Despite werewolves not having nearly as many genre entries as vampires, zombies, witches, or other supernatural haunts, there are still a few standout films worth howling about. Here are our picks for the best werewolf movies.
What are the best Werewolf movies as of 2025?
Before we get into our picks for these creature features, we’d like to answer a question with a question. Why aren’t there more Werewolf movies to choose from? The answer likely comes down to budget and believability. Unlike vampires, werewolves require heavy visual effects to sell the transformation. With vampires, you can find a very attractive actor and slap on some makeup. For werewolves, not so much. Realistic CGI or complex makeup work is expensive — and if it’s not done well, it can quickly veer into camp. There’s good CGI and there’s very, very bad CGI. Ten minutes of big-budget CGI can cost $800,000, and most films don’t have this to spend. So, it’s generally a poor CGI werewolf or an actor in furry makeup. That’s our take anyway.
It’s also worth noting that plenty of films feature werewolves without focusing on them — Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, for example, or Underworld. But for this list, we’re sticking to the movies where the wolves drive the action.
The Wolf Man (1941)
The original The Wolf Man is the granddaddy of all werewolf cinema. Starring Lon Chaney Jr. as Larry Talbot, this American Gothic horror classic tells the story of a man who returns to his family estate to bury his recently deceased brother. When Larry tries to save a young woman from what appears to be a wolf attack. Somewhere in the struggle, he’s bitten — only for the bite to disappear. Unfortunately, the authorities suspect Larry as the girl’s throat is ripped out and there’s no sign of what did it. Using context clues, Larry learns it wasn’t an ordinary wolf but a werewolf. Now, he’s cursed to transform under the full moon.
Beyond its status as a classic, The Wolf Man introduced many of the tropes we now associate with werewolves, including silver bullets, moonlit transformations, and doomed protagonists. Film scholars have long interpreted it as an allegory for everything from puberty and repressed desire to wartime anxieties and European versus American identity during WWII. Regardless of the reading, it remains an essential classic for the Halloween season.
An American Werewolf in London (1981)
John Landis’ horror-comedy starts with two American backpackers on a jaunt through Europe. While trekking across the Yorkshire moors (probably, though not officially, jamming out to Kate Bush‘s Wuthering Heights on their Walkmans), Jack and David are hunted by a mysterious wolf. Things end badly for Jack, and maybe better (or worse) for David, depending on how you feel about being cursed as a werewolf.
What follows is an equal-parts cocktail of horror: one part absurdist nightmare, one part tragic love story, and one part ridiculous comedy. While plenty is going for this movie, it’s worth giving Rick Baker a shoutout for his transformational makeup effects, rightfully earning him the first-ever Academy Award for Best Makeup.
The Wolf of Snow Hollow (2020)
Now this one’s a little less well-known than the others on our list. A darkly comedic crime thriller with a supernatural twist, The Wolf of Snow Hollow opens with a Scream-esque prologue: a young couple’s romantic getaway turns gruesome when something inhuman attacks under a full moon. From there, the film shifts gears to a snow-covered mountain town where officer John Marshall (played by writer-director Jim Cummings) is desperately trying to keep order as a string of brutal murders grips the community. Locals are convinced a werewolf is to blame, but Marshall — who’s spiraling with alcoholism, anger, and his father’s failing health (played by the late Robert Forster, in his final role) — isn’t convinced.
What makes The Wolf of Snow Hollow so good is how it blurs the line between man and monster in a way that feels both tragic and absurd — like a Twin Peaks fever dream crossed with Fargo. It’s a modern gem that breathes fresh life into the werewolf myth.
Van Helsing (2004)
We already know we’re going to get some negative-nancy comments for our last two picks, starting with Van Helsing. Yes, we know it’s tough to consider this, at least in terms of critical reception, “the best”. Still, we can’t help but enjoy it. Though it may primarily be remembered for its over-the-top action and campy tone, we’re adding it here for sheer entertainment value. Directed by Stephen Sommers (The Mummy), the film stars Hugh Jackman as Gabriel Van Helsing, a monster hunter working for the Vatican who’s sent to Transylvania to take down Count Dracula. After a classic rom-com squabble, Van Helsing teams up with Anna Valerious (Kate Beckinsale), the last of a cursed Romanian family. To take down Dracula, the duo also faces off against a rogue’s gallery of monsters, including Frankenstein’s Creature, Dracula’s brides, plus some ferocious werewolves.
While the CGI hasn’t aged particularly well, the movie’s Gothic production design and relentless creature action make it a gloriously overblown love letter to classic Universal horror mash-ups. It’s knowingly ridiculous in the best way possible. If you’re looking for serious horror, this isn’t it. But if you want old-school monster mayhem turned way, way up, Van Helsing delivers.
Twilight: New Moon (2009)
You might think this one’s a joke. And, to be fair, it partially is. But New Moon earns a place on this list for its undeniable cultural impact and nostalgia factor. We don’t need to tell you too much about this one, but in case you somehow missed it, the sequel to Twilight picks up after vampire boyfriend Edward leaves fragile-human Bella in an attempt to protect her. She just smells too darn tasty. Although Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner) was the cute best friend in the first film, he’s back, and now he’s got biceps. He’s also hiding a pretty big secret — he’s part of a pack of shapeshifters who transform into massive wolves to protect their community from vampires.
Love it or hate it, New Moon was part of a teenage phenomenon, and if you don’t believe us, you can look at the numbers to prove it. This sequel took in $26.7 million on its midnight opening, beating out The Dark Knight ($18.4 million) and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince ($22.2 million). Though definitely not horror, it’s a cornerstone of 2000s pop culture. And even with the cringe, some atrocious acting moments and writing, and some seriously romanticized depictions of co-dependency, it’s hard not to have a great time watching it. And at the very least, you’ll get a good laugh out of it.
How we picked the best Werewolf movies
Plainly put, there’s not a lot to choose from. While “best” is relative and here doesn’t necessarily mean critically acclaimed, we tried to include some true genre gems. We picked the best Werewolf movies based on a mix of nostalgia, creature-horror favorites, entertainment value, rewatchability, and old-fashioned classic monster appeal.
If you’re looking for even more movies to get you in the spooky spirit, check out our guide on the best Halloween movies.
