Why Theo Raeken’s Absence From The Teen Wolf Movie Is Disappointing
Cody Christian will not be reprising his role as Theo Raeken in Teen Wolf: The Movie, which is disappointing when considering where his character left off at the end of Teen Wolf season 6. Theo Raeken was introduced in Teen Wolf’s fifth season, initially as an ally of Scott McCall’s (Tyler Posey), until it was revealed that he had been out to gain more power of his own all along. After being defeated in season 5, Theo came back in Teen Wolf season 6 and slowly started to make amends with the grudging help of Scott’s beta Liam Dunbar (Dylan Sprayberry). As Theo’s time on Teen Wolf ended with a tease of his redemption still to come, it’s unfortunate that audiences won’t get to see where his character ended up in Teen Wolf: The Movie’s story.
During Teen Wolf’s final season, Theo started to care more, giving Liam advice on how to control his anger, hanging back to fight alongside Liam instead of giving in to his instinct for self-preservation. Most importantly, the Teen Wolf finale saw Theo being able to take away someone’s pain for the first time. What’s significant about this ability is that the shapeshifter in question has to care enough about the person they’re trying to help. Theo, though some might label him a sociopath, was able to take the pain of someone that had previously been trying to kill him, proving once and for all that he was capable of being good, rather than just selfish. As Dylan Sprayberry is one of the returning actors for Teen Wolf: The Movie, it’s a shame that Liam and Theo’s dynamic won’t be revived on screen and that Theo’s relationship with Scott’s pack won’t be explored further following the redemption that was so heavily implied. The Teen Wolf audience will likely never know if Scott’s pack still distrust Theo as much as they did in the show, or whether they’ve now become actual friends. The audience will also never know how Theo’s character has grown after the Teen Wolf movie’s significant time jump. Theo’s absence means that one of Teen Wolf’s most emotionally and morally complex characters won’t get the attention they deserve.
Why Cody Christian Isn’t Returning For The Teen Wolf Movie
The reason Cody Christian wasn’t able to return as Theo Raeken for Teen Wolf: The Movie is because of a scheduling conflict. When the Teen Wolf revival movie was initially announced, Christian posted old photos from the Teen Wolf set on his Instagram with the caption: “Although the full moon and our schedules didn’t align this time, I’m excited to see what’s next in the Teen Wolf universe.” Cody Christian has been busy filming All American for The CW, where he plays the character of Asher Adams. All American is currently airing its fifth season.
Should The Teen Wolf Movie Have Been Delayed To Include More Of The Old Cast?
Considering Cody Christian couldn’t join the Teen Wolf movie because of scheduling conflicts, and Dylan O’Brien, who played the beloved character Stiles Stilinski has stated that he felt the production of Teen Wolf: The Movie was rushed, it might have been worthwhile for the Teen Wolf team to hold out on the revival movie a little longer. Arden Cho, who played Kira Yukimura, isn’t returning either. Cho declined to return because of a pay parity dispute, an understandable decision, but it does beg the question of whether or not taking more time to sort these schedules out would have allowed both Cho and the Teen Wolf team to come to agreeable terms. The Teen Wolf movie will have a hard time escaping Stiles’ shadow especially, but characters like Theo and Kira deserved to be revived as well.
Despite Cody Christian not being able to return as Theo Raeken, the Teen Wolf movie still has plenty of other cast members that were able to join the revival. Most notably returning is Crystal Reed’s Allison Argent, who left the show at the end of Teen Wolf season 3. Teen Wolf: The Movie promises an evil like nothing Scott’s pack has faced before, but it’s still disappointing that some old favorite characters like Theo Raeken won’t be there to help Scott defeat it.
