After director Leigh Whannell breathed new life into Universal Monsters with his fresh and chilling take on The Invisible Man, he attempted to do the same for another classic movie monster in Wolf Man. Unfortunately, Wolf Man was not much of a box office draw when it premiered in theaters earlier this year, but the film is about to get a shot at a second life as it gears up for its streaming debut. According to Deadline, Wolf Man will be exclusively available to stream on Peacock beginning on Friday, April 18th.
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Wolf Man has been available to rent or purchase on various VOD platforms, including Apple and Amazon. This will mark the first time the film is “free” to watch at home, requiring only a subscription to Peacock.
Hitting theaters back in January, Wolf Man earned mostly negative reviews and struggled at the box office as a result, grossing only $34.1 million worldwide against a production budget of $25 million. Its performance was a far cry from 2020’s The Invisible Man, which received widespread praise and earned $144.5 million against a $7 million budget.
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In a since-deleted tweet, Wolf Man producer Jason Blum shared his reaction to the film’s underwhelming box office figures, posting a picture of himself frowning in his car. When Wolf Man premiered over the extended Martin Luther King Day weekend, it finished in third place, trailing Christmas holdover Mufasa: The Lion King and the comedy One of Them Days.
It’ll be interesting to see how Wolf Man fares on Peacock. Its poor box office performance is not necessarily indicative of how it will be received now that it’s available to watch at home. History is full of examples of box office bombs that became streaming hits. For example, The Marvels (which flopped with only $206.1 million worldwide) achieved great success on streaming, topping Nielsen’s charts after it hit Disney+. Being able to watch something for free from the comfort of home increases the odds of someone taking a chance on a title that earned a mixed reception. Even if it’s just out of morbid curiosity, people might be more willing to watch Wolf Man now.
Whannell has expressed interest in making a third Universal Monsters movie, eyeing Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde as a possibility. Such a project hasn’t been green lit yet, and it’s unknown if Wolf Man‘s theatrical run had any impact on that. Perhaps if the film becomes a big hit on Peacock, Universal will move forward with the director’s next idea. Whannell’s track record is pretty solid overall (he also helmed the underrated sci-fi film Upgrade), so there’s an argument to be made here that Wolf Man was a blip on the radar.
Will you be watching Wolf Man when it comes out on Peacock later this month? Do you want Whannell to call the shots on another Universal Monsters reboot? Let us know in the comments!
