Renfield is not only a highly-anticipated reimagining of the world’s most famous vampire, but it is also apparently a direct sequel to Tod Browning‘s Dracula. During an interview with Collider’s Ross Bonaime, Renfield director Chris McKay explained how his upcoming movie draws from the very first movie in the beloved Universal Monsters universe.
Starring Nicolas Cage as Count Dracula, Renfield promises to approach the classic mythos of the vampire lord through a unique perspective. For starters, the movie’s protagonist is Renfield (Nicholas Hoult), the bug-eating servant of the vampire lord. Then, Renfield also works as a break-up movie, as Renfield tries to end his toxic relationship with Dracula, the worst boss anyone could ever have. As McKay describes his movie:
“I fell in love with the character of Renfield and his relationship with Dracula. Renfield is basically a guy who wants to get out of this bad relationship, and doesn’t know how—he’s been in this relationship for 93 years, and he wants to get out of it. I looked at this as an opportunity, because it has a lot of black comedy in it, there’s a lot of action in it, and there’s a little bit of suspense and drama in it too. So that, to me, seemed like a real fun combination. It’s not something that comes around the table very often. Something that’s obviously still tied to one of the oldest IPs in the world and probably one of the most filmed IPs in the world when you look at it. Dracula’s probably up there with Sherlock Holmes and Hamlet as far as literary characters that you see in movie after movie.”
It’s curious that McKay has chosen to explore Renfield and Dracula’s relationship after 93 years, as it creates a precise connection with 1931’s Dracula, the first classic monster movie ever developed by Universal. That connection is not random, as McKay wanted Renfield to be a direct sequel to the first chapter in the popular Universal Monster franchise. McKay even pushed this idea to Renfield’s marketing team, hoping that they would advertise this unique cinematic achievement. As McKay tells us:
“I kept telling marketing that that’s what we should say, that this is the only direct sequel. I guess you could argue ‘Dracula’s Daughter’ is a sequel because the opening scene is the aftermath of the Tod Browning movie, but Bela Lugosi’s not in it, it’s a whole different set of characters. And it’s a great movie, it’s wild if you haven’t seen it. I thought the movie was great. But to me, this is the only real direct sequel with the Dracula and the Renfield of that movie. So yeah, I wish they’d use that in the marketing. I think that would’ve been a funny way of positioning this movie. The longest time between the original movie and the sequel, beating ‘Psycho,’ or whatever. I guess ‘Avatar’ maybe now, since it feels like a long time since the first one.”
When Is Renfield Coming to Theaters?
Before tackling Renfield, McKay helmed The Lego Batman Movie and The Tomorrow War. McKay directs from a script written by Ryan Ridley (Rick and Morty), based on a treatment by Robert Kirkman (Invincible). That seems like an unlikely combination to create a new Dracula-inspired movie. However, it’s the perfect mix of fun and chaos that such a wacky concept needs. And from what Renfield’s trailer reveals, McKay managed to create something truly special.
Renfield comes to theaters on April 14. Stay tuned for our full interview with McKay.
