8 Classic Monster Movies You Never Knew Were Reboots

Many fans assume that werewolves made their first foray into feature films in 1941's the Wolf Man, famously with Lon Chaney, jr. in the title role. Although Chaney's Larry Talbot character was the werewolf who'd take part in the monster rally films of the 1940's, he wasnt the first lycanthrope to headline a film.

That honor goes to Henry Hull's Wilfred Glendon in 1935's Werewolf of London. However, most cinematic werewolf tropes originated with the 1941 film, and this story of a Victorian scientist with a savage alter ego feels more like a Jekyll and Hyde offering.

Werewolf of London offers a number of its own werewolf tropes that were never adopted by other films, including an herbal cure for lycanthropy, a Tibetan origin for the affliction, and a mostly hairless monster. Reportedly, Henry Hull wasn't keen on obscuring his face with grotesque make-up, and so he goes about his rampages looking like an ill-tempered Elvis. Among other idiosyncrasies, the film has the titular werewolf have the presence of mind to put on his hat and cloak before stalking the streets, and at one point he is beaten into unconsciousness by a regular dude.

In many ways, the Wolf Man became a classic simply by improving on this film; most notably, Lon Chaney gamely sat through four hours of hair application a day to sport the makeup rejected by Hull.