10 Horror Movie Scenes You Remember Totally Wrong

3. No Moon, No Transformation Scene - The Wolf Man

Hannibal Lecter
Universal Pictures

The werewolf myth has been tweaked and reinvented time and time again over the last century, in order to keep the story fresh. Throughout the years, the rabid lycanthrope has been depicted as a mindless monster, a tragic figure, a henchman, a loveable hero, and a master dribbler on the basketball court.

Even though werewolves have been represented in many ways, there's one characteristic that many believe is universal - a person transforms into a werewolf under a full moon.

Bizarrely, this concept is completely absent from 1941's The Wolf Man, which is directly responsible for popularising the werewolf mythos.

Instead, the lead character, Lawrence Talbot, takes on his monstrous form "when the autumn moon is bright," not full. (Weirdly, there isn't a single shot of the full moon in the whole movie.) In the sequels, the rules were revised, so Talbot transforms into a werewolf during a full moon.

But that's not all. Even though the metamorphosis is usually the most anticipated moment in a werewolf flick, Talbot is never seen morphing into the wolf man in the original film.

Contributor

James Egan has been with Whatculture for five years and prominently works on Horror, Film, and Video Games. He's written over 80 books including 1000 Facts about Horror Movies Vol. 1-3 1000 Facts about The Greatest Films Ever Made Vol. 1-3 1000 Facts about Video Games Vol. 1-3 1000 Facts About James Bond 1000 Facts About TV Shows