Character Relationship Map: Wolfen

Characters

• Dewey Wilson (played by Albert Finney) — protagonist

  A former NYPD captain brought back to investigate the murders of Christopher van der Veer, Pauline van der Veer, and others. Partnered with Rebecca Neff, he follows the evidence from forensic clues to...

• Rebecca Neff (played by Diane Venora) — protagonist

  A criminal psychologist assigned to work with Dewey Wilson on the unusual murder investigation. She accompanies him to the abandoned church, is rescued by him from danger, and later helps him survive...

• Eddie Holt (played by Edward James Olmos) — supporting

  A militant Native activist whom Dewey Wilson previously arrested and later finds working in construction. Holt claims to be a shapeshifter, causing Wilson to suspect him of the murders, but later expl...

• Whittington (played by Gregory Hines) — supporting

  A coroner who discovers non-human hairs on several victims and consults Ferguson about their origin. He later joins Dewey Wilson in a stakeout at the abandoned church, where an animal kills him after...

• Christopher van der Veer (played by Max M. Brown) — supporting

  A high-profile magnate whose development company threatens the abandoned church and surrounding hunting ground. He is murdered in Battery Park alongside Pauline van der Veer and his bodyguard, and the...

• Ferguson (played by Tom Noonan) — supporting

  A zoologist consulted by Whittington after unusual hairs are found on murder victims. He identifies them as belonging to an unknown subspecies of Canis lupus and develops comparisons between wolves an...

• Old Indian (played by Dehl Berti) — supporting

  The leader of the Native group encountered by Dewey Wilson at the Wigwam Bar. He explains that the predators protect their hunting ground and usually target the elderly, sick, or isolated, while also...

• Warren (played by Dick O'Neill) — supporting

  Dewey Wilson’s superior, who becomes involved when the investigation reaches its final crisis. He is cornered with Wilson and Rebecca Neff on Wall Street and is warned to remain perfectly still, but a...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Whittington → Ferguson (Professional Forensic Colleagues) — Their forensic and zoological work establishes the biological clue at the center of the case.

  Whittington discovers non-human hairs on several victims and consults Ferguson, who identifies them as belonging to an unknown Canis lupus subspecies.

• Dewey Wilson → Ferguson (Professional Investigative Collaborator) — Ferguson's zoological findings guide Wilson toward the Wolfen explanation.

  Ferguson identifies the non-human hairs found on the victims, and Wilson follows the animal clues that emerge from Ferguson's research.

• Dewey Wilson → Whittington (Professional Investigative Colleague) — The two cooperate directly in the investigation and surveillance operation.

  Wilson and Whittington stake out the abandoned church together with sniper rifles and sound equipment.

• Dewey Wilson → Warren (Professional Superior And Subordinate) — Warren is Wilson's superior within the police hierarchy.

  Wilson, Neff, and Wilson's superior Warren are cornered by the Wolfen on Wall Street.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Christopher van der Veer → Eddie Holt (Conflict Development Threat) — Van der Veer's development interests represent the urban expansion threatening the territory associated with the Wolfen.

  Van der Veer's development company schedules the abandoned South Bronx church for demolition, while Holt and his friends are connected to the Native c...

• Christopher van der Veer → Dewey Wilson (Narrative Murder Victim And Investigator) — Van der Veer's death initiates Wilson's central investigation.

  After Christopher van der Veer is slain in Battery Park, Wilson is brought back to the force and assigned to solve the murders.

• Eddie Holt → Old Indian (Alliance Group Member) — Holt belongs to the Native group whose collective knowledge helps Wilson understand the threat.

  Holt is drinking with a group of Native people at the Wigwam Bar while the Old Indian leads the group's explanation of the Wolfen.

• Dewey Wilson → Eddie Holt (Conflict Former Arresting Officer) — Their history begins with Wilson's earlier arrest of Holt and develops into a tense investigation.

  Wilson finds Holt working in construction and interrogates him on top of the Manhattan Bridge, having arrested him some years earlier.

• Dewey Wilson → Rebecca Neff (Alliance Investigative Partner) — Wilson and Neff work together as investigative partners under escalating supernatural danger.

  Wilson is partnered with criminal psychologist Rebecca Neff to investigate the murders. They also flee together from the Wolfen and confront the threa...

Story Analysis

A reinstated police captain discovers that a hidden wolf species protects its territory while humanity remains divided by power and class.

Plot Progression

1. Murder Beneath Battery Park — Christopher van der Veer and his bodyguard are murdered, bringing former Captain Dewey Wilson back to the police force. Wilson is partnered with Rebecca Neff and begins questioning the official anarch...
2. The Church Hears Wolves — A homeless man's death at an abandoned church reveals a predator that manipulates sound and darkness. Neff is lured into the bell tower, and Wilson rescues her after hearing a wolf howl.
3. Clues In Fur And Blood — Whittington and Ferguson connect the murders to an unknown wolf subspecies. Wilson questions Eddie Holt while Ferguson's research leads him into a deadly Central Park ambush.
4. The Wolfen Revealed — The church stakeout ends with Whittington's death, while a false terrorist explanation gains official support. At the Wigwam Bar, Holt and the Old Indian reveal that the killers are territorial Wolfen...
5. A Bargain With Predators — The Wolfen attack Wilson, Neff, and Warren on Wall Street, killing Warren when he attempts to flee. In the penthouse, Wilson destroys the construction model to signal that he and Neff are no longer th...