The Other Jason Voorhees Actor In Friday The 13th Part 3
There has been many instances of stand-in and stunt performers taking over a Jason Voorhees role in the franchise and it's usually for the purposes of filming a major stunt scene. Our article on John Hock and Tom Morga for Friday The 13th: A New Beginning is a prime example of such a situation, and even though John Hock did not receive recognition for his short time behind the mask until the last few years, he is still appreciative of the fan response now. Knowing these facts, how about an interesting little tidbit for Friday The 13th Part 3? The late and great Richard Brooker did not play Jason Voorhees for every scene in the film!
It has been disputed and discussed that one of three stunt performers on the set of Part 3 portrayed Jason for the climactic scene when Chris Higgins pushes the killer from the loft of the barn to be hung. The gentlemen who performed stunts on the set and who may have been in line to play Jason for the iconic hanging scene were Mike De Luna, Tom Elliott and Jimmy Medearis. In actuality, Mike De Luna and Jimmy Medearis seem to be the two men who are always brought to the attention of others who could have possibly portrayed Jason Voorhees for the scene. In the end, however, a number of crew members have pointed out that it was indeed Mike De Luna who played Jason during the hanging scene!
It might be time for our readers who were not aware of this fact to go back and watch the scene again and see if you can notice the difference between Richard Booker and De Luna. And why didn't Richard play Jason for this scene, our readers might wonder? Well, it seems as though the producers of Part 3 did not want any physical harm to come to their lead psychopath and wanted a stand-in to take the brunt of the hanging.
