Robert Eggers, the filmmaker behind The Witch, The Lighthouse, The Northman, and 2024’s Nosferatu, has finally unleashed the first trailer for his latest horror feature, Werwulf. It's every bit as haunting, cryptic, and dread-soaked as fans were hoping.
Check out our full review of Eggers' 'Nosferatu'
Released fittingly on the night's full moon, the first look at Eggers' latest folk horror nightmare wastes no time establishing its oppressive atmosphere. Set in a remote 13th-century English village, the teaser offers fleeting glimpses of terrified villagers, ritualistic imagery, blood-soaked landscapes, and something monstrous lurking just beyond the edge of the frame. True to Eggers' style, the trailer reveals very little of its titular beast. It’s safe to assume that this film will once again lean into mounting paranoia and suffocating tension over outright gory spectacle.
Following the enormous success of Nosferatu, Werwulf reunites Eggers with several familiar collaborators, including Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Lily-Rose Depp, and Willem Dafoe, while once again pairing the filmmaker with Icelandic poet and novelist Sjón, who co-wrote the screenplay after previously collaborating on The Northman. Eggers has previously described Werwulf as "the darkest thing I've ever written", which is a bold statement considering his past works.
Check out our full review of 2022's 'The Northman'
Werwulf appears poised to deliver another meticulously researched descent into folklore, religious hysteria, and human brutality. The medieval setting, bleak monochromatic imagery, and unsettling sound design all point toward a film more interested in existential terror than mere jump scares. Werwulf claws its way into theaters on December 25, giving horror fans yet another reason to spend Christmas in the dark. If this trailer is any indication, Robert Eggers may have another modern horror masterpiece on his hands.
