In 1981, The Howling clawed its way into cinemas. The Joe Dante-directed horror movie, about a news reporter who finds herself caught amongst a community of werewolves, was a hit with audiences and led to a long-running series of sequels.
But how many Howling movies are there? Answer: Probably more than you might think.
Read on for all the gory details.
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The Howling movies in order

To date, there are eight movies in The Howling series. The Howling movies are as follows:
- The Howling (1981)
- Howling II: Your Sister is a Werewolf (1985)
- Howling III: The Marsupials (1987)
- Howling IV: The Original Nightmare (1988)
- Howling V: The Rebirth (1989)
- Howling VI: The Freaks (1991)
- Howling: New Moon Rising (1995)
- The Howling: Reborn (2011)
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Are all of The Howling movies part of the same series?

The first seven entries in The Howling movie collection, i.e. The Howling through to New Moon Rising, are considered to be part of the same series. For the most part, the films can be viewed as standalone tales, but there are connections amongst the series which link them together.
The Howling: Reborn is not connected to the other movies and is instead a reboot of the series.
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Who are the cast of The Howling films?

Notable cast members in The Howling series include Patrick Macnee, Dee Wallace, Christopher Lee, Reb Brown, Robert Picardo, Barry Otto, Michael T. Weiss, Philip Davis, Bruce Payne, Antonio Fargas, and Deep Roy.
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Is The Howling series the work of the same director?

The Howling movies are the work of multiple directors. Joe Dante directed The Howling, while Philippe Mora directed Howling II and III, and John Hough directed Howling IV.
Neal Sundstrom directed Howling V, Hope Perello directed Howling VI, Clive Turner directed Howling: New Moon Rising, and Joe Nimziki directed The Howling: Reborn.
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Is The Howling movie series an original concept or is it based on an existing property?

The Howling movie series is loosely based on the 1977 novel The Howling, written by Gary Phil Brandner. In his lifetime, Brandner wrote three Howling books, however, only the first was used as inspiration for the movie series.
The Howling novels are as follows:
- The Howling (1977)
- The Howling II (1979)
- The Howling III: Echoes (1985)
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What is regarded as the best entry in the Howling movie series?

The 1981 movie, The Howling is regarded as the strongest entry in the series. According to IMDb, The Howling films are ranked as follows:
- The Howling (1981) – 6.6/10
- Howling V: The Rebirth (1989) – 4.5/10
- Howling VI: The Freaks (1991) – 4.2/10
- The Howling: Reborn (2011) – 4.1/10
- Howling II: Your Sister is a Werewolf (1985) – 3.6/10
- Howling IV: The Original Nightmare (1988) – 3.5/10
- Howling III: The Marsupials (1987) – 3.4/10
- Howling: New Moon Rising (1995) – 1.8/10
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I hope this information about The Howling film series has given you something to sink your teeth into. Should you wish to claw your way through more blood curdling posts, please check out the recommended reads below.
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