Meet Michael Westmore, The Hollywood Hands Behind Kamal Haasan's Indian 2 Look (image@ikamalhaasan)
Kamal Haasan’s Indian 2 is going to be one of the biggest releases of 2024. Helmed by Shankar, the film has every aspect that could make it more tempting. Expectations surged higher as release date nears. Like the film’s prequel Indian, which was released in 1996, Indian 2 also deals with corruption.
Kamal Haasan will appear as Senapathy, an ageing freedom fighter turned vigilante. Anticipation around Shankar has in store, and how Kamal Haasan will appear is at the peak.
Makeup for Kamal was done by Academy Award winning make-up artist Michael Westmore. This is the fourth time the two paragons in the film industry is crossing paths. Michael has done makeup for Kamal in Avva Shanmugi, Indian, and Dasavatharam.
Sharing a picture with Michael, Kamal Haasan wrote that, “From (The Arrow in the Sun) Soldier Blue, where I saw Mike Westmore’s work, to this day, I have admired Mike’s work from the inside out. I had the joy of working with him on the makeup and also wearing it to fame and applause. 40 years have flown with the speed of an arrow”.
Read also: How Kamal Haasan’s Indian (1996) Influenced Other Movies?
Michael Westmore is a well-known make up artist of Hollywood. He has won Oscar for his work in 1985’s Mask. He also have an astonishing record of 45 Emmy nominations, and has won nine. His works ranges from Rocky to Raging Bull, and an estimated 600 episodes of Star Trek.
Speaking to media, in one his interview, Michael spoke about committing Star Trek. He said started it with thinking, “This probably isn’t going to last very long, but it’d be fun.” And I wound up being there for 18 years, creating aliens on one show after the other, without a break. That was the most ideal job for any makeup artist. The scripts didn’t tell me what the alien was to look like, so I had free rein. I had to have new aliens every seven days, and it wasn’t just one. It might be a whole city’s worth. I’ve become really great friends with all of them, especially the cast of Next Generation“.
Michael received the Make-Up Artists & Hair Stylists Guild’s 2024 Vanguard Award earlier this year. The Award is presented to an individual who has made significant contributions to the make-up and hair styling industry and has left a lasting impact on the craft.
Read also: “Senapathy Is Back In Style!”: Kamal Haasan’s Indian 2 Trailer Out
Michael comes from the famous Westmore family, a known name in the Hollywood make-up industry. The family had four generations actively involved in Hollywood as make-up artists.
His career started from 1961, and has completed 40 years. He also worked with CIA in creating makeup kits for spies overseas.
The first studio makeup department was created by Michael’s grandfather George Westmore. Michael’s father was a make-up artist for the famous movie, Gone With The Wind.
Michael worked for 18 months with the Dasavatharam crew, in which Kamal Haasan appeared in 10 different roles and each needed different prosthetics. He won the Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Makeup in the film.
