7 best werewolf movies and shows to stream during spooky season
By Xandra Harbet,
5 hours ago
Werewolves have haunted media for just about as long as humans wrote down folklore to explain the unexplainable (or at least phenomena that science hadn’t yet cleared up). Given that nearly every culture has some form of mythology surrounding werewolves and shapeshifters, the genre has a wide range of source material to keep things fresh. From the 1913 movie “Werewolf” and the ‘40s classic “The Wolf Man” to modern adaptions like “Teen Wolf” and “The Originals,” werewolf aficionados can find a movie or TV show for just about every mood.
There’s a reason we keep coming back to monsters like vampires and werewolves: It’s fascinating to dive deep into the human psyche and contemplate what exactly makes someone a monster. For decades, both beasties have floated in and out of mass popularity, but they never seem to go away entirely. Here are the best werewolf shows and movies to sink your teeth into.
'An American Werewolf in London'
The 1981 cult classic “An American Werewolf in London” has that typical ‘80s brand of humor that you find in comedies, but the special effects make it a stellar horror movie. Here, we have a scary-looking werewolf that participates in enough jump scares to get your heart rate up. The film’s ability to toggle between kookiness and genuinely terrifying horror have allowed it to stand the test of time (though you’ll immediately know it’s an ‘80s film).
So, what’s it about? Well, for starters, an American werewolf in London . College friends David and Jack didn’t know what they were getting themselves into when they take a tour of Britain. A local werewolf succeeds in turning one of them into a snack, while the other walks away with a few scratches. As werewolf fans know, that isn’t usually a good sign. As a result, London gets a new werewolf and a slew of lost souls that follow the attacks. John Landis wrote and directed the movie that stars actors like David Naughton (David), Jenny Agutter (Nurse Alex), and Griffin Dunne (Jack).
While “The Originals” is a spinoff of the aptly-titled “The Vampire Diaries,” the series puts a big spotlight on werewolves — and how they fit into the social hierarchy of the supernatural in New Orleans. The show centers on Original vampire and werewolf hybrid Klaus (Joseph Morgan), his werewolf baby mama Hayley (Phoebe Tonkin) and Klaus’ Original vampire siblings Elijah (Daniel Gillies), Rebekah (Claire Holt), and Kol (Daniel Sharman/Nathaniel Buzolic).
Anyone who’s been to New Orleans can attest to the palpable magic in the air. Naturally, the location offers the perfect setting to depict the power struggle among vampires (led by Charles Michael Davis’ Marcel), werewolves and witches. Like its parent series, “The Originals” stands out as it delves into the ancient origin stories of its creatures. Many fans even consider it the best of all three series that exist in the same universe. Julie Plec’s four-season show ran from 2013 to 2018. And though it helps understand the Original family better if you watch “The Vampire Diaries,” it does stand on its own. The series “Legacies” also follows Klaus and Hayley’s now-teenage daughter Hope.
Everyone knows that jocks are typically known for being an incredibly inclusive and accepting bunch. So, it makes perfect sense that “Teen Wolf” character Scott Howard is welcomed wholeheartedly by his teammates when he wolfs out in the middle of the basketball court in the 1985 movie. As goofy and unrealistic as the wolfy makeup may be, Michael J. Fox can bring any character to life and make audiences fall in love with him.
The film’s premise is simple: Unpopular teen Scott discovers he’s a werewolf and uses his newfound athleticism to climb his school’s social hierarchy, get the right girl, and win basketball games. That’s basically it. Of course, we can’t forget the introduction to Nerdy Best Friend Stiles (Jerry Levine), who’s arguably the best part of the movie. Rod Daniel directed the film written by Jeph Loeb and Matthew Weisman.
Over two decades later in 2011, Jeff Davis loosely adapted the “Teen Wolf” movie into the MTV show by the same name. The resemblance between the two projects ends with Scott (Tyler Posey) and Stiles (Dylan O’Brien) sharing their first names and the fact that they’re high schoolers looking to elevate their jock status with Scott’s werewolf prowess. While there are plenty of comedic moments to match the tone of the OG (mostly courtesy of Stiles), the series is much grittier and darker.
Davis is not afraid to kill off characters and the stakes of surviving Beacon Hills High (and lacrosse games) are more intense than ‘does the popular girl like me?’. However, that doesn’t stop Popular Girl Pining from being a thing. The show features much more of an ensemble cast. Yet like the movie, Scott and Stiles’ relationship anchors the series. The long-form narrative also gave writers the opportunity to delve into an array of other supernatural species like kitsunes and kanimas.
The cast includes Tyler Hoechlin (Derek), Holland Roden (Lydia), Crystal Reed (Allison), Colton Haynes (Jackson), and Arden Cho (Kira). Of course, we have “Teen Wolf” to thank for launching beloved star Dylan O’Brien’s career. “Teen Wolf” also released a movie in 2023, but there’s certainly a case for pretending that it doesn’t exist.
The only thing more stressful than hiding a secret werewolf identity while trying to blend in with humans is being the only female werewolf in existence. For Elena (Laura Vandervoort) in “Bitten,” that means she has to fend off an exorbitant amount of aggressive advances while she straddles the line between her human and werewolf sides.
The three-season Canadian show, based on Kelley Armstrong’s “Women of the Otherworld” series, centers on found family, culture, and the war between rogue wolves and the Pack. The 201 Daegan Fryklind-created series stars names like Greyston Holt (Clayton), Greg Bryk (Jeremy), Steve Lund (Nick), Michael Xavier (Logan), and Genelle Williams (Rachel).
Everyone loves a good, classic monster movie. Frankly, they don’t make movies like 1941’s “The Wolf Man” anymore. Back before the age of excessive CGI, monster movies relied on SFX makeup to personify whichever beastie haunted the scene. One perk of this method is the genuine physicality of the actor doing the character work and movements rather than relying on post-production magic.
One of the most iconic movie monsters of all time is, of course, the Wolf Man. The black-and-white nature of the film adds a level of spookiness that we just don’t see with modern horror. The Wolf Man looming around the forest in the creepy shadows is particularly effective and it prevents the prosthetics and makeup from looking too goofy and less scary. Like many classic monster flicks, the plot for this one is pretty simple. An aristocrat goes back home to search for his missing brother and uncovers a few fang-related secrets and family complications while the Wolf Man stalks the town.
Despite werewolves having a rich history in folklore as shape shifters with a wide range of origin stories, most werewolf shows and movies either don’t tap into that at all or do so minimally. However, the 2007 movie “Blood & Chocolate” is all about the culture and family dynamics of a werewolf legend we don’t often see: the Romanian Loup-Garou. Romania has a particular reverence for wolves, which you can see in the architecture and mass amounts of wolf statues.
“Blood & Chocolate” centers on 19-year-old Vivian (Agnes Bruckner), who rebels against her family’s deadly (and frankly sexist) customs. Despite the fact that her family was killed by hunters when she was a child, Vivian is not about the “hunting humans” life her pack follows (nor is she keen to become the pack leader’s trophy wife for seven years before he sets his sights on a younger model). Naturally, she falls for a human in this movie that’s more of a romance than anything else. Yet the film is deeply grounded in family, wolf culture, and outdated customs, giving it a compelling and expansive narrative.
“Buffy the Vampire Slayer” star Sarah Michelle Gellar went back to her supernatural roots in the Jeff Davis-led show “Wolf Pack.” While it may seem like a “Teen Wolf” spinoff at first glance, the 2023 series features an entirely separate mythology even though you may notice repeat sets and similar ‘high school werewolf’ vibes.
Davis adapted the show from Edo Van Belkom’s book series by the same name. The plot centers on a small California town (no surprise there) that gets plagued by a fire that awakens a beast. Cue werewolf bites, psychically connected teens, and a procedural investigation.
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