UPDATE: The embargo has lifted on “Wolf Man” and reviews are decisively mixed; 49 on Metacritic and 58% on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s now time for Whannell to break away from IP filmmaking and give us something original. He can’t just bury his talents like this.
EARLIER: Leigh Whannell’s “The Invisible Man” which had an ultra-low budget of $7M, raked in close to $144M at the box-office in 2020. It became one of the great success stories of the decade, and cemented Whannell has a go-to director for genre filmmaking.
Here comes word that Whannell’s latest Blumhouse horror cheapie, “Wolf Man,” coming out on Friday, was made for only $25M. The review embargo still hasn’t lifted on “Wolf Man” — it’s not as accomplished a work as ‘Invisible Man’ — but it should easily be making its money back at the box-office.
Current projections have “Wolf Man” earning a $20M opening. As mentioned, reviews are still not out yet, but I would expect them to be decent enough. There’s also barely any other competition for “Wolf Man” this weekend, unless you believe SZA’s directorial debut, the R-rated Keke Palmer starring “One of Them Days,” will be causing some waves.
Cory Finley, a talented filmmaker, has directed three films so far: "Thoroughbreds" (2017), "Bad Education” (2020), and "Landscape with Invisible Hand.”