Wolf Man lead actor Christopher Abbott explains why the horror film contains a ‘tragic element’
Wolf-Man is the latest Blumhouse horror film to grace our screens, with horror director Leigh Whannell returning to present his take on the classic Universal monster movie. He’s done it before with The invisible manand spins it as a story about gaslighting and domestic violence, and his views on them Wolf-Man tells a similar, emotionally devastating story, making it a great entry into this year’s new films.
Speaking to Ny Breaking, lead actor Christopher Abbott talked about why Blake’s transformation into the gruesome titular character means the horror is as much a tragedy as anything else, as the theme of loss runs throughout the story.
When asked if other performances influenced him, he said, “Yes, I would say so The fly, Elephant manthere’s a little David Lynch in there. I think there’s some kind of tragic element to both these monster creatures, you know, and I think this is that too.”
This was one of my most anticipated horror films of 2025, and it really delivered. While it was scary and the nervous moments were effective, I found myself more disturbed by the psychological torment and emotional moments, especially when it came to the breakdown and complete loss of communication between Blake and his wife and daughter (played by Julia Garner and Matilda Firth, respectively).
It’s a big reason why I wanted to make the film, because when I first saw the designs I thought there was something very tragic about the monster.
Christopher Abbott, actor
Wolf-Man contains some brilliant scenes where the POV shifts from the wolves to the humans, so we get to see both sides of the situation. Their inability to communicate and understand each other makes Blake’s transformation deeply sad, as he has turned into something completely unrecognizable, a reflection of the ways in which we cannot communicate with any species but our own. That feeling of isolation and the primal animal instinct taking over is the real horror underlying it Wolf-Man. The public already knows that Blake and his wife Charlotte’s marriage is strained, and now they’ve taken away the opportunity to talk things out.
Abbott added: “They don’t communicate well. They talk around each other, they don’t communicate well. You just need that idea and then help build something more fantastic where the communication is then taken away from you. And How Do you communicate when you are not even physically able to do so?”
Not only was there a severing of the bond between husband and wife, but also between father and daughter. Abbott praised his young co-star Matilda Firth, who played his on-screen daughter Ginger, revealing: ‘She was strangely seasoned. It felt like she was strangely seasoned. I loved her, but it was almost unpleasant. I felt like I was working with an 80 year old theater vet. But she just takes things in stride. She is there to play. You can throw something at her and she will do it or try to do it.
Wolf-Man can be seen in cinemas from Friday 17 January.