Universal Pictures and Blumhouse are gearing up for their highly anticipated Wolf Man reboot. In the lead-up, director Leigh Whannell is also opening up about his approach to the film. The project, starring Christopher Abbott and Julia Garner, promises to breathe new life into the classic monster, which first terrorized audiences in 1941 and is shaping to be one of the most exciting 2025 movie releases. For me, what stood out in Whannell's comments, though, was his unexpected mention of Adam Sandler, which he used to make a good point.
During a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Leigh Whannell, known for his work on the highly well-reviewed The Invisible Man remake and the Insidious series, shared his goal for this iteration of the Wolfman: creating a genuinely terrifying horror experience. Whannell expressed concern about how iconic movie monsters like Dracula, Frankenstein and the Wolfman have lost their fear factor over the years, becoming more family-friendly. With that, Whannell specifically referenced Adam Sandler’s take on the animated Count Dracula:
These classic monsters like Dracula, the Wolf Man, Frankenstein have become so ubiquitous. They're a little bit safe now. My kids watch animated movies with those monsters running around and being voiced by Adam Sandler. So part of my thing with this movie was taking it out of that safe territory and putting it back in this truly horrific territory.
It might not be a fair comparison, but he makes a good point. Adam Sandler’s portrayal of a goofy, lighthearted Count Dracula in the Hotel Transylvania franchise exemplifies the shift over the past decades of the famous Universal Monsters becoming slightly less scary. To be honest, it was actually astute of the Upgrade director to use that point to highlight the direction he wanted for his wolf-centric flick.
The upcoming horror movie will see Christopher Abbott playing the lead role of Blake, a man who begins to transform into the Wolfman after a mysterious animal attack. So far, it's been described by both its director and Blumhouse Productions head Jason Blum as a return to true scares inline with some of the best horror movies. Blum, known for spearheading hit horror films like Get Out and The Purge echoed Leigh Whannell’s commitment to making Wolf Man as intense as possible:
It’s a scary horror movie. I think most of the Wolfman movies that came before this have been softer. This one is pretty hardcore.
That is music to my horror hound ears! So don’t expect any Sandler-style quotable lines or laughs in this
Leigh Whannell further emphasized to EW how he wants his film to instill fear in viewers. In his words, Wolf Man is meant to evoke the kind of visceral body horror that he admires, particularly like what's found in David Cronenberg’s The Fly. That practical, physical transformation process is central to the horror of the wolf. The makeup effects, designed by Oscar nominee Arjen Tuiten, are intended to create a realistic and deeply unsettling transformation from man to beast.
The flick also draws from the psychological horror that the filmmaker explored in The Invisible Man. Just as that film dealt with themes of abuse and control, this latest production will delve into ideas of disease and the fragility of the human body. The Dead Silence scribe revealed that the script was written during the pandemic, and much of the fear of sickness and isolation associated with that time bled into the storyline.
Set to be Blumhouse's first release of 2025, Wolf Man promises to be intense and unsettling. Based on the teases from Leigh Whannell and Jason Blum, this film won’t be one to watch with the kids, which makes sense. Though, for family-friendly scares, Adam Sandler’s Hotel Transylvania series is still available with a Peacock subscription.
Also, check out our 2024 movie release schedule to see what scary movies are still headed to cinemas this year.
