The Wolf Man remains one of the horror genre's most iconic movie monsters and in 2017, there were plans for him to take centre stage in Universal's ill-fated "Dark Universe."
The idea of an MCU-inspired shared world featuring these creatures crumbled when The Mummy bombed, leaving the studio with no other choice than to part ways with Hollywood heavyweights like Tom Cruise, Johnny Depp, Russell Crowe, and Javier Bardem.
There's been some chatter about Universal attempting to revive its Dark Universe, but filmmaker Leigh Whannell's Wolf Man won't be part of them (just like his last monster tale for the studio, 2020's The Invisible Man).
"As an outsider, I would say that The Mummy's Dark Universe, in my humble opinion, felt like it was reactive to what was going on with all the superhero stuff - the MCU and DC universe," producer Ken Kao tells Screen Rant (via FearHQ.com). "And we know there's been a lot of talk about what happened with all that [in] the last year or so."
"I guess you could call it maybe more like the Joker approach," he continued. "In my opinion, especially if you're going to do it for contained pieces, like Blumhouse is really good at doing, [it] makes a lot more sense to me. So that's a good playbook."
In other words, these movies will remain standalone, meaning no crossovers or Avengers-style team-up. Universal's original plans called for Dracula, Frankenstein's Monster, the Bride of Frankenstein, the Mummy, the Wolf Man, the Phantom of the Opera, the Invisible Man, and the Creature From the Black Lagoon to be among those that "assembled" in the Dark Universe.
Despite the franchise being scrapped, new projects revolving around each of them are in various stages of development. Chloé Zhao, James Wan, and Scarlett Johansson are among those attached to them.
Universal's Wolf Man is a classic horror character that first appeared in the 1941 film The Wolf Man. Portrayed by actor Lon Chaney Jr., he became one of the iconic figures of Universal's horror movie universe, alongside Dracula, Frankenstein's Monster, and the Mummy.
In the movie, Larry Talbot, played by Chaney Jr., returns to his ancestral home in Wales and gets bitten by a werewolf while defending a woman from an attack. After being cursed with lycanthropy, Talbot transforms into a werewolf during the full moon and terrorizes the countryside, struggling with his own inner beast.
The Wolf Man is characterized by his tragic nature, as he grapples with the curse and the havoc it wreaks on his life and the lives of those around him.
Wolf Man will star Christopher Abbott, Julia Garner, Sam Jaeger, and Matilda Firth, and is set to hit theaters on January 17, 2025.