Murlough

Murlough is the main antagonist of The Saga of Darren Shan book "Tunnels of Blood" and the secondary antagonist of the 2009 film Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant. He is an insane Vampaneze and serves as an enemy to the half-vampire Darren Shan and his vampire master Mr. Larten Crepsley.

In the film, he is played by Ray Stevenson.

"Tunnels of Blood"
Murlough goes to the home town of Larten Crepsley and kills humans whom Mr. Crepsley saw as family. Mr. Crepsley along with his half-vampire assistant Darren Shan and snake boy Evra Von travel to the town to stop Murlough, though only Mr. Crepsley knows who he is.

Darren and Evra at first thought that Mr. Crepsley was the murderer and they attempted to kill him, but this resulted in Murlough escaping and later returning to kidnap Evra. Darren and Mr. Crepsley were at first unaware that Murlough was living in the sewers until Darren saw him down a drain commenting on how tasty Darren's girlfriend Debbie Hemlock looked. Murlough attempted to get Darren to trade Mr. Crepsley for Evra, but Darren refused.

While searching for Murlough and Evra through the sewers, Darren and Mr. Crepsley come up with a plan to trap Murlough. After allowing himself to be caught, Darren is met by a skeleton whom he first thinks is Evra until Murlough shows Darren where Evra is. Murlough makes threats about eating Evra for Christmas despite snake blood being poisonous to vampires and vampaneze. Murlough agrees to let Evra go in exchange for Debbie.

Darren drugs Debbie and her parents and hides them in their loft before putting a goat in Debbie's bed and puts her blood on the sheets to make it smell like her. Murlough arrives and goes into Debbie's bedroom, he is attacked and eventually killed by Mr. Crepsley.

"Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant"
In this film, Murlough is renamed as Murlaugh and is good friends with Mr. Tiny. He has also known Mr. Crepsley rather than them meeting in his hometown.

Murlaugh first appears when he and Mr. Tiny give Darren (who had just stolen Mr. Crepsley's spider Madam Orca) and ride home. He later appears at a graveyard and attacks Mr. Crepsley (who had just dug up a now half-vampire Darren), but Mr. Crepsley and Darren escape.

After the kidnapping of Darren's family and his love interest Rebecca by Steve Leonard (Darren's former best friend), Murlaugh battles Darren and then Mr. Crepsley before being killed by the latter. As he dies, Murlaugh tells Mr. Crepsley that the 100 year truce between the vampires and vampaneze is over. Murlaugh is then turned into a Little Person by Mr. Tiny.