Scott McCall (Tyler Posey) returns to the world of Teen Wolf in MTV and MGM’s newly produced movie. As a full moon rises in Beacon Hills, a terrifying and familiar evil has appeared. Wolves are howling once again, summoning the McCall pack that is made up of banshees, werecoyotes, hellhounds, kitsunes, and other shapeshifters. No longer a teenager, alpha Scott McCall tries to gather new allies and reunite his trusted friends to fight back against what could be the most powerful and deadliest enemy they have ever faced, all while confronting their past losses.  

Written by Jeff Davis and directed by Russell Mulcahy, Teen Wolf: the Movie doesn’t necessarily feel like a movie, more of a follow-up to the third season of the show. With Allison Argent (Crystal Reed) back from the dead, Scott and Lydia Martin (Holland Roden) return to Beacon Hills to discover the truth about Allison. Joining them on this task are Chris Argent (JR Bourne), Jackson Whittemore (Colton Haynes) and Dr Alan Deaton (Seth Gilliam).

Teen Wolf: The Movie certainly has the run time of a feature film. With the many plot points, it feels more like an overextended episode with too many plots all fighting to be the focus. From too many characters added into the movie just for the sake of nostalgia, to many plots fighting to be the focus, it is a bit of a mess that lacks direction.

For many fans of the TV series, season 3 of Teen Wolf was probably the strongest of the series. It introduced new creatures such as the nogitsune, kitsune, and werecoyotes. Davis must have recognized this fact as the movie felt more of a follow-up to series 3 than something that could stand on its own. Unfortunately, without Stiles Stilinski (Dylan O’Brien) the movie loses something brilliant that O’Brien brought to the Teen Wolf world that the writers have clearly tried to copy with Allison Argent and quite blatantly, new character Eli Hale (Vince Mattis).

Eli Hale is introduced as Derek Hale’s (Tyler Hoechlin), son, a werewolf who can’t seem to transform, though he does his best in trying to transform into Stiles. Rather than creating a brand-new character, the writers have tried to replace Stiles with an almost identical copy in the form of Eli Hale. From everything down to the hand gestures to the love of a certain jeep, viewers may just question why Davis didn’t allow Mattis to make his own character instead of impersonating a fan favourite. Unfortunately, Mattis doesn’t have the best comedic timing, nor does he deliver the sarcastic and comedic lines as well as O’Brien could, but the writers still tried to force this aspect into the movie.

Just like the rest of the fans of the series, I was excited to watch Teen Wolf: the Movie, but unfortunately, Davis and co didn’t seem to understand that they aren’t writing or producing a TV show anymore. When some scenes of the movie ends, it’s glaringly obvious that this was written for a series instead of a movie. From choppy editing to scenes that feel random and misplaced, Teen Wolf: the Movie may have been better as a series, giving characters such as Liam Dunbar (Dylan Sprayberry) and Hikari (Amy L Workman) more of a leading role, instead of being brushed to the side for the sake of too many plots and plot twists.

Some characters have remained the same, such as Scott and Lydia, who have their own lives outside of Beacon Hills but have remained true to who the original fans had seen in the series, but some characters have altered a little, more noticeably. Derek Hale, now a father, seems softened, no longer hardened by the traumas of his past. While Hoechlin’s acting is perfectly fine, sometimes it felt as if I was watching Clark Kent rather than Derek Hale.

Jackson Whitmore was one of the very few entertaining things about the movie. Colton Haynes has not lost who Jackson Whitmore is, but rather expanded on him. With his ‘I’m better than you’ attitude and funny one-liners, Haynes manages to fill a little bit of the gap that the movie lacked without having Dylan O’Brien, which is something the movie could have used more of. Not only is Jackson unchanged, Coach Finstock (Orny Adams) has brief, but unforgettable appearances in the movies as the Beacon Hills High lacrosse coach, and fans of the series will enjoy his scenes a lot!

Fans of the MTV TV series will be delighted to hear that the movie hasn’t lost the overall feel and aesthetic of the series, but if they were looking for something more or expanded, they may be a little disappointed. From the irregular pacing of the movie to it simply being a continuation of the third season, fans will like the nostalgic feel of the movie.

Jackson Whitmore is the MVC, he is the only one who hasn’t just played the same character but rather developed them. Special mention to the Coach Finstock who is always a delight to see on the screen.

Teen Wolf: the Movie was screened for review and will premiere Thursday, Jan. 26, 2023 exclusively on Paramount Plus.