 A total of six actors gave physical performances as Howard.Gerber was impressed by the appearance of Howard, and commented, "It was very bizarre to meet it and ... realize not just that I created it - that would have been bizarre enough... you know, it was sort of like meeting a child I didn't know I had ..."

Makeup artists Tom Burman and Bari Dreiband-Burman and actor Jeffrey Jones discussed the appearance of the Dark Overlord character with Huyck and Katz, and developed the character's progressing looks.When Katz's daughter visited the set during the shoot, she was terrified by Jones' appearance in makeup.