cassandra," a strange rat-like creature who gnaws its arm off. Thanks to Nicotero's knowledge, he could direct the episode to utilize the suits and practical effects best. He never takes full credit; instead, he feels grateful for the resources he has at his disposal. "Like I said, we have to be very resourceful on Creepshow, but the truth of the matter is having the resources of KNB EFX and my company behind me to be able to do this… Everyone talks about the creature effects in Creepshow because I have the ability to work with Carey Jones and my team there and give them early looks at the scripts and sit down with them and design everything, and then I fly off and shoot the show."
(Images via AMC)
3. AMC's Interview with the Vampire
Interview with the Vampire, AMC's bold reboot of Anne Rice's iconic novel, breathes new life into the story of Louis, a centuries-old vampire haunted by his transformation and the intoxicating allure of mortality. This isn't the sun-kissed gothic of Cruise and Pitt – it's raw and unashamedly adult. Luring Howard Berger, the Oscar-winning maestro of makeup effects and co-owner of KNB EFX, to the series wasn't just about fangs and gore. Showrunner Rolin Jones knew Berger's artistry transcended mere prosthetics.
The team looked forward to working from a blank canvas and decided that beauty was the best way to differentiate vampires from normal humans. Berger told AMC, "When we first met Rolin [Jones, writer & EP), we assembled a big folder of vampire references from all different things. Things we had done, things other people had done. And Rolin was like, 'I don't want to do the forehead. I don't want to do the Buffy the Vampire Slayer look.' I came up with this idea. 'Hey, why don't we make everybody except the vampires look like crap so they look just amazing, and you're automatically attracted to how gorgeous and perfect they are?' So instead of making them scary with any sort of prosthetic stuff, let's make them really, really beautiful."
Berger built an arsenal of custom dentures in all types and sizes, each echoing a different vampire emotion. Mesmerizing contact lenses, a nod to Anne Rice's chilling vision, completed the metamorphosis. Eyes were an essential part of the process to emphasize the source material.
Any vampire story almost always involves a lot of blood, but Berger and his team were limited to how bloodthirsty they were allowed to be on set. "We shot in locations that were 150 years old, so we couldn't get fake blood on floors. At KNB EFX, we make blood that can wash out very easily with soap and warm water. Costumes were rented, so we could not cover them in blood. We had to be very careful. We made these giant silicone blood pools, these blood puddles. They’re like plastic, and you just throw them on the floor, and they look like wet blood." The approach seems to have paid off, as Howard Berger is already in talks with AMC for the next season.
(Images via HBO)
2. The Last of Us
HBO's The Last of Us is not your average TV show, and it has amassed an even larger fanbase since its release. Joel (Pedro Pascal), a hardened smuggler, is tasked with escorting Ellie (Bella Ramsay), a rebellious teenager immune to the infection, across the ravaged country. Their journey, mirroring the critically acclaimed video game, is fraught with danger from both the infected and the desperate, power-hungry survivors. Navigating a world overrun by fungus-turned-monsters meant that practical makeup effects would be non-negotiable. Those come courtesy of the show's prosthetic department. There is no fancy CGI here, just practical effects that'll make your skin crawl.
To create the infected's grotesque transformations, the production recruited prosthetic master Barrie Gower (Game of Thrones, Chernobyl). It was important to Gower and show co-creator Neil Druckman to stay faithful to the game's stunningly realistic graphics. "We always said from the outset, everything that's been designed for the video game is so strong, it would be a crime to ignore what's been done, and it would be a crime to stray too far," he said.
Gower and his team were tasked with designing and creating a variety of prosthetics for the show, from the subtle clicker growths to the full-blown transformations of the bloaters. Each character embarked on a six to eight-week journey, meticulously crafted from scans to hand-sculpted artistry. Initially, bringing them to life took four hours in the makeup chair, but by day three or four, they managed to get it down to two and a half hours.
The infected creatures were created depending on filming requirements and ranged from hand-sculpted custom-made prosthetics to pull-on masks for background and stunt performers. Digital effects were then added in post-production to enhance the creations into a perfect on-screen visual. "[The show] has been very intelligent to say where things should be fully practical or fully digital, and they've managed to achieve the best results. It's been a really happy marriage between ourselves and visual effects. We're very happy campers."
(Images via Marvel Studios)
1. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is no victory lap. Still reeling from Gamora's loss, the crew is adrift in sadness. Quill's lost his swagger, Drax his purpose, and Rocket's gruffness barely hides his pain. Expect darkness laced with their trademark humor but also a deeper story about family, grief, and growing up. The film isn't just an emotional and visual feast for the eyes – it's a testament to the transformative power of makeup artistry. The talented makeup and hair department, led by Alexei Dmitriew and Cassie Russek, pushed the boundaries of practical effects with the help of Legacy Effects. Along with the usual main cast of impressive characters, the department broke the current record for most prosthetic appliances used in a production. The numbers are staggering, totaling 22,541 prosthetics, 500 wigs, and 117 pairs of contacts by the end.
Dmitriew worked alongside Legacy Effects co-founder Lindsay Macgowan and the team and tasked them with creating a bible to keep track of all the alien looks throughout the Guardians' universe. While Dmitriew kept things moving on-set, the Legacy Effects team set about designing and creating the prosthetics. "Most of the big alien makeups are four to five prosthetics each," Dmitriew told Pop Sugar. "Then they all wear contact lenses, and some of them have custom teeth."
The most challenging makeup during the production was Chukwudi Iwuji's villain, The High Evolutionary. "We really wanted his face to show through to see his nuanced performance, so the makeup itself was in unconventional areas," Dmitriew said. The two-hour process in the chair eventually became seventy minutes, and Iwuji praised the team's ability to make him feel comfortable to perform at 100%, explaining to IndieWire, “It was all about getting the right material that would move with my skin so when I acted, it didn’t get too hot or too stiff. They were brilliant. They really were researching it the whole shoot.”
A Year of Resilience
While AI continues to reshape the field, the human touch remains irreplaceable. This year, despite industry strikes and unforeseen challenges, the spirit of innovation burns bright. Let's celebrate the artists who conjure magic before our eyes, blurring the lines between reality and illusion. The future of practical effects is still alive and brimming with possibilities, so long as we make it so. We wish our community a joyous and creative New Year!