| |
|---|---|
| Jake Skinner | |
| Biographical Information | |
| Born |
January 1945 |
| Died |
April 1961 |
| Lives in |
America |
| Gender |
Male |
| Status |
Deceased |
| Eye Color |
Brown |
| Family Information | |
| Family Members |
No known relatives |
| Occupation |
Student |
| Loyalties |
Himself |
| Behind the Scenes | |
| Portrayed by | |
| First Appearance | |
| Last Appearance | |
Jake Skinner is a ghost and the main antagonist who appeared in season 1 episode "The Dead Body" and the season 3 episode "Dead Bodies"
History[]
Jake was a strange kid and loner. In the 1960-61 school year, he kept getting bullied by some jocks. So he then, pulled a prank on them. Unfortunately, his tormentors got even worse on the night of the school dance, the Spring Fling on April 7, 1961. The jocks locked Jake in a cage, and they then burned the gym to the ground. Everyone made it out alive, except Jake.
In the present, Jake helped Will with his bullying problem, with the implication and promise that Will would return the favor "some day." During a class trip to a nature preserve, he pretended to be a dead body in front of Travis and Chang, and sat up screaming like a maniac, causing them to run away in shock and terror. He helped Will prank them, but he then decided to "kick it up a notch" (which Will allowed). However, Jake ended up giving one of the bullies, Travis, serious panic attacks, causing him to be removed from school and sent to the psych ward. When Will found out that Jake was a ghost, after this information was passed to him by a creepy, older janitor, Jake told Will that he couldn't back out because now he owed him. Will demands that Jake leave him alone, however, Jake sends Will back in time to the day he died. Jake was rescued from the burning building, but he betrays Will and leaves him to die. Since he swapped places with Will and is now alive once again, Jake began life anew with a seemingly fresh start. Jake went to the dance and introduced himself to Anna [Will tried to warn her]. As the two shared a dance, Jake noticed Will and said "Now we're even.".
Jake is haunted by an angry Will after that point, but this does not bother him as he was himself a ghost for fifty years. Jake's cockiness and smugness about his new life ends abruptly when the Grim Reaper appears before him at his house, calling Jake a liar, a thief, and an abomination. The Reaper puts a curse on Jake so that his body slowly rots into nothing, but Jake comes up with a plan: trick Anna into giving up her life just like he tricked Will. During a date with Anna in the woods, Jake explains the situation to Anna (by the right half of his face rotting away), but she is horrified by him and wants to be taken home. He berates her, calling her shallow, which almost causes her to agree to the deal by shaking Jake's hand. This is interrupted by Will, who has found the power to fully materialize out of his love and protective instincts for Anna. Jake and Will fight, but Jake loses when Anna hits him in the ribs with a tree branch. At that point, the Grim Reaper reappears and drags a screaming Jake to the underworld for his crimes. After Will and Anna leave the woods, the former being granted his life back by an angel, Jake's hand comes up out of the ground to grab his comb.
Trivia[]
- Matt Angel, who portrays Jake Skinner, is the son of Dan Angel, co-creator of the Haunting Hour series.
- Jake is one of the five recurring antagonists of the series, the others being Lilly D., Mary, Dr. Mangle, the Pumpkinheads and Gresilda.
- He was born on January 9, 1945, making him a Capricorn, one of the trickiest and cleverest zodiac signs.
- He died when John F. Kennedy was president.