MARVEL MARATHON DEEP DIVE
WEREWOLF
BY NIGHT
Werewolf by Night arrived on Disney+ on 7 October 2022 as Marvel Studios’ first Special Presentation. Composer Michael Giacchino directed the black-and-white horror story, and it runs about 53 minutes.
A HALLOWEEN SPECIAL WITH A COMPOSER AT THE HELM
HOW WEREWOLF BY NIGHT WAS MADE
Marvel Studios was developing a Halloween-themed television special for Disney+ by August 2021. Michael Giacchino was hired to direct by March 2022, and Heather Quinn and Peter Cameron co-wrote the screenplay from a story by Quinn. Marvel Studios marketed the film as a Special Presentation and officially revealed it in September 2022, with a teaser trailer and poster shown at the 2022 D23 Expo.
Giacchino hoped to release it in black and white, made a black-and-white cut to show Kevin Feige, and described the film as a “love letter” to the horror inspirations that shaped it, from 1930s and 1940s films such as The Wolf Man to Poltergeist. Filming took 18 days at Trilith Studios in Atlanta under the working title Buzzcut and wrapped by late April 2022. The black-and-white look helped it earn a TV-14 rating.
A SECRET HUNT FOR A MONSTER
WHAT THE FILM IS ABOUT
The introduction shows that monsters exist in the MCU, with an illustration of the Avengers added after test audiences asked why established characters were absent. Otherwise the film is a self-contained story with no appearances by established characters. Giacchino framed the story as one night in the life of Jack Russell and Elsa Bloodstone.
HUNTERS AND A SWAMP CREATURE
WHO IS IN THE CAST
Gael García Bernal plays Jack Russell, with Laura Donnelly as Elsa Bloodstone, Harriet Sansom Harris as Verussa Bloodstone, Kirk R. Thatcher as Jovan, Eugenie Bondurant as Azarel, Leonardo Nam as Liorn and Daniel J. Watts as Barasso. Carey Jones provided motion capture for Ted, also known as Man-Thing, and Zoë White was cinematographer.
A HALLOWEEN STREAMING HIT
HOW THE FILM WAS RELEASED AND RECEIVED
The film screened at Fantastic Fest on 25 September 2022 and arrived on Disney+ on 7 October. Whip Media calculated that it was the most-streamed film in the US for the week ending 9 October, and it stayed in the top five for the following two weeks.
Rotten Tomatoes lists a 90% critics’ score from 113 reviews and an 88% audience score, and its consensus calls it “a standout Marvel entry.” Metacritic gives it 69 from 17 critics. Germain Lussier of Gizmodo described a “beautiful, over-the-top, entertaining short that would work even if it had nothing to do with Marvel,” while Daniel Fienberg of The Hollywood Reporter found it light on plot and supporting characters, though “fairly amusing.”
THE REWATCH
A SATURN AWARD AND A COLOUR VERSION
The film won a Saturn Award for best television presentation, and was nominated at the Critics’ Choice Super Awards for best superhero series, limited series or made-for-television film and, for Harriet Sansom Harris, best villain in a series. A colour version, Werewolf by Night in Color, was released on Disney+ on 20 October 2023.
In the Marvel Marathon it is catalogued as an MCU special and sits in the MCU release order guide between She-Hulk: Attorney at Law and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. In the MCU timeline guide it comes between Ironheart and The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special. It is not in the other guides.
QUICK ANSWERS
WEREWOLF BY NIGHT WATCH QUESTIONS
Do I need to watch other MCU projects first?
No. It is a largely self-contained story with no appearances by established characters, so it works as a standalone introduction to the monster side of the MCU.
How long is Werewolf by Night?
About 53 minutes.
Is it in black and white?
Yes. Giacchino hoped to release it in black and white, and a colour version, Werewolf by Night in Color, was released on Disney+ in October 2023.
Which Marvel Marathon guides include Werewolf by Night?
It appears in the MCU release order and MCU timeline guides. In the timeline it sits between Ironheart and The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special.
EDITORIAL NOTES
SOURCES AND UPDATES
Production, release, reception and awards details are checked against a film reference and aggregator scores, cited individually below. Box-office figures do not apply to a streaming special.