Leigh Whannell has always had a knack for crafting heart-pounding horror. He co-created both Saw and Insidious with James Wan; directed Insidious: Chapter 3; and more recently, delivered stomach-churning gore and intense suspense with films like Upgrade and The Invisible Man. However, Whannell views his last two critically acclaimed features as more horror-adjacent genre hybrids. With his upcoming Wolf Man, a new take on one of Universal’s classic monsters, he’s set to truly terrify audiences once again.
“Upgrade was more sci-fi action,” Whannell explains to Empire. “I was heavily influenced by domestic thrillers when writing The Invisible Man, as I’m a fan of that genre. [Wolf Man] is my way of saying, ‘I just wanted to create something that is pure, unadulterated horror.’”
At the core of this werewolf tale is Christopher Abbott, whose character Blake returns to his childhood home in the Oregon wilderness with his family. After being attacked by an unknown entity, Blake begins to transform into a beast, putting his wife Charlotte (Julia Garner) and daughter Ginger (Matilda Firth) in grave danger.
For Whannell, this is another opportunity to reinvent one of cinema’s oldest horror properties, much like he did with his intelligent and tense adaptation of The Invisible Man. “I see it as a companion piece to The Invisible Man,” he says. “I didn’t want this film to be a nostalgic or retro take on the Wolf Man.” This meant devising entirely new ways to bring werewolf mythology to the big screen. “I actually wrote down everything that’s been done before and then decided, ‘Okay, that’s the list of what not to do,’” he explains. “I hope that when the lights come up, viewers will think, ‘Wow, I haven’t seen that kind of werewolf movie before.’” We’re already eagerly anticipating its release.
Read Empire’s full Wolf Man story in the 40 Years Of The Terminator issue – on sale Thursday 26 September. Pre-order a copy online here. Wolf Man hits UK cinemas on 17 January.
