Universal’s New Wolf Man Is More of a Man Wolf, and Even That’s Pushing It

The rubric monster from Leigh Whannell’s upcoming Wolf Man remake has seemingly made his debut astatine Universal Studios’ yearly haunt lawsuit Halloween Horror Nights, and well, present helium is, everybody:

The Wolf Man from the upcoming Blumhouse movie has made his HHN debut! #HHN33 #HHN pic.twitter.com/ifIkz7giFJ

— HHNSpeculationMatt (@SpeculationMatt) September 4, 2024

Of course, the histrion performing the quality supra is wearing what’s fundamentally a Halloween mask—the existent movie volition presumably connection thing a small much cinematic—but this is seemingly our archetypal look astatine Larry Talbot 2025.  Resembling a modestly much robust Cryptkeeper, oregon possibly a flesh-colored orc from The Lord of the Rings, the rubbery “wolf man” looks much similar a recurring quality connected The Kids successful the Hall than Rick Baker’s enactment connected The Howling oregon An American Werewolf successful London. The tattered cargo pants aren’t helping matters much, either. 

If Whannell, Blumhouse, and Universal are looking for immoderate benignant of verisimilitude successful their werewolf design, I’m not definite this is the close mode to go. Whether the carnal is meant to beryllium the effect of an ancestral curse oregon the unfortunate of a mutative illness that jumped from wolf to man, deciding to  portion distant the accepted lupine features associated with the monster except the pointy ears was… a choice. The last effect looks much gnomelike than an uncanny fusion of canine and human.

In 2020, Whannell enjoyed tremendous occurrence with his caller instrumentality connected The Invisible Man, but his Wolf Man has already faced a fewer hurdles. It was announced past December that Christopher Abbot would beryllium taking implicit the pb relation from Ryan Gosling, who had already spent 3 years attached to the project. Prior to that, Whannell stepped distant from directing the film, with predominant Gosling collaborator, Derek Cianfrance (Place Beyond the Pines, Blue Valentine) coming aboard instead. When Cianfrance yet near the project, Whannell erstwhile again reclaimed directorial duties.

Of course, its besides wholly imaginable the werewolf connected show astatine HHN is not Abbot-as-Larry Talbot, but alternatively the (partially transformed?) 1 who bites him, oregon adjacent conscionable a werewolf minion. So far, the only synopsis released for Whannell’s remake says it concerns “A antheral [who] indispensable support himself and his household erstwhile they are being stalked, terrorized, and haunted by a deadly werewolf astatine nighttime during a afloat moon.” A previous photograph op astatine Universal besides seemed to corroborate the household unrecorded connected a farm. Perhaps this is immoderate benignant of rival farmhand-turned-werewolf, who, travel the afloat moon, transforms into a livestock-mutilating revenant, mounting the people of the movie successful action? Whatever the lawsuit whitethorn be, helium inactive looks similar a gnome.

We’ll find retired much erstwhile The Wolf Man arrives January 17, 2025.

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