Director Robert Eggers has revealed new details about his upcoming medieval horror film, Werwulf, describing the project as his darkest and scariest endeavor to date. Speaking at a promotional event, Eggers shared that the film follows a 13th-century farmer, played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson, who is cursed to become a werewolf. Lily-Rose Depp stars as his wife, with Willem Dafoe, Ralph Ineson, and Jack Morris portraying wolf hunters.
Eggers presented footage from the film, including an opening scene depicting the farmer's painful, werewolf transformation in the moonlight. Taylor-Johnson performed much of the physical acting for the transformation sequences. The director aims to ground the werewolf genre in a historical setting, noting that a period piece can make the fantastical elements more believable for the audience.
Additional scenes showcased aspects of the Man's youth, clues to his curse, and the arrival of wolf hunters seeking his assistance in tracking a werewolf. The narrative also involves a journey to find an old woman who may possess knowledge about werewolves.
For Werwulf, Eggers collaborated with Sjón, his co-writer from The Northman, and conducted extensive research into 13th-century England. The film's dialogue is rendered in Middle English, adjusted by dialect coach William Conacher and scholars Eleanor Baker and Daniel Wakelin from Oxford University for greater clarity. Eggers stated that despite the language, the film is designed to be understood emotionally, akin to a silent movie.
Eggers' interest in werewolf lore stems from historical accounts of individuals deemed werewolves due to extreme behaviors. He chose to set the film in England around 1300, a period when Edward I was actively working to exterminate wolves to protect the wool trade. This setting, Eggers explained, amplifies the film's dark and brutal tone, as the absence of wolves would have made werewolf lore particularly primal and terrifying.
The film's bleak atmosphere is intentional, with cinematographer Jarin Blaschke even inquiring if the setting was hell itself. Eggers acknowledged the depiction leans into the stereotype of the Middle Ages as muddy and miserable, but asserted this visceral environment is crucial to the film's intended hell-like experience. He believes historical research ultimately enriches the specificity and intensity of the narrative.
Werwulf is scheduled to be released in theaters on Christmas Day.