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Wolf Man is an upcoming 2025 American supernatural horror film directed by Leigh Whannell from a screenplay by the writing teams of Whannell and Corbett Tuck, and Lauren Schuker Blum and Rebecca Angelo. It is a reboot of the 1941 film The Wolf Man. The film stars Christopher Abbott and Julia Garner. Jason Blum serves as a producer through his Blumhouse Productions banner, alongside Motel Movies.

The film is set to be released by Universal Pictures on January 17, 2025.

Premise[]

A man seeks to protect himself and his family from a dangerous werewolf at night during a full moon.[1]

Cast[]

Production[]

In July 2014, Universal Pictures announced its plan to reboot the Universal Classic Monsters, a series of horror films primarily produced from the 1930s to the 1950s, and its properties as part of a shared universe known as the Dark Universe.[2][3] In November 2014, Aaron Guzikowski was confirmed to be writing the reboot of Universal's The Wolf Man (1941), featuring the character of the same name.[4][5] In June 2016, Deadline Hollywood reported on rumors that Universal wanted to cast Dwayne Johnson in the title role.[6] By October, development on the film began moving forward, and David Callaham was hired to rewrite the screenplay.[7] In 2017, The Mummy was released as the first film in the Dark Universe; its launch was both a critical and commercial failure, and resulted in Universal deciding to shift its focus on individual storytelling and move away from the shared universe concept with the cancelation of The Wolf Man and other films in development.[8]

Reporter Justin Kroll said the critical and commercial success of Leigh Whannell's The Invisible Man for Universal "scrap[ped] the universe concept" and loosened restrictions for the talent in front and behind the camera, allowing them to decide how they wanted to execute their films in terms of budget and MPAA rating and inviting "big name talent" to pitch their ideas.[9] By early 2020, Universal had been hearing project ideas for a year and a half from a variety of filmmakers seeking to develop other characters in the franchise. This included Ryan Gosling's pitch to remake The Wolf Man, in the vein of Nightcrawler, with Lauren Schuker Blum and Rebecca Angelo writing the screenplay. Several filmmakers were considered to direct, including Cory Finley, whose film Thoroughbreds (2017) was reportedly well liked by Universal,[9] and Whannell, who initially demurred and was advised by producer Jason Blum to reconsider. Coincidently, during a press interview for The Invisible Man, when asked what other classic monster he'd be interested in doing, Whannell expressed interest in a werewolf, stating that werewolves "hadn't been done properly in a while."[10] In July, Whannell entered negotiations to both write a film treatment and direct.[11] After Whannell left the project due to scheduling conflicts, Derek Cianfrance was confirmed to write and direct in October 2021; Cianfrance had previously collaborated with Gosling on Blue Valentine (2010) and The Place Beyond the Pines (2012).[12]

In December 2023, both Gosling and Cianfrance were reported to have exited the project, with Whannell taking over the directing duties, along with the screenplay alongside Corbett Tuck, Schuker Blum, and Angelo. Christopher Abbott replaced Gosling in the lead role.[1] In January 2024, Julia Garner joined the cast.[13] Sam Jaeger was confirmed to star in March.[14] In April, Matilda Firth joined the cast.[15]

Filming[]

Principal photography began on March 17, 2024, in Mangaroa, Upper Hutt New Zealand,[16] with Stefan Duscio serving as the cinematographer.[17]

Release[]

Wolf Man is scheduled to be released in the United States on January 17, 2025.[18] It was previously scheduled to be released on October 25, 2024.[1]

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 Kit, Borys (December 13, 2023). "Christopher Abbott Replacing Ryan Gosling to Star in Wolf Man for Blumhouse, Universal (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter.
  2. Hoberman, J. (October 24, 2014). "Invasion of the Horror Franchises". The New York Times.
  3. Fleming, Mike Jr. (July 16, 2014). "Universal Taps Alex Kurtzman, Chris Morgan To Relaunch Classic Movie Monster Franchises". Deadline Hollywood.
  4. Fleming, Mike Jr. (November 12, 2014). "Will Justin Lin Rev Fast & Furious Finale?". Deadline Hollywood.
  5. Fleming, Mike Jr. (November 12, 2014). "Sony Confirms Dark Matter; Universal Confirms Aaron Guzikowski To Write Wolfman". Deadline Hollywood.
  6. Fleming, Mike Jr. (June 22, 2016). "Dwayne Johnson Sets Jay Longino Graphic Novel Son Of Shaolin At Sony". Deadline Hollywood.
  7. Ford, Rebecca (October 13, 2016). "Universal Taps The Expendables Writer to Pen The Wolf Man (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter.
  8. "Universal's Monsterverse in Peril as Top Producers Exit (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter (November 8, 2017).
  9. 9.0 9.1 Kroll, Justin (May 29, 2020). "Ryan Gosling's Wolfman Gears Up at Universal as Director Decision Nears (Exclusive)". Variety.
  10. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjIjP57t57Y
  11. Fleming, Mike Jr. (July 8, 2021). "Ryan Gosling's Wolfman Howling At Universal As Director Leigh Whannell & Blumhouse Join The Pack". Deadline Hollywood.
  12. Kroll, Justin (October 26, 2021). "Ryan Gosling And Universal's Wolfman Sets Derek Cianfrance As Director". Deadline Hollywood.
  13. D'Alessandro, Anthony (January 5, 2024). "Julia Garner To Star In Blumhouse & Universal's Wolf Man". Deadline Hollywood.
  14. "Blumhouse's Wolf Man Adds The HandmaidTemplate:'s TaleTemplate:'s Sam Jaeger". Deadline Hollywood (March 27, 2024).
  15. "Blumhouse & Universal's 'Wolf Man' Adds Matilda Firth". Deadline Hollywood (April 18, 2024).
  16. "Blumhouse's Wolf Man Adds The HandmaidTemplate:'s TaleTemplate:'s Sam Jaeger". Deadline Hollywood (March 27, 2024).
  17. Template:Cite tweet
  18. "Blumhouse's Wolf Man Runs From Fall To MLK Weekend 2025; The Woman In The Yard Unset For Now". Deadline Hollywood (March 29, 2024).


External links[]

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