In this interview, Wolf Man writer-director Leigh Whannell compares this monster movie to his previous work on The Invisible Man.
In Wolf Man, Blake (Christopher Abbott) and his family are attacked by an unseen animal in the dead of night as they arrive at Blake’s father’s old farmhouse that he just inherited. They barricade themselves inside but as the night stretches on, Blake begins to behave strangely, transforming into something unrecognizable that soon jeopardizes his wife and daughter.
Writer-director Leigh Whannell, known for his innovative work on The Invisible Man, discusses his latest cinematic endeavor: Wolf Man. In this in-depth interview, we explore the emotional core of the film, the nuances of crafting a modern monster movie, and the remarkable ensemble cast that brings this chilling tale to life.
Leigh Whannell Boasts About The Incredible Wolf Man Cast
Tessa Smith: What an incredible cast. Can you talk about brining them all on?
Leigh Whannell: Well, yeah, Matilda, we did find, we were looking for a child actor. There’s not a lot of celebrity child actors. You’re really looking for this raw talent. We’re looking all over the world, and we found Matilda in the UK. Her audition tape came in from the UK, and she was so good. She’s so good in the movie, and she’s so great in real life. She’s such a great person.
Chris and Julia, I knew of their work already, so it wasn’t a matter of discovering them as much as it was having it confirmed that they were right for these roles. Chris, I saw him do a play in New York. He did an Off Broadway play with Aubrey Plaza, and his energy on stage, he’s on stage the whole time. He was just this like this ball of rage, and the energy was palpable. As soon as I saw that play, I thought, this is the guy.
With Julia. I just knew her past work, and we started talking, and she actually told me she was taking the role by texting a wolf emoji. So it was just awesome. When you get great actors, you know that they’re going to elevate the movie.
Leigh Whannell Compares The Invisible Man to Wolf Man
Tessa Smith: The Invisible Man has more of a sci-fi element than Wolf Man, but they are both monster movies. Can you talk about tackling this one in a different way?
Leigh Whannell: I guess each movie tells you what it wants to be. With The Invisible Man, I was thinking, what is the most realistic way to portray this? And I feel like we’re not that far away in terms of tech. I mean, people just take things for granted that were science fiction 20 years ago. There’s driverless cars running around Los Angeles, and nobody cares. Everybody just is like, yep, that’s a driverless car. And I’m like, is no one else impressed by this? So I feel like with that, tech seems like the right way to go.
With this, Wolf Man, my focus was illness and disease and the body fighting against itself. So it became more of a biological thing than a science fiction thing, science fact rather than fiction.
Be sure to watch our full interview with Leigh Whannell to learn more about Wolf Man, which hits theaters on January 17th.
NEXT: Christopher Abbott Talks Finding Humanity In Wolf Man
About Wolf Man
Golden Globe nominee Christopher Abbott (Poor Things, It Comes at Night) stars as Blake, a San Francisco husband and father, who inherits his remote childhood home in rural Oregon after his own father vanishes and is presumed dead.
With his marriage to his high-powered wife, Charlotte (Emmy winner Julia Garner; Ozark, Inventing Anna), fraying, Blake persuades Charlotte to take a break from the city and visit the property with their young daughter, Ginger (Matlida Firth; Hullraisers, Coma).
But as the family approaches the farmhouse in the dead of night, they’re attacked by an unseen animal and, in a desperate escape, barricade themselves inside the home as the creature prowls the perimeter.
As the night stretches on, however, Blake begins to behave strangely, transforming into something unrecognizable, and Charlotte will be forced to decide whether the terror within their house is more lethal than the danger without.