After taking over Christmas 2024 with vampire picture Nosferatu, director Robert Eggers is claiming winter 2026 with Werwulf, and by the sounds of what was shown behind closed doors at CinemaCon, the upcoming horror movie may be even scarier than its predecessor.
During Focus Features' presentation at CinemaCon 2026 on April 15, Eggers took to the stage to present the first Werwulf trailer. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the trailer is mostly in black and white, and opens with Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Lily Rose Depp as a peasant-type couple living in a village with their children.
The clip continues with quick flashes of violent images and a horse running through the forest as a voice whispers, "Do not dread the darkness." The trailer ends with a close-up of Taylor-Johnson screaming in horror. Whilst teasing the creature feature, Eggers called it his "most terrifying picture yet," which is a big claim coming from the Nosferatu and The Witch helmer.
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The trailer does not show the titular monster, which isn't a huge surprise, as Eggers kept Count Orlok's appearance a secret right up until Nosferatu hit screens. However, Deadline suggests that Taylor-Johnson might be the monster, and the last shot of the actor's face could be a snippet of his transformation into a werewolf.
Not much is known about the new horror movie, apart from the fact that it is set in 13th-Century England, where a mysterious creature from folklore stalks a rural community. Eggers is no stranger to creating historically rooted horror films. All of his past features have been set hundreds of years ago, including The Lighthouse and The Northman.
Alongside Taylor-Johnson and Depp, Werwulf also stars Willem Dafoe and Ralph Ineson. Eggers penned the script with Icelandic novelist Sjón.
Werwulf hits cinemas on Christmas Day. For more, check out our guides to the best horror movies of all time, and keep up with upcoming horror movies coming soon.
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