8 Movie Characters With Fascinating Backstories You Didn't Know About
5. The Thing - The Doctor Was A Russian Spy
John Carpenter’s horror classic sees twelve men trapped in an arctic base with a shape-shifting alien, which can't be much fun. None of the characters are given a solid backstory, though they all must be running from something to want to work in a snowy wasteland.
Carpenter gave his cast free rein to craft their characters, and they all came up with unique histories for their parts. Kurt Russell’s MacReady is an alcoholic Vietnam Vet who couldn’t find a job anywhere else, while the character of Doctor Cooper was secretly a Russian spy keeping an eye on the American base.
Carpenter would only reveal this year's later, since only he and actor Richard Dysart knew about it. The Thing doesn’t even hint at the Doctor’s real nature - outside of his red shirt maybe - but rewatching it with this in mind only adds to the suffocating air of paranoia.
It also brings new meaning to the term Cold War.