‘The Wildman of Shaggy Creek’: Kid-Friendly Creature Feature

This wonderful coming-of-age adventure and kiddie-monster movie belongs in company of films such as “The Goonies,” “E.T., and “Stand By Me.”

Neighborhood kids, in "The Wild Man of Shaggy Creek." 323 Films/Family Movie Events

Unrated | 1h 16m | Adventure, Thriller, Fantasy, Kids | 2025

The throwback, family friendly monster movie reminiscent of “The Legend of Ochi,” “The Wildman of Shaggy Creek” is director Jesse Edwards sophomore full-length feature, following 2022’s “The Stolen Valley.”

Based on the first book of R.H. Grimly’s “Frightland” series, “Shaggy Creek” is gentle and heartfelt. It contains the nostalgia and small-town mystery of beloved 1980s’ coming-of-age fantasy-cinema adventure and kiddie-monster movies, such as “The Goonies,” “E.T., and “Stand By Me.”

An extremely large footprint in the mud (could it be a Bigfoot?), in "The Wild Man of Shaggy Creek." 323 Films/Family Movie Events

Story

Young Scott’s (Hudson Hensley) family has recently moved. He’s dealing with the typical fears of leaving good friends and being the new kid on the block. He’s also ghosted all his old friends, as he’s too scared to deal with the separation anxiety and anguish involved in telling his friends that he’s moved away.

Scott (Hudson Hensley) faces his fears, in "The Wild Man of Shaggy Creek." 323 Films/Family Movie Events

Exacerbating Scott’s woes exponentially is the alarming local legend about some kind of skunky-smelling Bigfoot creature which just happens to live in the woods behind his house. No matter that his house is a bit of a mansion afforded by his Fortune-500 mom, Charlotte (Allee Sutton Hethcoat), and presided over by his Australian, Mr. Mom-ish dad, the former adventure-athlete Charlie (Josh Futcher). It’s not easy being Scott.

(L–R) Marisa (Taylor Dupuis), Zach (Brycen Patterson), and Brent (David Dupre) confront the new kid, in "The Wild Man of Shaggy Creek." 323 Films/Family Movie Events

Charlotte and Charlie are sympathetic parents, if a bit overly jovial, tease-y, and nudge-nudge-wink-wink-y about their young son’s dating life. If they appear a tad too chill about discovering that Scott snuck into the woods to confront the Wildman of Shaggy Creek, it’s because they don’t believe in such things.

Scott’s archetypal group of bike-riding new friends—the ones immediately responsible for saddling him with the terrifying Wildman rumor—tend more towards goofiness than bullying. Ringleader Zach (Brycen Patterson) however, is a typical bully, but with a bit less of the usual malice.

Zach’s little sister Hailey (Ayla Bullington) is somewhat of a Hogwarts’s Hermione Granger know-it-all, but milder, funnier, and very cute. Her quick-wit soon allows her to steal the whole movie.

Overall

At heart, “The Wildman of Shaggy Creek” is a coming-of-age tale. That Wildman in the woods might, of course, simply be a mirror for Scott’s collective fears.

Hailey (Ayla Bullington) and Scott (Hudson Hensley) go exploring, in "The Wild Man of Shaggy Creek." 323 Films/Family Movie Events

When the Wildman does finally appear, it evokes nostalgia with a nice nod to old-school creature features (it’s not really a monster movie, but don’t tell your kids).

(L–R) Scott (Hudson Hensley), his dad Charlie (Josh Futcher), and his mom Charlotte (Allee Sutton Hethcoat), in "The Wild Man of Shaggy Creek." 323 Films/Family Movie Events

Director Jesse Edwards said about the movie: “This was a moment where the opportunity aligned with the dream: to make movies that matter, that connect us with who we are and who we are meant to be. Movies with redemption, healthy family dynamics, and friends who are willing to make sacrifices to learn how to love each other in the face of the unknown.”

That’s good stuff.

Promotional poster for "The Wild Man of Shaggy Creek." 323 Films/Family Movie Events

‘The Wildman of Shaggy Creek’ Director: Jesse Edwards Starring: Hudson Hensley, Allee Sutton Hethcoat, Josh Futcher, Ayla Bullington Running Time: 1 hour, 16 minutes Release Date: Aug. 1, 2025 Rating: 3 stars out of 5

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