Oscar winner and acting legend Nicolas Cage plays a classic version of Dracula in the latest teaser for the upcoming horror-comedy Renfield. Shared to social media, the new footage begins in glorious black-and-white before launching into the modern antics of The Count. And it’s a thrill to see Cage ham it up as a 1930s-style Dracula and channel the iconic portrayal of Bela Lugosi. You can check out the new teaser for Renfield below.
Seeing Nicolas Cage as the classic literary monster is by far one of the biggest selling points of Renfield, with the actor having declared that it was simply a matter of time before he donned the fangs and cloak. "The concept of Dracula, in itself, is a challenge. It’s been done so many times already. It’s been done very well and it’s also been done not very well,” he said recently. “I certainly admire Christopher Lee and Frank Langella and Bela Lugosi and Gary [Oldman]. But I wanted to see if I could bring something fresh to the character. And I also kind of always knew I had to do it at some point."
Aside from turning to the likes of Bela Lugosi, Hammer Horror icon Christopher Lee, and even his own father for inspiration, Cage has revealed that he will play Dracula as if his desire for blood were “an addiction to alcohol or heroin.” This is the most 'Nic Cage' way to approach playing the horror icon. "More importantly than borrowing from my father, or from Christopher Lee, it’s really about the psyche of the character," Cage explained. "An addiction to blood is not unlike an addiction to alcohol or heroin or sex, so I thought about how that lust can drive someone into darker dimensions."
Renfield Stars Nicholas Hoult as Count Dracula's Lackey
Renfield is a modern monster tale of Dracula’s loyal servant. Nicholas Hoult (Mad Max: Fury Road) stars as R. M. Renfield, the tortured aide to history’s most narcissistic boss, Dracula (Academy Award winner Nicolas Cage). Renfield is forced to procure his master’s prey and do his every bidding, no matter how debased. But now, after centuries of servitude, Renfield is ready to see if there’s a life outside the shadow of The Count. If only he could figure out how to end his co-dependency.
Directed by Chris McKay (The Tomorrow War, The LEGO Batman Movie) from a screenplay by Ryan Ridley (Ghosted, Rick & Morty), and based on an original idea by The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman, Renfield finds Dracula's lackey suddenly finding a new lease on life in modern-day New Orleans after falling in love with a feisty but perennially aggressive traffic cop.
Alongside Nicolas Cage and Nicholas Hoult, Renfield stars Awkwafina (The Farewell, Shang-Chi and the Legend of Ten Rings), Ben Schwartz (Sonic the Hedgehog, The Afterparty), and Adrian Martinez (The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Focus) as well as Shohreh Aghdashloo (House of Sand and Fog, The Expanse), Bess Rous (Ghostbusters), James Moses Black (Lansky), Caroline Williams (Ten Minutes to Midnight), and Brandon Scott Jones (Isn't It Romantic).
Renfield is scheduled to land in theaters on Apr. 14.