Universal has set a date of April 14, 2023 for their highly-anticipated Dracula movie starring Nicolas Cage. Chris McKay is directing the Universal Monsters movie, called Renfield, after Dracula’s manservant who is played by Nicholas Hoult in the film. Awkwafina and Ben Schwartz also star.
Set in the modern day, the film will follow Dracula’s lackey (Hoult) getting sick of serving his vampiric master (Cage) and striking out on his own. In the outside world, Renfield falls for Rebecca Quincy, played by Awkwafina. It reportedly went into production at the start of February and Nicolas Cage has said that he’s been influenced by James Wan’s Malignant in his approach to the character. As if we weren’t excited enough already.
After a failed attempt by Universal to launch a connected ‘Dark Universe’ of monsters including Russell Crowe’s Dr Jekyll, Javier Bardem’s Frankenstein’s Monster and Johnny Depp’s Invisible Man, it changed direction with a new approach. We now have independent directors having their own idiosyncratic takes on the characters, including Leigh Whannell’s Invisible Man (starring Elisabeth Moss) and the upcoming Derek Cianfrance’s Wolfman (starring Ryan Gosling).
The screenplay is by Ryan Ridley, based on an original idea by The Walking Dead and Invincible creator Robert Kirkman.
Nicolas Cage is going through an interesting, and of course, eclectic period in his career at the moment. He received critical acclaim for his revenge drama Pig, he will soon be starring in a Western in which his horse tried to kill him and will also soon be playing himself in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.
If you’re a fan of things that go bump in the night, or swim up from the watery deeps or plants that want to suck your blood, then check out our guide to the best monster movies.