Is ‘Werewolf by Night’ appropriate for kids?

Werewolf by Night, Marvel’s newest Disney Plus series, is receiving praise from critics and Marvel fans alike. However, the show is darker and more horrific than other Marvel shows. As a result, many parents are wondering if the show is appropriate for teens and children. 

Here is everything you need to know.

What is Werewolf by Night?

Based on the Werewolf by Night comics line that Marvel introduced in Marvel Spotlight #2 in 1972, this TV movie follows Jack Russell. Jack and four other monster hunters are summoned to the home of the late Ulysses Bloodstone. There, Verussa Bloodstone, Ulysses’ widow, informs the hunters they are there to compete for the legendary Bloodstone by taking part in a dangerous hunt. However, when Elsa, Ulysses’ estranged daughter, turns up and demands to compete alongside the other hunters, the contest takes a strange turn. 

Is Werewolf by Night suitable for children? 

Disney Plus gives Werewolf by Night a TV-14 rating. This is the same rating as the other Disney Plus MCU TV shows. The TV Parental Guidelines Monitoring Board describes TV-14 by saying: 

This program contains some material that many parents would find unsuitable for children under 14 years of age. Parents are strongly urged to exercise greater care in monitoring this program and are cautionedagainst letting children under the age of 14 watch unattended. This program may contain one or more of the following: intensely suggestive dialogue, strong coarse language, intense sexual situations, or intense violence.

This perfectly fits Werewolf by Night, as the show features a lot of violence. And, unlike the violence seen in the mainline MCU, it is much more visceral. Plus, it features a surprising amount of gore. The whole thing is a tribute to classic monster movies, so there are some pretty terrifying monsters and some very suspenseful and scary sequences. In fact, several moments will make even experienced horror viewers jump. 

However, the film is shot in black and white which takes the edge off some of the scares. This, plus the slightly over-the-top plot and exaggerated characters, might mean that some people find the movie more silly than scary. But, despite this, the movie isn’t appropriate for those under 14, especially if they’re not already familiar with horror movies and their tropes. Older viewers will likely find Werewolf by Night a little silly, because it is tamer than most non-Marvel horror movies and because they understand the genre the show is riffing on, but those without this previous experience will find the violence and scares a little too much.