Robert Eggers' medieval werewolf film Werwulf slated for Christmas 2026 release

Robert Eggers is directing the horror‑fantasy film Werwulf, set in 13th‑century England. The story follows an unnamed farmer, played by Aaron Taylor‑Johnson, cursed to become a werewolf. Lily‑Rose Depp portrays his wife, described by Eggers as "the heart of the film," while Willem Dafoe appears as a hunter. The production discards classic werewolf clichés – there are no silver bullets or bite infections – and builds its own mythology from medieval roots.

The film’s dialogue is rendered in Middle English, developed with two Oxford professors and a dialect coach. Eggers has emphasized the visual approach, shooting on 35 mm orthochromatic film to create a "brutal, unforgiving, merciless, grotesque world" of mud, blood and rain. Focus Features released the first official image and tagline, describing the protagonist as a "13th‑century man haunted by his bestial metamorphosis."

Werwulf is scheduled to open in theaters on Christmas Day, 25 December 2026 (with a January 2027 release planned for France). The film is positioned as Eggers' darkest script to date.