Spooky season is here, and for the first time ever, Marvel Studios is primed to take part in the annual festivities. As the MCU primes its first Halloween-themed project in Werewolf by Night, fans eagerly await the franchise's first dive into the monstrous side of Marvel Comics.
While the MCU has dipped its toe into the world of the otherworldy before (i.e. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness), Werewolf by Night will be a full-on front flip into the deep end of the catalog of monsters found on the comic page.
With hints of more to come in projects like Mahershala Ali's Blade, many are speculating that this is only just the beginning for the world of Marvel monsters. And turns out fans may have been even more right than they could have ever imagined.
Marvel's Monsters Taking Over the MCU
According to a new report from The Cosmic Circus, the MCU is set to usher in the age of the Marvel monster following Werewolf by Night.
The Cosmic Circus' Alex Perez wrote that sources have told the site that after Michael Giacchino's werewolf-centric special presentation, monsters will be "everywhere" all over the MCU.
And this isn't just a case of creatures like Werewolf by Night and Man-Thing remaining hidden from the world, but these creatures will actually make themselves known to society and will live amongst the MCU's heroes and villains. Included in this is information that Jack Russell and Man-Thing will be appearing in other projects in the Marvel Studios slate.
This is the importance of monsters has been mentioned by Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige before, with the executive saying this vertical of the franchise will "will ultimately become quite important."
The report indicates that this isn't a case of these monsters all of a sudden appearing out of the blue, but instead emerging from the shadows after being around since the dawn of the MCU. An example of this can be found in Werewolf By Night's coven of monster hunters, who according to Marvel have existed for generations before popping up in the Disney+ special.
And despite the upcoming Marvel Studios title looking like it is ripped out right out of the 1930s or '40s, The Cosmic Circus does report that it coexists alongside "the current events of the main Earth-616 timeline."
Werewolf by Night is Just the Beginning
Who could have guessed that Werewolf by Night could end up being one of the more important Marvel Studios projects in recent years? While some may have taken the Disney+ special presentation as nothing more than something to fill the gaps on the Marvel Studios calendar, the fact is that it is seemingly pulling the curtain back on a whole new branch of the MCU.
What Guardians of the Galaxy did with the cosmos, Werewolf will supposedly do the same with the world of MCU monsters. And after 14 years of MCU storytelling, it makes sense to branch out into these weirder more niche wings of the Marvel portfolio. And with titles like Blade on the horizon, why not get into the monstrous world of Marvel characters?
This report has yet to be confirmed, but executive producer on the project, Brian Gay told The Direct that the special is "just peeling back the corner of monsters in the MCU." So, it certainly feels like fans will be seeing more of these characters very soon.
Werewolf by Night hits Disney+ on Friday, October 7.
