Filmdrunk mentioned on Halloween that Patton Oswalt went as Doctor Octopus in a fairly convincing outfit. How the hell did he wind up with that?
Turns out he had some help.
Adam Savage saw Oswalt’s tweet and actually liked the challenge quite a bit. Here’s the video detailing what he did and how it works:
For those with video-blocker software at work, it’s actually fairly simple: Savage built a backpack out of aluminum, so the weight of the arms was mostly on the shoulders with some support via clamps around the chest and waist. The arms are foam with an armature wire core that lets them be easily adjusted. If that weren’t enough, he cut some lenses for welding googles that let him get the eyewear right as well.
Also, he gets attacked by a Facehugger.
It’s a fairly interesting video just to see how a guy like Savage, who was a noted propbuilder before he started mixing applied science and reality TV, tackles a problem like this, and also a decent guide to building your own.