Origins of the Series

The idea for Werewolf took shape shortly after the conclusion of co-producer John Ashley and creator Frank Lupo’s successful run on The A-Team. With that series behind them, the duo was in a position to pursue virtually any project within the action-adventure realm. But Lupo wanted to explore something different.

“Frank got the idea for Werewolf while he was taking a shower,” chuckles Ashley. “When he brought it to me, I was a bit skeptical. But we had a blind commitment for a series with the FOX Network at the time, so we pitched the idea of Werewolf to them. They asked all the appropriate questions, and we had all the appropriate answers, and the FOX people said, ‘Do it.’”

Fortunately for Ashley and Lupo, the series worked as a whole. “Scare is the operative word,” Ashley assures. “I did not mind ending up faulted for the concept, but I did not want to be faulted for the execution.”

Creating the Look and Creature Effects

The creators devoted careful attention to the show’s style—heavy use of smoke, dark lighting, and a semi-grainy visual approach that lent the series a distinctive Gothic tone. Just as importantly, they chose their creature-effects team with precision. “Hiring Rick Baker and Greg Cannom was the smartest move we ever made,” Ashley says. “The days are long gone when you could get away with somebody falling behind a desk and coming up with some facial hair.” Cannom is proud of his work on the series, though he admits the process was grueling. “The pace of television is ridiculous.”

The tight production schedule extended into pre-production as well. Cannom had only six weeks to create both the “good” and “bad” werewolf forms. “I worked in tandem with Rick Baker. I was making body casts and molds for the actors while the final designs were still in development. At one point, I even had to fly to England to get the hair on the werewolf suits hand-tied by an expert. It was a rush job, but we succeeded in giving the show movie-quality effects on a television budget.”

Eric’s early-stage transformation was relatively modest—contact lenses and fangs—but the Skorzeny creature required significantly more complexity. “That was my favorite because the Skorzeny werewolf is more of a horrific creature,” Cannom enthuses. “The disease has progressed to the point where his human side is starting to break down physically. There was also the mechanics needed to move the eyes; that made it more than just another werewolf transformation.”

Story Developments and Future Plans

As the series progresses, Eric eventually finds and kills Skorzeny, only to discover that the true origin of the bloodline is Nicholas Remy (Brian Thompson), a 2,000-year-old werewolf whose power far exceeds that of any other creature Eric has encountered.

Ashley explains, “The nature of the material gives us lots of ways we can go. We have a show coming up where Eric discovers the existence of two other werewolves. And who is to say there are not other kinds of monsters out there? We’ve had a witch in one episode already, and it’s not out of the realm of possibility to do a show about a vampire.”

The series’ strong initial ratings led FOX to consider renewing Werewolf for a second season, and the creative team began planning ahead. “The premise was set forth in the pilot that the werewolf disease is a progressive one,” Ashley reasons.

“So far, Eric’s basic good nature keeps him in control, which is why, when he knows the change is coming, he will lock himself up so he can’t hurt people. We will not make Eric a mass murderer like the Skorzeny werewolf, but by the second season, you will begin to see him lose more and more control. As the disease begins to progress, he loses more of his humanity.”