Last November, it was announced that one of Nicolas Cage’s upcoming movies will see him returning to the world of vampires following his previous outing in 1988’s Vampire’s Kiss. This time around, Cage is playing Count Dracula in Universal Pictures’ Renfield, which is centered on the vampire’s same-named minion, with X-Men star Nicholas Hoult bringing that role to life. Principal photography is underway on Renfield, and we finally know what Cage’s Dracula will look like in the movie.
Rather than donning something similar to the iconic vampire’s “traditional” outfit, i.e. what Bela Lugosi wore in 1931’s Dracula, Cage’s Dracula is rocking a red velvet suit, though he retains the character’s slicked-back hairstyle and pale skin. He’s also wearing some multi-colored rings on and isn’t keen on trimming his nails. We’re already off to a good start with Nicolas Cage’s Dracula standing out from past big screen depictions of author Bram Stoker’s creation, as seen over at People.
Additionally, we also know how Nicholas Hoult’s Renfield will look. In keeping with his usual depictions, Renfield looks like a normal human, but the moment of him that was captured was clearly some kind of bloody affair, as evidenced by the splatter around his face and on his shirt. Whether or not Dracula was present at said affair remains to be seen, although with that amount of blood spilled, it’s probably safe to assume that a vampire was involved in some form or fashion
While Dracula will play an important role in Renfield, after nearly a century of grabbing the cinematic spotlight for himself, this time around, it’s his henchman who gets to shine. The upcoming comedy movie sees Nicholas Hoult’s Renfield leaving Dracula’s side and falling in love with a feisty traffic cop named Rebecca Quincy, played by Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings star Awkwafina. The Renfield cast also includes Ben Schwartz, Adrian Martinez, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Bess Rouss, James Moses Black and Caroline Williams. The Tomorrow War’s Chris McKay is directing the movie, and Ryan Ridley wrote the script that’s based off the story from The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman.
Since we’re still over a year away from Renfield’s release, it’ll be a while until we get a sampling of Nicolas Cage’s Dracula performance to go along with the image of him now in our heads. That being said, back in January, Cage said that he’s looking for his Dracula to “pop in a unique way,” and the 2021 horror movie Malignant is inspiring his movement for the character. Hopefully the first Renfield trailer will arrive before the year is over to get a better idea of what kind of craziness this version of Dracula will deliver.
Renfield opens in theaters on April 14, 2023, but for those of you craving new Nicolas Cage content before then, his next movie, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, comes out on April 22. Pedro Pascal, his costar on that feature, described The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent as “really fucking funny,” and I’m hoping Renfield will be the same.
