# Van Helsing: The London Assignment
*Van Helsing: The London Assignment* is a 2004 American animated short film, a direct-to-video prequel to the live-action feature *[Van Helsing](https://www.edgepedia.org/van-helsing-film)* (2004), in which the monster hunter Gabriel Van Helsing travels to Victorian London to pursue the murderous Mr. Hyde.[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0406310/) It runs 33 minutes, was released on DVD on May 11, 2004, and features [Hugh Jackman](https://www.edgepedia.org/hugh-jackman), Robbie Coltrane, David Wenham, and [Alun Armstrong](https://www.edgepedia.org/alun-armstrong) voicing the characters they played in the feature film.[2](https://www.awn.com/news/van-helsing-prequel-sheds-animated-light-dvd)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Format | 33-minute animated direct-to-video prequel to *Van Helsing* (2004)[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0406310/) |
| DVD release | May 11, 2004, Universal Studios Home Video, $14.98, unrated[2](https://www.awn.com/news/van-helsing-prequel-sheds-animated-light-dvd) |
| Director / writers | Sharon Bridgeman (directing debut); screenplay by Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Judith Reeves-Stevens[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0406310/credits/) |
| Voice cast | Hugh Jackman (Gabriel Van Helsing), Robbie Coltrane (Mr. Hyde), David Wenham (Carl), Dwight Schultz (Dr. Jekyll), Alun Armstrong (Cardinal Jinette)[2](https://www.awn.com/news/van-helsing-prequel-sheds-animated-light-dvd) • [4](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/van-helsing-the-london-assignment/cast-and-crew) |
| Animation | Universal Cartoon Studios; first collaboration between Korea's Sunwoo Entertainment and Japan's Production I.G; 2D/3D hybrid[2](https://www.awn.com/news/van-helsing-prequel-sheds-animated-light-dvd) |
| Audience rating | 6.0/10 on IMDb from about 3.7K votes[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0406310/) |
| Technical | Color, Dolby Digital sound, 1.78:1 aspect ratio[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0406310/) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
Van Helsing, a hunter of monsters, arrives in London, where a string of horrific murders with a supernatural character has panicked the city. The killer is Mr. Hyde, the inhuman alter ego of Dr. Jekyll, and the trail leads Van Helsing and the friar-inventor Carl through the city's dark underbelly.[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0406310/) • [5](https://www.netflix.com/title/60036757) Jekyll and Hyde's scheme, as the reviewer Tom Keogh describes it, is to turn the 70-year-old [Queen Victoria](https://www.edgepedia.org/queen-victoria) into a lovelorn girl again.[6](https://videolibrarian.com/reviews/film/van-helsing-the-london-assignment/) The story is set just before the live-action feature begins and, in the words of Animation World Network, "seques right into" the theatrical *Van Helsing*.[2](https://www.awn.com/news/van-helsing-prequel-sheds-animated-light-dvd)
## Production
Universal Home Entertainment Productions created the film as an original animated DVD prequel in the model of *[The Animatrix](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-animatrix)*, designed to lead viewers directly into the theatrical *Van Helsing*, which opened in May 2004.[2](https://www.awn.com/news/van-helsing-prequel-sheds-animated-light-dvd) The feature's director and producer, [Stephen Sommers](https://www.edgepedia.org/stephen-sommers) and Bob Ducsay, served as executive producers on the animated version, and John Kafka produced.[2](https://www.awn.com/news/van-helsing-prequel-sheds-animated-light-dvd) • [3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0406310/credits/) Sharon Bridgeman, previously a storyboard artist, directed; John Van Tongeren composed the music and Ken Solomon edited.[2](https://www.awn.com/news/van-helsing-prequel-sheds-animated-light-dvd) • [3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0406310/credits/)
The animation was produced by Universal Cartoon Studios as the first collaboration between Korea's Sunwoo Entertainment and Japan's Production I.G, in a 2D/3D hybrid style.[2](https://www.awn.com/news/van-helsing-prequel-sheds-animated-light-dvd) Because the two productions were closely linked, several members of the feature cast lent their voices to the animated version.[2](https://www.awn.com/news/van-helsing-prequel-sheds-animated-light-dvd) The supporting voice cast includes [Grey DeLisle](https://www.edgepedia.org/grey-delisle) as the first victim, [John DiMaggio](https://www.edgepedia.org/john-dimaggio) as the coachman, [Roger L. Jackson](https://www.edgepedia.org/roger-l-jackson) as a drunken gentleman, Julia Fletcher as a lady-in-waiting, Tress MacNeille as Queen Victoria, Tara Strong as young Victoria, and James Arnold Taylor as the narrator.[4](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/van-helsing-the-london-assignment/cast-and-crew)
## Release and reception
The DVD was released on May 11, 2004, priced at $14.98 and unrated, with extras including a "Behind the Screams" segment on the feature film, a making-of feature for the *Van Helsing* video game, and "Animatic to Animation," a look at the short's animation process.[2](https://www.awn.com/news/van-helsing-prequel-sheds-animated-light-dvd) • [6](https://videolibrarian.com/reviews/film/van-helsing-the-london-assignment/) Later releases carried different ratings: Netflix lists it as TV-14, and [JustWatch](https://www.edgepedia.org/justwatch) lists PG-13 in the United States.[5](https://www.netflix.com/title/60036757) • [7](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/van-helsing-the-london-assignment)
Reception was mixed. On IMDb the short holds a 6.0/10 rating from about 3.7K votes.[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0406310/) Tom Keogh, reviewing for Video Librarian, called it "exceptionally violent but often compelling," praising the train-car chase sequence and the return of the feature's actors, while judging that the disc existed mainly to drive audiences to theaters.[6](https://videolibrarian.com/reviews/film/van-helsing-the-london-assignment/) A CinemaBlend review dismissed it as a copycat of the animated tie-in trend begun by *The Animatrix*, questioning whether the film had enough hardcore fans to justify a standalone half-hour DVD.[8](https://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/Van-Helsing-London-Assignment-588.html) Some audience reviewers rated the animation and action sequences highly and considered it more competently made than the CGI-heavy live-action film.[9](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/van-helsing-the-london-assignment)
## Place in the Van Helsing franchise
The short is one component of a transmedia expansion of the 2004 film: in addition to the animated prequel, the *Van Helsing* story extended to a standalone comic book, *Van Helsing: From Beneath the Rue Morgue* (Dark Horse, 2004) by Joshua Dysart and Jason Shawn Alexander.[10](https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/106947/1/2017deBruin-Mole%CC%81MPhD.pdf) As of recent checks, the short is not available on any streaming service in the United States and is sold only on DVD.[7](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/van-helsing-the-london-assignment)
## References
1. [Van Helsing: The London Assignment (Video 2004), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0406310/)
2. [Van Helsing Prequel Sheds Animated Light on DVD, Animation World Network (May 11, 2004)](https://www.awn.com/news/van-helsing-prequel-sheds-animated-light-dvd)
3. [Van Helsing: The London Assignment (2004), Cast and Crew, Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0406310/credits/)
4. [Van Helsing: The London Assignment: Full Cast & Crew, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/van-helsing-the-london-assignment/cast-and-crew)
5. [Van Helsing: The London Assignment, Netflix](https://www.netflix.com/title/60036757)
6. [Van Helsing: The London Assignment review by Tom Keogh, Video Librarian (June 29, 2004)](https://videolibrarian.com/reviews/film/van-helsing-the-london-assignment/)
7. [Van Helsing: The London Assignment streaming, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/van-helsing-the-london-assignment)
8. [Van Helsing: The London Assignment review, CinemaBlend](https://www.cinemablend.com/dvds/Van-Helsing-London-Assignment-588.html)
9. [Van Helsing: The London Assignment, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/van-helsing-the-london-assignment)
10. [Megen de Bruin-Molé, Frankenfiction: Monstrous Adaptations and Gothic Histories in Twenty-First-Century Remix Culture, PhD thesis, Cardiff University (2017)](https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/106947/1/2017deBruin-Mole%CC%81MPhD.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Films by genre, form, and subject › Animated and short films › Animated short films and studio cartoon series*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license