Teen Wolf: The Movie (2023) Story Recap

Introduction

Helmed by Jeff Davis, the creator of Teen Wolf, Teen Wolf: The Movie is based 15 years after the events of the show. All of the members of Scott’s ‘pack’ have gone their separate ways and left their hometown, Beacon Hills. The movie begins with Liam, our favourite beta working with Hikari, a kitsune in a Japanese restaurant that also acts as a prison for the evil trickster spirit, the Nogitsune.

One day, a hooded man enters the restaurant and hints that he knows that everyone in the restaurant is a supernatural creature. The man under the hood is Harris, the supposedly dead Chemistry teacher from Beacon Hills. He attacks and frees the Nogitsune and in return asks for revenge against Scott and his friends.

The pack returns to Beacon Hills

In Los Angeles, Deaton and Scott run an animal shelter and clinic and occasionally help around town. The first time we see Scott, he does what he does best by rescuing a little girl and her pet dog from a burnt building. He gets her pet checked and as the girl and her family leave, he looks wistful. Deaton suggests that he probably has some sort of longing or regret.

As they lock up to leave, Scott sees the dead Allison knocking on the door and asking for help the same way she had done when they first met. The animals in the shelter start barking as she disappears and Scott runs into Chris Argent, Allison’s father. Deaton and Scott are surprised as Chris says that for the last 2 weeks, he has been seeing and hearing Allison as if she is real.

They think that Allison is caught between life and death and suggest performing a ritual to put her soul at peace. We cut to Lydia who starts hallucinating as well and ends up drawing something cryptic in trance. She and Scott reach Beacon Hills and go to Oak Creek where Allison was killed by the Nogitsune’s Oni and gets flashbacks. They regroup at Scott’s old home with Chris and Jackson who tagged along with Lydia.

She shows them her cryptic drawings and that she needs help because she doesn’t use her banshee powers fully anymore. They ask her why and Jackson suggests it may have something to do with Stiles. Both Chris and Scott are not too happy to see him but he deciphers her drawings and sees that it is the nemeton, the sacred tree where they need to do the ritual.

Derek’s son Eli causes trouble

At Beacon Hills, the pack’s mischievous ways are continued by Derek’s son, Eli as he keeps stealing Stiles’ jeep. Elsewhere, Mason who is now an officer, Sherriff Stilinski and Derek, who is their consultant are at an arsonist’s crime scene. Derek urges the Sherriff to call Stiles but he isn’t willing as his son is busy with the FBI. Mason constantly keeps getting calls about Eli stealing the jeep and Derek goes to stop his son.

At home, Derek is angry with Eli. They argue and end up on the topic of Eli not being able to wolf out. Eli says he cannot turn because he may not be a werewolf in the first place and walks away. Derek tries to reconcile by asking him about the lacrosse game that night and sees that Eli has snuck out.

Parrish returns Stiles’ jeep to the Hale Auto shop which is run by Malia. She greets him by jumping on him and they end up having sex. After they are done, Parrish looks at her sadly and they continue an unfinished conversation about relationships as she says she doesn’t want one. They are interrupted by a message from Lydia and Malia goes to her.

The ritual brings back Allison

As Chris gets ready for the ritual, Deaton comes to Beacon Hills with a Japanese engraved bullet of Chris’ that he finds suspicious. He keeps asking him riddles and as Chris keeps answering, the Nogitsune that had possessed him appears. Deaton throws mountain ash on him and frees Chris from the trickster who flies away.

Malia meets Scott and Lydia and has an awkward reunion as they ask her for help in finding the nemeton. Lydia is happy to see her but it seems that Scott and Malia are seeing each other for the first time since they broke up. They run into Eli who tells them that he sleepwalks and knows where the nemeton is.

Once they find it, Malia sends him packing and they start the ritual. Following a quick storm, nothing happens. As they turn to leave, Allison materializes on the nemeton, unconscious. They are shocked and drive her to the hospital. 

The Nogitsune’s plan begins

At the hospital, while Scott, Lydia, Malia and Melissa wonder what to do, Allison wakes up and runs out. She is disoriented and all she remembers is that she is a werewolf hunter. Scott finds her and tries to stop her from leaving but all she wants is to kill Derek. She sees her father and as Chris calls her, she runs away.

Meanwhile, almost all the officers are called away to another arsonist crime scene. The only officer at the station runs into the Nogitsune who says that he is a kitsune. He steals all 9 of his tails and summons 9 Onis.

At the hospital, the pack is worried about Derek and go to warn him. Meanwhile, Allison goes home and gathers weapons. The Nogitsune appears in the form of her dead mother and goads her to also kill Scott as he is a murderer. He plans to use the Oni to take out Scott’s allies from the board while she concentrates on the winning move i.e., killing Scott.

Lydia and Jackson go to the station and see the dead kitsune officer. At the high school locker room, Derek who had come to cheer helps Eli who twists his ankle at the game. He convinces him to try and heal but at that moment Allison attacks them. Derek fights her off but is shocked to see her. As he tries to run, she puts an arrow threw the side of his throat. Liam, Hikari, Malia and Scott come in time and she runs away. 

At the next arsonist crime scene, the officers figure out that the culprit is not an arsonist but someone who wants something from the multiple fires. The Oni end up attacking them and stabbing Mason who disappears. Parrish goes to the station and the Sherriff goes to the auto shop to warn the rest.

Scott rescues Eli

Derek tells Scott to go after Eli since he can’t heal. Malia corroborates that Eli is a werewolf as he has fangs but is too afraid to turn. They take Derek home where Peter is waiting for them. He turns on a blowtorch and says the only way to save Derek is to burn the wound which will speed up his healing. 

Scott goes after Eli and Melissa tells him to save Allison as well. Eli runs into the shop and hides and Allison follows him. Scott comes in time to rescue Eli and uses his true alpha roar to activate Eli’s transformation which heals his ankle. Scott tells him to go to his dad as he tries to reason with Allison. As Eli runs out, he ends up finding Sherrif.

The pack tries to come up with a plan

Liam and Hikari go to the station to get the Sherrif but find Lydia and Jackson. At Hale’s, Peter stops Chris as he thinks he will aid Allison in killing Eli. But Chris assures him that he knows his daughter is dead and they end up teaming up to find the Allison ‘illusion’ and kill her. Melissa tags along as they go to Hale Auto and find the trail of Allison and Scott. Meanwhile, Hikari and Liam tell Lydia that the hooded man (Harris) has been setting the fires. 

At Hale’s, Derek and Eli have a short-lived reunion as few of the Oni attack. Deaton, Derek, Sherriff and Eli are stabbed. Only the sunlight stops them from taking Malia too as they disappear in the light. The rest go after Liam and Hikari who are out looking for Scott. They are stabbed as well and disappear as they say they love each other.

At the station, Lydia and Jackson are trying to figure out Harris’ plan when Malia and Parrish tell them about the Oni. They go to one of the burn sites while Parrish and Malia collect silver weapons which can kill Oni. Lydia and Jackson realize that the rowan trees turn into mountain ash when burned and that the culprit must know chemistry as they used a special accelerant.

Scott reasons with Allison

In the forest, Scott lets Allison fatally stab him and asks if they can finally talk now that he is a dead man walking. He helps her remember her new motto that she had come up with to protect the weak and she knocks him unconscious. She takes him to a storage room but starts having doubts. The Nogitsune uses Peter and the fact that he had killed her aunt Kate to keep her focused.

Scott wakes up and is worried about Hikari who was also shot by Allison. She tells him that Hikari is a kitsune so wolfsbane won’t hurt her but the Oni will. He tells her that the Oni are the ones that killed her and she doesn’t trust him. He makes a bargain that if she believes him, she will have to save him.

The stadium’s Illusion

We finally are taken to where Eli, Derek and the rest who were stabbed, are imprisoned in the Nogitsune’s Illusion. Hikari tells the prisoners that they won’t die yet as their pain makes the Nogitsune stronger. Liam hears cheering and realizes that the Illusion is next to the field where the lacrosse game is going on. Peter, Chris and Melissa also end up at the stadium and wonder what the Nogitsune is up to.

Lydia calls up Parrish and tells him about the fires and how it is similar to the one that killed Derek’s family which was caused by Kate Argent and Harris. On top of it, the only one who knows how to use the formula is supposed to be dead alluding that Lydia suspects Harris is behind the fires. Meanwhile, Harris encircles the stadium with mountain ash.

Allison saves Scott

At the storehouse, Scott gives Allison a photo of them together at the ice rink. He then tells her about the school dance where he kissed her and told her he loved her. She remembers the events but doesn’t remember Scott. He also tells her about their breakup and she remembers the last thing he had told her.

She tears up and decides to help him. She brings a flare to burn the wound and she remembers Scott holding it when he had been possessed by the Darach. Scott heals and realizes they are in the stadium. 

Change of plans

In the Illusion, the Nogitsune is furious that Scott healed and decides to change up the game. He sends Eli in the middle of the lacrosse match. Scott follows Allison outside as she tries to find her father and he tells her to be careful. She is surprised that he still cares and loves her.

Scott then spots Eli and as they try to leave the stadium they are stopped by the mountain ash barrier. They go to Coach and beg him to make the audience leave as they could die. But Coach explains that the only way for everyone to leave is to win the game. Scott and Eli decide to join the match.

At the outskirts, Lydia and Jackson spot Harris who shoots Jackson. Lydia tries to stop him and he tells her about his revenge as she and the pack had offered him as a sacrifice for the Darach. He takes Lydia to the entrance of the field and shows that it is a portal to the Illusion. Derek and Sherrif are seen talking about Eli’s inability to transform because he had been traumatized when Derek had shifted to save him from a coyote when he was a kid.

Outside, Harris tells Lydia to share her pain for the Nogitsune by threatening Jackson. She tells him about Stiles and the reason she left him was because of a premonition. They are in a car crash and he dies. She says that she left because the car crash will never happen if she isn’t with him. The dream is also why she stopped using her wailing powers

Allison watches the match and finds Scott cute as he messes up. Eli makes the goal and they win the game. At that moment, Peter attacks Allison but Chris poisons him with wolfsbane as he says he always knew she was his daughter. Melissa heals Peter while Chris and Allison hug. But the Illusion takes Allison, Eli and Scott. 

The fight in the Illusion

Malia and Parrish come to the stadium and she tells him to break the barrier with his hellhound fire. Allison and Scott fight the Oni to buy Parrish time to enter the Illusion with silver while Eli goes to free Derek. However, they are outnumbered and almost defeated which prompts Lydia to wail. The wail pushes the Oni out of the Illusion and brings back all of Allison’s memories. 

But the Nogitsune has Eli by the throat while the Oni threaten Melissa, Peter and Chris. Scott surrenders and tells Allison to kill him. She is upset but does as he says and shoots him in the heart. As he falls in his arms, the Oni leave Peter, Melissa and Chris alone while the Nogitsune taunts Scott.

However, it turns out that he was shielded by Hikari’s fox fire and he heals. Allison shoots the Nogitsune in the head while Parrish breaks the barrier. Peter, Melissa, Chris, Mason and Malia enter and start killing the Oni with silver. Meanwhile, Jackson and Lydia disarm Harris in the confusion. Derek and Eli free the rest but the Nogitsune reminds them that Scott had once bitten him and he turns into a werewolf.

He separates Scott, Eli and Derek in another illusion but they free themselves by signaling each other. Eli is thrown off and Parrish comes to burn the Nogitsune. Derek tells Scott to look after Eli as his pack member and throws him off. He holds the Nogitsune down while Parrish’s fire burns them both. Derek turns into a true alpha before he dies.

The aftermath

Everyone returns to the real world and Scott and Allison kiss. Scott then hugs Eli while Allison reunites with Lydia and Jackson. At the funeral, Scott remembers Derek while Sherrif gives Stiles’ jeep to Eli. He tells him that Derek was the one who brought it to Hale Auto and fixed it.

Allison and Scott end up together and run an animal shelter. She feels wistful for having lost out on so much time but he says he doesn’t feel the same way anymore because he has a future with her. They smile and kiss.

Meanwhile, Harris’ prison transport is stopped in the middle of the road. Guards from Eichen House pull him out and take him to their van. He says that he is not dangerous and doesn’t belong in the supernatural mental asylum as he is dragged away. 


What do you think of Teen Wolf: The Movie’s story? Have we missed any crucial details in this recap? Do let us know in the comments below!

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