Production Budget Analysis

The production budget for Werewolf by Night (2022) has not been publicly disclosed.

CAST: Gael García Bernal, Laura Donnelly, Harriet Sansom Harris, Kirk R. Thatcher, Eugenie Bondurant, Leonardo Nam DIRECTOR: Michael Giacchino CINEMATOGRAPHY: Zoë White MUSIC: Michael Giacchino PRODUCTION: Marvel Studios, Kevin Feige Productions

Box Office Performance

Theatrical box office data is not publicly available for Werewolf by Night (2022). This may indicate a limited release, direct-to-streaming, or a release predating modern box office tracking.

Profitability Assessment

Insufficient publicly available data to assess profitability.

INDUSTRY IMPACT

PRODUCTION NOTES

▸ Writing

Heather Quinn and Peter Cameron co-wrote the screenplay, from a story by Quinn; Quinn previously wrote for the Marvel Studios Disney+ series Hawkeye (2021) and Cameron wrote for WandaVision (2021) and Moon Knight (2022). Quinn was asked to pitch for the special while she was working on set of Hawkeye in early 2021. She worked closely with Giacchino to craft the story of the special.

Giacchino said the special was inspired by horror films from the 1930s and 1940s, comparing it to the film Poltergeist (1982), which was a major influence for the special, in that it would have "the right level of scares". Other inspirations included The Twilight Zone, King Kong (1933), and The Wolf Man (1941), with Giacchino calling Werewolf by Night a "love letter" to these horror inspirations. Additionally, Giacchino tried to approach the special with a "moral center" beyond "just blood and guts". Disney+ stated that the special would "evoke a sense of dread and the macabre, with plenty of suspense and scares along the way". Feige called the special "fun", adding that it was also "a little darker [and] a little scarier" than the studio's other content. Elements of the Werewolf by Night character were altered from the comics to allow the story to work in a more modern setting; Quinn cited the Werewolf by Night issues "Carnival of Fear" and "The Danger Game", and Man-Thing, Bloodstone, and Monsters Unleashed titles as inspiration from the comics for the special. The special also features Man-Thing, at the suggestion of Feige. Man-Thing is only referred to as Ted in Werewolf by Night, with Giacchino wanting to call him by his actual name as "a way to humanize him".

▸ Casting

A search for a male Latino actor in their 30s to portray the lead role in the special was underway by the end of August 2021, with Gael García Bernal cast in the role in November. In January 2022, Laura Donnelly was cast in an undisclosed role. Bernal and Donnelly did not have to audition, with Giacchino directly reaching out to Bernal and choosing Donnelly given he was a fan of her previous work. In September, Bernal and Donnelly were respectively confirmed as Jack Russell / Werewolf by Night and Elsa Bloodstone. Additional castings include Harriet Sansom Harris as Verussa Bloodstone, Al Hamacher as Billy Swan, Eugenie Bondurant as Azarel, Kirk R. Thatcher as Jovan, Leonardo Nam as Liorn, Daniel J. Watts as Barasso, Carey Jones as Ted / Man-Thing, with the special's editor Jeffrey Ford providing additional vocalizations, and Richard Dixon voicing Ulysses Bloodstone. Jovan was loosely based on and inspired by the comics character Joshua Kane.

▸ Filming & Locations

Filming was expected to begin in late March 2022 at Trilith Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, under the working title Buzzcut, and had begun by March 29. Zoë White served as cinematographer. Filming was previously expected to begin in February to last for a month until March. Werewolf by Night employed many practical effects, such as Russell's transformation into a werewolf. Visual effects supervisor Joe Farrell assisted with this, which "took months to design and figure out" how to execute. The transformation is seen mainly from Elsa's perspective, which was done because Giacchino felt this would be scarier if the audience was not fully shown the transformation. The only CGI elements were the cage bars, as the practical ones had to be removed when shooting to achieve the proper shadow projection from the projector. Another practical technique used was filming various moments backwards to then be reversed during editing, such as Verussa being grabbed by the werewolf; actress Samson was filmed starting against the cage and then was pulled away from it.

Man-Thing was realized through a combination of actor Carey Jones in a practical suit, animatronics, and practical and CGI effects. KNB EFX Group created all of the practical monsters and animatronics for the special, including a life-size practical Man-Thing animatronic that was used for an on-set reference. Giacchino noted the other monsters in the special were created with practical effects and that CGI elements were only used for Man-Thing because they would have not been able to create him without them, though they had attempted to use the animatronic for the entire special. Ulysses Bloodstone was an animatronic puppet, which came at the suggestion of Cameron late in the production process. Some of the "more brutal elements" in the special and its fight sequences were conceived on the day of filming.

▸ Post-Production

Jeffrey Ford served as the editor for the special, after previously doing so for prior MCU media. The special was shot in color and early edits were also in color. Giacchino hoped to be able to release it in black-and-white, and eventually created a black-and-white cut to show Feige; he explained that Marvel Studios was on board with the special being in black-and-white after they saw it that way, noting it was "the right thing to do for the spirit of the story we were telling". Co-executive producer Brian Gay further noted that the black-and-white cinematography paid homage to classic monster films and emphasized the special's uniqueness from other MCU properties. The end of the special transitions into color, with Giacchino doing this to show the "nightmare is over" for Elsa and "things are now changing and evolving and hopefully the future will be a brighter place". The special was printed to black-and-white film and then scanned back in digitally to achieve a film look and quality to it. Reel change markers were also added in to enhance the stylistic look. Visual effects were created by JAMM, Zoic Studios, Base FX, SDFX Studios, and Digital Domain.

▸ Music & Score

Giacchino also scored the special in addition to directing, and wrote the theme for the special prior to filming, allowing him to modify it during that process. He would present musical excerpts during meetings in pre-production or ahead of filming to help convey the tone he was envisioning for what was being discussed. Much of the score was composed while Giacchino was editing the special, which allowed him to present new ideas to Ford in the moment, who would subsequently suggest another edit based on that new music. While much of the score is orchestral, Giacchino uses synthesizers and drum machines in the end credits music. He did this to "shake things up" musically after much of the presceding music was more classical, and to remind audiences that the special was still a modern story despite its older feel and influences. The special also featured the songs "I Never Had a Chance" by Irving Berlin, "Wishing (Will Make It So)" by Vera Lynn, and "Over the Rainbow" by Judy Garland. The score for the special was released digitally by Marvel Music and Hollywood Records on October 7, with four additional tracks released on October 27, 2022, as part of an updated edition of the soundtrack album.

Two "live-to-picture" performances occurred in October 2023, with the Minnesota Orchestra on October 4 and the National Symphony Orchestra on October 21. The first half of the performance examined old horror films and how music was used with them, while the second half saw the orchestras performing the Werewolf by Night score live to a screening of the special.

▸ Marketing & Release

The teaser trailer and poster for the special were revealed at the 2022 D23 Expo. The trailer was noted for appearing in black-and-white and having other film elements resembling classic horror films. Maggie Boccella from Collider felt the trailer was "presented like an old school Hammer Horror film", comparing it to the works of Lon Chaney and Bela Lugosi, both actors known primarily for their roles in horror films. Amanda Lamadrid of Screen Rant called the trailer "shocking and unique", saying it shows Marvel "going all-in on the vintage scream factor" while adding that the special looks "unlike any previous MCU project".

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

Summary: 1 win & 5 nominations total

! scope="row" style="text-align:center;"| International Film Music Critics Association Awards

! scope="row" rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;"| Critics' Choice Super Awards

! scope="row" rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;"| Saturn Awards

CRITICAL RECEPTION

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported an 90% approval rating, with an average score of 7.5/10, based on 113 reviews. The website's critics consensus reads: "A spooky yarn told with taut economy, Werewolf by Night is a standout Marvel entry that proves Michael Giacchino as atmospheric and skilled a director as he is a composer." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the special a score of 69 out of 100 based on 17 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Jordan Moreau from Variety called Werewolf by Night "a triumphant first effort at losing the capes and spandex and delving into more genre territory for Marvel" and enjoyed the introduction of Russell and Bloodstone to the MCU, particularly noting Man-Thing's appearance which he called the "MVP" of the special, though feeling the other characters were forgettable. Moreau was not as keen on the look of the werewolf, wishing it was more "intimidating or hulking" as creatures from other monster films. Writing for The Hollywood Reporter, Daniel Feinberg said, "At only 52 minutes and decidedly light on plot and supporting characters, it's a slight but fairly amusing thing, elevated above being a mere exercise in style by the lead performances from Gael Garcia Bernal and Laura Donnelly." He applauded the design of Bloodstone Manor and the "vintage spooky homages" but wished Giacchino and White had "pushed the extremes of the aesthetic even more" than they did. Feinberg called Giacchino's score "the standout element that ties everything together".