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Mickey Rourke shocked The Masked Singer US viewers when he unveiled himself as the gremlin, but the show’s costume designer saw signs that the moment was coming.
Designer Marina Toybina worked on the star’s incredible Gremlin costume right until he hit the stage in season four, and she explained why she believes the Hollywood star chose to leave the competition in the style he did.
Speaking to Metro.co.uk about the jaw-dropping moment, she explained: ‘We got him into the costume, but I was still having to make adjustments before he went on stage so he could feel more comfortable.
‘Wearing the mask is such a foreign feeling for so many of the contestants, especially before the pandemic really took hold. These aren’t your typical costumes so I was aware something might happen.’
The talented designer continued: ‘I didn’t expect him to take it off so soon but it did make for a great, and unexpected, reveal.
‘I was just happy that we got him in the costume and that he enjoyed the costume. But at the end of the day, anything can happen in our show. The fact that the moment was so real was the best that we could ask for.’
Marina also revealed that the Sin City star’s mask is currently MIA as she added: ‘I don’t know what happened to the mask. He kind of threw it when he went off the stage. But everything else is still intact and in perfect condition.’
Fans were delighted to learn that the Oscar-nominee, who appeared in The Wrestler and Iron Man 2 donned the huge purple costume to perform in the popular competition.
However, after making it through to the second week of the show and performing Stand By Me – in tribute to late friend Willy DeVille – the 68-year-old decided he’d had enough.
‘I want to take this off right now,’ he told baffled host Nick Cannon, who replied that it wasn’t ‘that part of the show yet’.
The panel – made up of Nicole Scherzinger, Ken Jeong, Jenny McCarthy-Wahlberg and Robin Thicke – urged him to stay on the show, but there was no stopping the actor.
Whipping the mask off and throwing it off stage, Mickey explained he had only taken part as he was nearby.
