Marvel Halloween special will star Gael Garcia Bernal, rumoured to adapt Werewolf by Night
The Coco actor is getting spooky for Disney Plus.
Though Halloween is over, Marvel Studios is said to be hard at work on a spooky special set to air on Disney Plus next year.
Of course, details are scarce at this stage, but The Wrap reports that Disney's reported search for a Latino actor to play the lead is over, with Old and Coco star Gael Garcia Bernal chosen for the task.
According to the report, the as-yet-untitled Halloween special will be a "werewolf-focused show", with Bernal rumoured to be playing Werewolf by Night.
The name is used by two rather obscure characters in the Marvel comics. The first was the alias of Jack Russell (though usually shortened to just 'werewolf'), who was based on concepts by Stan Lee and Roy Thomas and who starred in a 43-issue comic run in the '70s.
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Russell is a lycanthrope who can transform into a werewolf at will (eventually). The character was then reimagined very recently in the shape of Jake Gomez in 2020's Werewolf by Night comic. In this version, created by the Black Eyed Peas' Taboo, Benjamin Jackendoff and Scot Eaton, Gomez is a member of the Hopi Native American tribe cursed with lycanthropy.
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It's unclear at this stage which, if any, version of the character Bernal will play for the Disney Plus special, which is expected to begin shooting early next year.
It's worth noting that the original Werewolf by Night series marks the debut of Moon Knight, who is set to appear in his very own Disney Plus show next year, played by Dune's Oscar Isaac.
With filming for Moon Knight under way, it's certainly possible that Werewolf could make an appearance earlier than Halloween.
The Werewolf by Night special would not be the first seasonal special for Disney Plus. The upcoming Hawkeye series will be set around the festive season, with the bow and arrow-wielding Avenger attempting to get home before Christmas. There's also a Guardians of the Galaxy holiday special planned for 2022.
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