Leigh Whannel’sWolf Manis set to hit theaters in a matter of days, and while it remains to be seen if it will be a hit at the box office, there’s no denying that we’ve seen an uptick in mainstream monster movies as of late. Sure, vampires and werewolves have always been a Hollywood staple, but these days those creatures of the night seem to be more allegorical than ever before. They’re not just bloodthirsty characters looking for a quick snack; they’re almost a mirror of society in a way, and it’s for that reasonthat Whannell believes monster movies are hitting on all cylinders right now.
Speaking withGamesRadar+, Whannell was asked why he thinks people are loving films likeAbigail,Nosferatu,Werewolves, andTerrifiermore than ever. While Hollywood produces a number of monster films every year, their popularity seems to be cyclical, and something the director believes happens not by design, but by chance.
“It’s interesting because these trends, they happen so organically, you’re never quite sure why. It’s just something in the zeitgeist that seems to claw it into existence.”
Whannel would go more in depth on his answer, revealing that the current trend in monster movies is mainly due to what’s going on in our world today. Like all good horror movies, monster films work bestwhen they have a deeper meaning, and highlight the fact that the real monsters aren’t made of fur and fangs, but instead are flesh and bone beings called humans.
“I think that these are pretty unstable, uncertain times for a lot of people. There’s a lot of upheaval. The world is just in a certain place and maybe monsters are the best metaphor for that. Maybe people are craving these monsters to exorcise the worst of society through a film, you know?
“At least in a monster movie, you can point at the monster. In our real lives, people are pointing at each other and it’s hard to unpack information. We’re living in a time where information is misinterpreted, it’s coming from all directions. In a monster movie, the truth is clear. You can point to who the monster is. Maybe people need that right now.”
A New Age of Monster Movies is Upon Us
Perhaps there’s something to Whannell’s theory, as a look back at bygone eras of horror movies reveals that when society is in turmoil, people look to the unknown for comfort. During theatomic age of the 1950s, folks flocked to the theater to see films likeGodzilla,Them!,The Day the Earth Stood Still, andEarth vs. the Flying Saucers– movies that told us that if we didn’t stop messing around with forces beyond our control, we could be in a lot of trouble.
The same could be said of the late ’60s and early ’70s, when movies likeNight of the Living Dead,The Last House on the Left,The Exorcist, andThe Texas Chain Saw Massacremirrored not only our fears over the onset of a new industrial revolution, but society’s concerns about war, immigration, and the frivolity of youth.
These days, the political divide is wider than ever, causing a rift in our society we’ve never seen before due to social media, which amplifies everything ten-fold, whether true or not. Like Whannell said, these definitely are uncertain times, so perhaps he’s right, and the dawning of a new age of monster movies is upon us. Will that mean success forWolf Manat the box office this weekend? you’re able to be the judge of that when the film opens nationwide on Jan. 17 from Universal Pictures.
Wolf Man is a reboot of the classic Universal Monsters movie The Wolfman. Christopher Abbott stars in the lead role and is helmed by The Invisible Man director Leigh Whannell. The film follows the same premise as the original and the 2010 reboot, focusing on a man who becomes a werewolf after falling victim to an ancient curse.
