A Marvel Halloween Special Starring Gael Garcia Bernal As Werewolf By Night Is Coming To Disney+

When looking at the current scope of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it's sometimes hard to believe that everything started with Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) building a suit of metal in a cave. In the 13 years since the 2008 release of "Iron Man," more than a few things have changed. From the introduction of intergalactic aliens to battles with interdimensional beings, Kevin Feige and the team of storytellers at Marvel Studios have truly expanded the MCU in some surprising ways, and in doing so, have simultaneously revolutionized the process of comic book movie-making forever. 

In early 2021, Marvel Studios took another big step with the release of their first official Disney+ series, "WandaVision." Throughout the last several months, Marvel has followed up that show's debut with the release of three additional Disney+ series: "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier," "Loki," and "What If...?" Of course, these four Marvel series are only a small fraction of what the House of Mouse has planned for the MCU. For instance, in 2022 alone, Disney+ will be the only place where Marvel fans can stream another four new MCU entries, as well as a "Guardians of the Galaxy" holiday special.

With such expansive plans for the successful streaming platform already in motion, some might be surprised to hear that Marvel is currently setting up yet another new project at Disney+. However, if you've kept your ear to the ground in recent months, you might have already heard something about it.

According to The Wrap, Marvel Studios is currently planning a Halloween special for Disney+ starring actor Gael García Bernal. The project is set to begin production early next year. As is usually the case with Marvel Studios projects, details about the special are hard to come by, but reports suggest that it will focus on a character known as Werewolf by Night. In Marvel lore, two different characters have gone by this name: Jack Russell and, more recently, Jake Gomez. It is not currently known which version of the character Bernal will portray in the special.

Russell first appeared in a 1972 comic called "Marvel Spotlight" #2. In September of that same year, Werewolf by Night got his own comic book series, which successfully ran until 1977 (via Marvel). Notably, the Marvel Comics character known as Moon Knight (who is set to be played by Oscar Isaac in a 2021 Disney+ series) first appeared in a 1975 issue of "Werewolf by Night," before going on to lead his own comic book series (via Marvel). Meanwhile, Jake Gomez, the second character to hold the Werewolf by Night moniker, made his Marvel Comics debut in October 2020.

Bernal most recently appeared on-screen in director M. Night Shyamalan's 2021 film, "Old" (via IMDb). In 2020, The New York Times named the Golden Globe-winning performer one of the "25 Greatest Actors of the 21st Century (So Far)."