Marvel has revealed the first look at Halloween special Werewolf By Night at this year's D23, which will be dropping on Disney+ on October 7. Based on the character of lycanthrope Jack Russell who made his debut in 1972's Marvel Spotlight #2 before going on to star in his own series Werewolf By Night, which ran for 43 issues up until 1977.
The series was first announced in August 2021 and will be directed by Michael Giacchino who is a composer whose work can be heard in Jurassic World: Dominion, The Batman, and Spider-Man: No Way Home to name just a few. Giacchino has previously directed a short film called Monster Challenge and an episode of Star Trek: Short Treks. Gael Garcia Bernal (Y Tu Mamá También) stars as Jack Russell with Laura Donelly reportedly playing Elsa Bloodstone.
The synopsis for the Halloween special reads "A new Werewolf by Night is prowling the Southwest, but all is not as it seems! A young man, a family curse, and an unholy experiment prove a dangerous combination for a small town in Arizona. All young Jake wants is to protect his people, but who will protect him from the monster within?"
The trailer is in black and white and echoes the monster movies of the Hammer Horror era. A group of monster hunters is gathered together, seemingly for some kind of challenge. Their host reveals that one among them is a monster masquerading as a hunter, and it's a mystery who or what they are. Frankenstein like Ulysses Bloodstone wishes them luck from his coffin and says "I'll be rotting for you." The trailer is high camp and also offers a glimpse of what appears to be fan-favorite character Man-Thing and Time Variance Authority Minutemen seen in Loki.
The titular character of Werewolf By Night has been two different characters in the comics. The first is Jack Russel who is a cursed descendant of werewolves that warred with Dracula. This appears to be the version of the character we are getting here. The second version of the character debuted in 2020 and was Jake Gomez, a Hopi Native American.
While it's unclear if the special is going to be a standalone presentation, or if it will tie into future MCU releases, the special certainly looks different from what Marvel has put out before. With rumors that possibly tie-in with Mahershala Ali's debut as Blade and evidence of Man-Thing's appearance anything is possible. Werewolf By Night debuts on Disney + on October 7.