It clawed its way to the top. The horror fantasy “Wolf Man” was No. 1 at the box office on its opening day Friday, raking in $4.5 million, according to The Numbers. The flick, a reboot of 1941’s “The Wolf Man,” which was deemed a “dark and toothless January mess,” by IndieWire, is expected to take in $12 million through Monday.

"Wolf Man," starring Juila Garner and Christopher Abbott tries a new spin on the classic werewolf movie. Lee Whannell co-wrote and directed the film.

This weekend sees the latest in a new generation of “Universal Monster” movies with Wolf Man. Director Leigh Whannell previously struck gold with his adaptation of The Invisible Man and while his new film isn’t receiving quite the response from critics, it’s still poised to be a solid hit, thanks to a less than blockbuster budget.

Leigh Whannell returns to the Universal vein with Wolf Man, shooting this werewolf tale full of modern anxiety.

Leigh Whannell's new "Wolf Man" film stars Christopher Abbott and Julia Garner, and it's filled with twists and turns.

A ccording to an old parable, we all hold two wolves within. We must feed the good wolf in order to build its strength. Then there’s the werewolf. It lives within as well. And when he comes out to play, bringing humanity’s suppressed animalism to the surface, you can bet there’s a bad moon rising.

Unfortunately for Blake, he spots a familiar tattoo on the werewolf's arm, revealing that the werewolf was his father. This tragic reveal is a callback and a reversal of the ending of The Wolf Man.

The writer-director was partially inspired by a close friend who died of ALS, but ultimatley lost a scene involving the affliction: "That's definitely one that hurt when I took it out."

Wolf Man stars Julia Garner and Christopher Abbott join producer Beatriz Sequeira and writer/director Leigh Whannell to discuss how they reimagined the iconic werewolf tale and the essentials of telling a good werewolf story.

The Keke Palmer buddy comedy “One of Them Days” has opened in first place on the North American box office charts on a particularly slow Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend

There’s good news at the MLK weekend box office for films like Sony’s new buddy comedy “One of Them Days” as well as more milestones for Christmas holdovers “Mufasa” and “Sonic the Hedgehog 3,” but this holiday period is proving to be a weak one for theaters.