William Claude Rains (10 November 1889 – 30 May 1967) was a British actor born in London, England. Though he is best remembered by mainstream audiences in the role of Captain Renault in the classic 1942 film Casablanca, Rains also earned himself a lesser known, though no less iconic, place in horror film history as a character actor. In the horror genre, he first appeared in the lead role in James Whale's 1933 adaptation of the H. G. Wells story The Invisible Man. Though certainly a pivotal role, the film did little to boost Rains' notoriety as an actor as he is never visibly seen in the movie. In 1941, Rains played a supproting role as Sir John Talbot in the Universal Pictures film The Wolf Man. Two years later, Rains took a more recognizable (and colorized) lead role as Erique Claudin in Universal's remake of the Phantom of the Opera. While Rains gave audiences a more sympathetic Phantom, his version never gained the recognition put forth by his predecessor, Lon Chaney, Sr. in the original 1922 silent classic The Phantom of the Opera.
