Within a seven-year span,Lon Chaney, Jr.played the same werewolf an impressive total of five times. Among the many actors associated withUniversal’s rich library of monster moviesis Lon Chaney, Jr., a talented actor with an extremely deep and impressive filmography. The son ofPhantom of the Operastar Lon Chaney, the actor quickly carved a path for himself in Hollywood as a horror movie star. Much like his father before him, Chaney, Jr. often used heavy makeup for his roles, which were often monsters inclassic horror movies.
Chaney. Jr. was active in the industry for decades, getting his start in the silent era during his youth and finally retiring in the early 1970s. During this time, Chaney, Jr. worked in several mediums and genres, ranging from Western movies to adventure films. However, horror will always be what Lon Chaney Jr. is most closely associated with. Particularly during the 1940s, Chaney, Jr. was a top choice for Universal’s monster films. The studio seemingly discovered that Chaney, Jr. was talented enough to portray a variety of creatures. Interestingly, though, there was one specific monster - the Wolf Man - that the actor continued to revisit.
Universal Brought Lon Chaney Jr.’s The Wolf Man Back 4 Times After His Death In The 1941 Movie
Lon Chaney, Jr. Played Larry Talbot 5 Times Between 1941 & 1948
In addition to creating more exposure for him, the character that made Chaney, Jr. a household name in the 1940s turned out to be a frequent source of work for him. In 1941, Chaney, Jr. starred inThe Wolf Manas Larry Talbot, a man cursed to become the titular monster during a full moon after getting bitten by another werewolf. AsThe Wolf Manwas originally intended to be a standalone horror film, it wrapped up his story with Larry clearly dying at the end. But while the movie definitively killed him off, the studio reversed his death regardless, asThe Wolf Man’ssuccess had made a sequel a no-brainerfor the studio.
InFrankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, the wolfsbane (a weakness to the werewolf) he was buried with was removed from his coffin. This triggered Larry’s revival, allowing him to resume his periodic transformations into the Wolf Man. For this film, his goal was to find a way to die permanently. Ending on a fight that left his fate ambiguous,Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Manset him up for a return in another crossover,House of Frankenstein.In both that movie and its sequel,House of Dracula,Lon Chaney, Jr.’s character strove to free himself of the werewolf curse for good.
Universal found one more use for the original version of the character when it madeAbbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein…
Larry accomplished his goal at the end ofHouse of Dracula, and for a time it seemed that the 1945 film was the end of the Wolf Man saga for Lon Chaney, Jr. And canonically, it was, but Universal found one more use for the original version of the character when it madeAbbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein,which appears to be set in a separate continuity. Given that it also brought back Glenn Strange’s take on Frankenstein’s Monster from the last two crossovers andBela Lugosi’s Dracula, it’s not altogether surprising that it chose to bring back Chaney, Jr. as the Wolf Man as well.
Lon Chaney, Jr. Also Played 3 Other Universal Monsters
He’s The Only Actor To Play All Four Of Universal’s Monster Icons
Partially because of The Wolf Man’s reputation as one of thegreatest werewolf movies of all time, Larry Talbot will always be Lon Chaney, Jr.’s most iconic character, but the werewolf is not the only Universal monster tied to the actor’s name. In fact, Chaney, Jr. is the only actor in cinematic history to have playedall four of Universal’s horror icons. Making this more impressive is the rapid succession in which he took on these roles. Lon Chaney, Jr. played the other three Universal monsters all within his seven-year stint as the Wolf Man.
Universal’s approach to Dracula, the Mummy, and Frankenstein’s Monster differed slightly from the approach it took to Larry Talbot. With the Wolf Man,Universal maintained a sense of continuity by keeping Lon Chaney, Jr. in the role, but would continuously recast the other monsters. Chaney, Jr. was one of the actors chosen to replace Lugosi as Dracula and Boris Karloff as Frankenstein’s Monster and Kharis. He originated the Count Alucard version of Dracula inSon of Draculaand played Frankenstein’s Monster inGhost of Frankenstein.
Want To See Dracula Fight A Werewolf? Watch This Amazing 1948 Horror Movie
If the idea of a monster fight between Count Dracula and a werewolf sounds exciting, look no further than this Universal horror movie from 1948.
Aside from the Wolf Man,The Mummy is the only Universal monster that Chaney. Jr. portrayed more than once.The actor played the titular villain inThe Mummy’s Tomb, and reprised the role twice more inThe Mummy’s GhostandThe Mummy’s Curse. Interestingly, all of these roles preceded Chaney Jr.’s final Larry Talbot appearance inAbbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein.
Another monster for Lon Chaney, Jr.’s acting credits that’s worth mentioning is the titular character ofMan-Made Monster. In the movie, the actor portrayed a man who wound up in an accident that supercharged him with electricity, turning him into a glowing menace that the other characters in the film struggled to stop. Its use of special effects didn’t make a hit out ofMan-Made Monster, but Chaney, Jr.’s role as the character was noteworthy nonetheless, considering that it was what prompted Universal to make him the lead inThe Wolf Man.
Other Notable Actors Who Have Played Larry Talbot
Larry Talbot Has Only Been Accurately Represented A Few Times
With five movies, Lon Chaney. Jr. put his irremovable stamp on Larry Talbot. But though the character began with him in the role, he wasn’t the last actor to play him. Various iterations of Larry Talbot have since materialized over the years, both on the big and small screen. On TV, for instance, he was played by Josh Hartnett inPenny Dreadful.However, only one adaptation thus far - since Chaney, Jr.’s movies - has placed Larry front-and-center of the story, and that was the 2010 remake, directed by Joe Johnston. Benecio del Toro stepped into Lon Chaney, Jr’s shoes to take over the role of Talbot.
The film will remain theonly proper remake ofThe Wolf Manuntil 2025when Universal releases another adaptation of the story. Originally, Ryan Gosling was set to play the classic Lon Chaney, Jr. character, but now that task will be left to Christopher Abbott. The success of that film and its potential for sequels will determine whether another actor can enjoy the same longevity with Larry Talbot thatLon Chaney, Jr.had. But an actor playing a particular werewolf on the big screen five different times is so unusual that it’s a record unlikely to be repeated anytime soon.
