Tamal Kundu
Based on the 2004 namesake book by Canadian author Edo van Belkom, ‘Wolf Pack’ revolves around a group of young people: Everett Lang (Armani Jackson), Blake Navarro (Bella Shepard), Harlan Briggs (Tyler Lawrence Gray), and Luna (Chloe Rose Robertson). After a forest fire awakens a nightmarish monster, the four protagonists find their destinies are interconnected. Meanwhile, the MTV series ‘Teen Wolf’ (2011-2017) is inspired by the 1985 film of the same name, starring Michael J. Fox. It tells the story of Scott McCall (Tyler Posey), a teenager who turns into a werewolf in the pilot episode. Given that both projects were created by Jeff Davis (‘Criminal Minds’), you might be wondering whether the two shows are related. Here is everything you need to know about it.
Similarities and Differences Between Wolf Pack and Teen Wolf
As mentioned above, ‘Wolf Pack’ and ‘Teen Wolf’ are developed by Davis and obviously revolve around the werewolf mythos. Moreover, both shows are set in California. While ‘Teen Wolf’ takes place in the fictional town of Beacon Hills, ‘Wolf Pack’ is set in Gray Lakes in the County of Los Angeles, also a fictional town.
In an interview with EW, Davis explained his reasons for making a show so similar to ‘Teen Wolf.’ “I did want to do something different, but from ‘Teen Wolf,’” the series creator explained. “With ‘Teen Wolf,’ one of the first things we did was here’s the traditional werewolf myth, how do we spin it. This, I wanted to go back to more traditional myths.”
Davis stated he had more stories to tell in the same setting and wanted to delve deep into issues that aren’t part of ‘Teen Wolf.’ “I found with teenagers these days, there are issues such as anxiety, disconnected youth trying to find each other, can they still find each other in a world like this where it’s all technology, pandemics, and people are being separated,” Davis said. “That’s really what the story is about: these four kids finding each other, and finding their pack, and finding their people.”
Over five years after the MTV series concluded, the continuation film ‘Teen Wolf: The Movie,’ released on January 26, 2023, on Paramount+. Davis told EW that even though he initially had no intention of doing another show about werewolves, things ultimately worked out that way. “After 100 episodes of ‘Teen Wolf’ I thought I was done with werewolves,” Davis recalled. “They asked me, ‘Would you be interested in doing another supernatural TV show?’ I was like, ‘Supernatural, of course.’ Then they said, ‘Would you be interested in doing something sort of similar to ‘Teen Wolf?’’ I said, ‘Well is it actually teen werewolves?’ Then they said, ‘Maybe.’ I’m not kidding. They sent me the book and it actually does tie into something I’ve been thinking about for a while, which was the California wildfires.”
In many ways, ‘Teen Wolf’ and ‘Wolf Pack’ reflect the spirit of their respective source material. While Michael J. Fox-starrer is widely considered one of the most entertaining and unorthodox films to come out of the 1980s, van Belkom’s novel, written for a young readership, is fairly straightforward and explores the classical lore about werewolves.
Read More: When and Where does Wolf Pack Take Place?
