Werwulf trailer reveals how Aaron Taylor-Johnson's Man becomes the beast he set out to hunt

Robert Eggers' Werwulf is coming to theaters on December 25, 2026, and its new trailer shows us how a man transforms into the very beast he set out to hunt. Starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Man, a peasant farmer, the film doesn't have names for any of its characters and uses generic words such as "man," "woman," "wife," and "hunter."

The new trailer shows us how a wolf wreaks havoc in the mediaeval English countryside. While Taylor-Johnson and Willem Dafoe's characters, among others, will set out to hunt it, it will find them first.

Werwulf tells the story of a man-turned-beast hunted by something ominous

A strange eeriness creeps in from the beginning of the Werwulf trailer, an unmistakable feature of a gothic horror. We see Lily-Rose Depp's character, Woman, who is Man's wife, approach another woman at her home, saying:

"I heard that poor daughter found a flock... slain of the great wolf."

The next visuals make it evident that a dangerous wolf has been killing farm animals. We then see that any human who is seemingly killed by the wolf acts erratically and thus is a threat to humans and animals alike. Willem Dafoe's character, who is simply called the Old Hunter, is selected by the king to hunt this wolf.

He thus approaches the villagers, including Taylor-Johnson's Man, asking him to join in his hunt. Man agrees, but as Depp's character reveals, a certain curse follows him. We soon find out that neither Old Hunter nor the dogs that are hunting the wolf trust Man. Old Hunter suspects something is wrong with Man and asks him where he has been to recently.

The trailer doesn't have much dialogue after that, and all we see is that something happened to Man that made him transform into a combination of man and beast, otherwise known as a werewolf. He is thus revealed to be afflicted with a lycanthropic curse and suffers painful, visceral transformations during the full moon.

However, the hunters aren't the only ones he has to be careful of. Something or someone is using him to gain something, as we hear a voice say:

"Come to me, me child. Feed upon the flesh of mankind and I will give thee back thy soul."

Werwulf will follow the story of a man afflicted with a curse he doesn't know how to lift, as he desperately tries to go back to his normal self for the sake of his beloved wife and family. Set in the 14th century, the film's dialogue, as the trailer reveals, is entirely in Middle English to make the story feel more authentic.

Besides Taylor-Johnson, Depp, and Dafoe, Werwulf also stars Ralph Ineson, Jack Morris, Bodhi Rae Breathnach, Hector Byker, Jan Bijvoet, Ritchi Edwards, Valeriia Karaman, Hannah Harpin, and Kate Dickie, among others.

Werwulf is directed by Robert Eggers. It is written and produced by Eggers and Sjón. Other producers of the film are Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner. The production companies behind the film are Focus Features, Working Title Films, and Maiden Voyage Pictures.

Werwulf will be released in theaters on December 25, 2026.