The director of atmospheric chillers The Witch and Nosferatu warns that Werwulf is the darkest movie he’s written to date, and you can get a taste of the primal experience by watching the new official trailer below. In addition to the new trailer, Focus Features has launched the Werwulf Alternate Reality Game this weekend. You’ll find it over on DevourethAllMankynde.com.

Get fully immersed into the world of Werwulf with an alternate reality game that is timed to each of the full moons between September through November and culminates in a mysterious prize for those that complete all three moons each full moon. You will need to seek out a hidden “sign” on various digital platforms and decipher the sign back into the site in order to fulfill the moon.

The catch is, you only get 24 hours each full moon to search for the sign before it disappears so you’ll need to work fast to find it!

Here’s the first clue…

. .

— Werwulf (@werwulfmovie) September 26, 2026

Set in 13th century England, Werwulf sees a mysterious creature stalk the land as local folklore becomes a terrifying reality. The film hits theaters on December 25 via Focus Features.

Here’s the logline: “Witness Robert Eggers’ most visceral and haunting experience yet. Focus Features presents Werwulf, a harrowing tale of devotion, damnation and the devil within.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Nosferatu), Lily-Rose Depp (Nosferatu), Willem Dafoe (The Lighthouse), Ralph Ineson (The Witch), and Bodhi Rae Breathnach (Hamnet) star.

The post ‘Werwulf’ – Watch the New Trailer for Primal Nightmare from Director Robert Eggers appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

While the teaser doesn’t contain any new footage from the movie itself, it does end up with a gnarly werewolf howl and also comes with a promise: the official trailer is coming TOMORROW!

Check out the teaser below and come on back for the new trailer tomorrow, September 26.

Set in 13th century England, Werwulf sees a mysterious creature stalk the land as local folklore becomes a terrifying reality. The film hits theaters on December 25 via Focus Features.

Here’s the logline: “Witness Robert Eggers’ most visceral and haunting experience yet. Focus Features presents Werwulf, a harrowing tale of devotion, damnation and the devil within.”

Eggers recently teased, “It’s the darkest thing I’ve ever written. By far.”

Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Nosferatu), Lily-Rose Depp (Nosferatu), Willem Dafoe (The Lighthouse), Ralph Ineson (The Witch), and Bodhi Rae Breathnach (Hamnet) star.

New trailer for WERWULF arrives TOMORROW.

From director Robert Eggers.

In theaters December 25. pic.twitter.com/zAUo5IExLX

— Bloody Disgusting (@BDisgusting) September 25, 2026

The post Robert Eggers’ ‘Werwulf’ Trailer Will Be Unleashed Tomorrow; New Teaser Howls at the Moon appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Presented by MUBI and programmed and produced in partnership with the American Cinematheque, Beyond Fest returns to the Egyptian Theatre, the MUBI Theatre at the Aero, Directors Village, and the MUBI Theatre at the Los Feliz 3, with all ticket sales going to the 501(c)(3) non-profit film institution.

The festival will run from September 23 to October 6, 2026.

“Beyond Fest has always existed to erase the false borders between arthouse and grindhouse, the brand new and the gloriously rediscovered,” said Evrim Ersoy, Beyond Fest Head of Programming. “This year’s programme is a maximalist celebration of Cinema in every form: major artists, new voices, impossible repertory events and the kind of shared theatrical experiences that can only happen in Los Angeles.”

A24’s Primetime will open the fest, and Robert Eggers joins in person to take command of the Egyptian Theatre for a day-long celebration of his decade of decadence as we prepare for his newest nightmare, Werwulf. That means that attendees will get a first look at exclusive material from the film. Other highlights include Lionsgate’s Beware Boiúna, Ken Russell’s The Devils, Pathetic Fallacy in 35mm, Begotten in 4K, and so much more.

See below for the full lineup of newly announced feature film titles for Beyond Fest 2026. Tickets will be on sale via americancinematheque.com on Thursday, September 10th at 10:00 am PT. Visit beyondfest.com and americancinematheque.com for details.

BEYOND FEST 2026 PROGRAM:

EGYPTIAN THEATRE

BEWARE BOIÚNA
West Coast Premiere
Director: Mike P. Nelson
Country: United States
Runtime: TBA
Year: 2026
Distributor: Lionsgate
Guests: Jessica Rothe

BEGOTTEN
West Coast Premiere of the 4K Restoration
Director: E. Elias Merhige
Country: United States
Runtime: 78 minutes
Year: 1989
Distributor: Kino Lorber
Guests: E. Elias Merhige

THE WITCH
Repertory Screening
Director: Robert Eggers
Country: United States / Canada / United Kingdom
Runtime: 92 minutes
Year: 2015
Distributor: A24
Guests:

THE LIGHTHOUSE
Repertory Screening
Director: Robert Eggers
Country: United States / Canada
Runtime: 110 minutes
Year: 2019
Distributor: A24
Guests:

THE NORTHMAN
Repertory Screening
Director: Robert Eggers
Country: United States
Runtime: 137 minutes
Year: 2022
Distributor: Focus Features
Guests: Director Robert Eggers

NOSFERATU
Repertory Screening
Director: Robert Eggers
Country: United States
Runtime: 132 minutes
Year: 2024
Distributor: Focus Features
Guests: Director Robert Eggers

HOFFA
70mm Repertory Screening
Director: Danny DeVito
Country: United States
Runtime: 140 minutes
Year: 1992
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
Guests: Director Danny DeVito

ROGUE TROOPER
U.S. Premiere
Director: Duncan Jones
Country: United Kingdom / United States
Runtime: 125 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Duncan Jones, Actor Matt Berry, Producer Stuart Fenegan

DRAG
West Coast Premiere
Directors: Raviv Ullman and Greg Yagolnitzer
Country: United States
Runtime: 86 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: Briarcliff Entertainment
Guests: Directors Raviv Ullman and Greg Yagolnitzer, Lucy DeVito, Danny DeVito, Greg DeVito

INVENTION 13 + HAUSU
World Premiere
Directors: TBA / Nobuhiko Obayashi
Country: United States / Japan
Runtime: 15 minutes + 88 minutes
Year: 2026 / 1977
Distributor: Janus Films (HAUSU)
Guests: Director Conor Oberst

UNBREAKABLE
Repertory Screening
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Country: United States
Runtime: 106 minutes
Year: 2000
Distributor: Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
Guests:

SPLIT
Repertory Screening
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Country: United States
Runtime: 117 minutes
Year: 2016
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Guests:

GLASS
Repertory Screening
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Country: United States
Runtime: 129 minutes
Year: 2019
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Guests: Director M. Night Shyamalan

SIGNS
Repertory Screening
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Country: United States
Runtime: 106 minutes
Year: 2002
Distributor: Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
Guests:

KNOCK AT THE CABIN
Repertory Screening
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Country: United States
Runtime: 100 minutes
Year: 2023
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Guests: Director M. Night Shyamalan

THE VISIT
Repertory Screening
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Country: United States
Runtime: 94 minutes
Year: 2015
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Guests:

TRAP
Repertory Screening
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Country: United States
Runtime: 105 minutes
Year: 2024
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Guests: Director M. Night Shyamalan

THE SIXTH SENSE
Repertory Screening
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Country: United States
Runtime: 107 minutes
Year: 1999
Distributor: Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
Guests: Director M. Night Shyamalan

V/H/S/MIXTAPE
World Premiere
Directors: RZA, Flying Lotus, Ernest Dickerson, Tobias Forge, David Moreau, Renee Zhan
Country: United States
Runtime: Approximately 98 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: Shudder
Guests:

RIVER
West Coast Premiere
Director: Joshua Giuliano
Country: United States
Runtime: 92 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: Shudder
Guests: Director Joshua Giuliano

SATURDAY AFTERNOON KUNG-FU THEATER – ‘BORN INVINCIBLE’
World Premiere
Director: RZA
Country: United States
Runtime: 40 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director RZA

MASTER OF THE FLYING GUILLOTINE
World Premiere of the 4K Restoration – Special Introduction by RZA
Director: Jimmy Wang Yu
Country: Taiwan / Hong Kong
Runtime: 93 minutes
Year: 1976
Distributor: Severin Films
Guests: RZA

CRYSTAL LAKE
Special Screening
Director: Michael Lennox
Country: United States
Runtime: 108 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: Peacock
Guests: Brad Caleb Kane

FRIDAY THE 13TH
Repertory Screening
Director: Sean S. Cunningham
Country: United States
Runtime: 95 minutes
Year: 1980
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Guests:

DAVID J’S GRAND GUIGNOL SILENT SHORTS
Repertory Screening – Live Score
Directors: Various
Country: France, United States, UK
Runtime: 120 min
Year: 1898 – 1921
Distributor: Severin Films
Guests:

RUMBLE IN THE BRONX
Theatrical Premiere of the 4K Restoration
Director: Stanley Tong
Country: Hong Kong
Runtime: 85 minutes
Year: 1995
Distributor: Warner Bros
Guests: Special introduction by Bob Odenkirk

VICTORIAN PSYCHO
West Coast Premiere
Director: Zachary Wigon
Country: United Kingdom / Ireland
Runtime: 90 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: Bleecker Street
Guests: Director Zachary Wigon, Thomasin McKenzie

THE HOST
World Premiere of the 4K Restoration
Director: Bong Joon Ho
Country: South Korea
Runtime: 119 minutes
Year: 2006
Distributor: Magnolia Pictures
Guests:

GREEN ROOM
10th Anniversary Screening
Director: Jeremy Saulnier
Country: United States
Runtime: 95 minutes
Year: 2015
Distributor: A24
Guests: Director Jeremy Saulnier

TOO LATE
10th Anniversary Screening
Director: Dennis Hauck
Country: United States
Runtime: 107 minutes
Year: 2015
Distributor: Antenna Releasing
Guests: Director Dennis Hauck, John Hawkes

WILD AT HEART
North American Premiere of 4K Restoration
Director: David Lynch
Country: United States
Runtime: 124 minutes
Year: 1990
Distributor:
Guests:

MULHOLLAND DRIVE
Repertory Screening co-presented by Rucking Fotten
Director: David Lynch
Country: United States / France
Runtime: 147 minutes
Year: 2001
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Guests:

KEN RUSSELL’S THE DEVILS
West Coast Premiere of the 4K Restoration of Director’s Cut – 35MM Screening
Director: Ken Russell
Country: United Kingdom
Runtime: TBA
Year: 1971
Distributor: Warner Bros. Clockwork
Guests:

MUBI THEATRE AT THE AERO

YOUR MOTHER YOUR MOTHER YOUR MOTHER
West Coast Premiere
Director: Bassam Tariq
Country: United States
Runtime: 112 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: Orion Pictures / Amazon MGM Studios
Guests:

HALF
West Coast Premiere
Director: Samjad
Country: India
Runtime: 110 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests:

SENDER
West Coast Premiere
Director: Russell Goldman
Country: United States
Runtime: 94 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Russell Goldman, David Dastmalchian, Rhea Seehorn, Jamie Lee Curtis

A TALENT FOR MURDER
West Coast Premiere
Director: Anton Corbijn
Country: United Kingdom / Italy
Runtime: 106 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: Bleecker Street
Guests:

SHE KEEPS ME YOUNG
West Coast Premiere
Director: Doron Max Hagay
Country: United States
Runtime: 91 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Doron Max Hagay

MUSK
West Coast Premiere
Director: Alex Gibney
Country: United States
Runtime: 235 min
Year: 2026
Distributor: Bleecker Street

CARRIE
West Coast Premiere
Director: Mike Flanagan
Country: United States
Runtime: 101 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: Prime Video
Guests: Director Mike Flanagan, Samantha Sloyan

DON’T BREATHE
10th Anniversary Screening
Director: Fede Álvarez
Country: United States
Runtime: 88 minutes
Year: 2016
Distributor: Screen Gems
Guests: Director Fede Álvarez, Rodo Sayagues, Stephen Lang, Danny Zovatto, Dylan Minnette

THE SAMURAI AND THE PRISONER
International Premiere of the Black-and-White Edition
Director: Kiyoshi Kurosawa
Country: Japan
Runtime: 147 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: Janus Films
Guests:

LOOK BACK
U.S. Premiere
Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda
Country: Japan
Runtime: 100 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: GKIDS
Guests:

HOT DOGS FOR GAUGUIN
Special Screening
Director: Martin Brest
Country: United States
Runtime: 22 minutes
Year: 1972
Distributor:
Guests: Director Martin Brest, Danny DeVito

BEVERLY HILLS COP
Special Screening
Director: Martin Brest
Country: United States
Runtime: 105 minutes
Year: 1984
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Guests: Director Martin Brest

DRIFTER
U.S. Premiere
Director: Sung Kang
Country: United States
Runtime: 120 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Sung Kang

CRASH LAND
West Coast Premiere
Director: Dempsey Bryk
Country: Canada
Runtime: 90 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Dempsey Bryk, Gabriel LaBelle, Billy Bryk, Julian Geneen

THE CYCLE
West Coast Premiere
Director: Jordan Downey
Country: United States
Runtime: 111 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: Shudder
Guests: Director Jordan Downey, Kevin Stewart, Trevor Newlin, Patrick McGee

MINOTAUR
West Coast Premiere
Director: Andrey Zvyagintsev
Country: France / Germany / Latvia
Runtime: 135 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: MUBI
Guests:

CAMPEÓN GABACHO
West Coast Premiere
Director: Jonás Cuarón
Country: Mexico
Runtime: 108 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: Janus Films
Guests: Jonás Cuarón

PATHETIC FALLACY
West Coast Premiere
Director: Adam Egypt Mortimer
Country: United States
Runtime: 98 mins
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Adam Egypt Mortimer, Kid Cudi, Jessica Rothe

THE SWALLOW
West Coast Premiere
Director: Kevin Kölsch & Dennis Widmyer
Country: United States
Runtime: 82 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Directors Kevin Kölsch & Dennis Widmyer

DONNIE DARKO
25th Anniversary Screening
Director: Richard Kelly
Country: United States
Runtime: 113 minutes
Year: 2001
Distributor: Newmarket Films
Guests: Director Richard Kelly, James Duvall, 

TEENAGE SEX AND DEATH AT CAMP MIASMA
World Premiere of the “VHS Edition”
Director: Jane Schoenbrun
Country: United States / Canada
Runtime: 112 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: MUBI
Guests:

UNIVERSAL SOLDIER
Repertory Screening
Director: Roland Emmerich
Country: United States
Runtime: 102 minutes
Year: 1992
Distributor: TriStar Pictures
Guests:

DOLPH: UNBREAKABLE
Director: Andrew Holmes
Country: Canada
Runtime: 78 minutes
Year: 2025
Distributor: Upstream Flix
Guests: Dolph Lundgren

PAPER TIGER
West Coast Premiere
Director/Writer: James Gray
Country: United States
Runtime: 115 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: NEON
Guests: Writer/Director James Gray

LITTLE ODESSA
Repertory Screening
Director/Writer :James Gray
Country: United States
Runtime: 98 minutes
Year: 1994
Distributor:
Guests: Writer/Director James Gray

THE ’BURBS
Repertory Screening
Director: Joe Dante
Country: United States
Runtime: 101 minutes
Year: 1989
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Guests: Bruce Dern

SILENT RUNNING
Repertory Screening
Director: Douglas Trumbull
Country: United States
Runtime: 89 minutes
Year: 1972
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Guests: Bruce Dern

THE DRIVER
Repertory Screening
Director: Walter Hill
Country: United States
Runtime: 91 minutes
Year: 1978
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
Guests: Bruce Dern

DERNSIE: THE AMAZING LIFE OF BRUCE DERN
U.S. Premiere
Director: Mike Mendez
Country: United States
Runtime: 111 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Mike Mendez, Bruce Dern

WICKER
West Coast Premiere
Directors: Alex Huston Fischer and Eleanor Wilson
Country: United Kingdom / United States
Runtime: 105 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: Black Bear
Guests: Director Alex Huston Fischer, Director Eleanor Wilson

KEN RUSSELL’S THE DEVILS
West Coast Premiere of the 4K Restoration – 35MM Screening
Director: Ken Russell
Country: United Kingdom
Runtime: TBA
Year: 1971
Distributor: Warner Bros. Clockwork
Guests:

DIRECTORS VILLAGE

PRIMETIME
West Coast Premiere
Director: Lance Oppenheim
Country: United States
Runtime: 110 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: A24
Guests: Director Lance Oppenheim

SCENT OF A WOMAN
Repertory Screening
Director: Martin Brest
Country: United States
Runtime: 156 minutes
Year: 1992
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Guests: Director Martin Brest, Al Pacino

MIAMI VICE: DIRECTOR’S FINAL CUT
20th Anniversary Screening – World Premiere of Michael Mann’s New Cut in 4K
Director: Michael Mann
Country: United States
Runtime: TBA
Year: 2006
Distributor:
Guests: Director Michael Mann

MUBI THEATRE AT LOS FELIZ 3

THE SPIRAL
West Coast Premiere
Director: Paolo Strippoli
Country: Italy / France / Belgium
Runtime: 115 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Paolo Strippoli

THE GOODBYE KISS
World Premiere of 4K Restoration
Director: Michele Soavi
Country: Italy
Runtime: 107 min
Year: 2006
Distributor: Severin Films

HALLOWARRIOR
West Coast Premiere
Director: Ben Sottak
Country: United States
Runtime: 80 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor: Shudder
Guests: Director Ben Sottak

SUNDOWN
North American Premiere
Director: Rebekah McKendry
Country: Canada
Runtime: 80 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Rebekah McKendry

SUNDAY PRINT EDITION –
Director: TBA
Country: TBA
Runtime: TBA
Year: TBA
Distributor:
Guests:

ITHAQUA
North American Premiere
Director: Casey Walker
Country: Canada
Runtime: 110 min
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Casey Walker

WELCOME TO G-TOWN
North American Premiere
Directors: Nathan McQuaid and Ben McQuaid
Country: United Kingdom
Runtime: 85 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Nathan McQuaid, Director Ben McQuaid, Dylan Antscherl

IMPOSTERS
West Coast Premiere
Director: Caleb Phillips
Country: United States
Runtime: 102 min
Year: 2026
Distributor: Brainstorm Media
Guests: Director Caleb Phillips, Thomas Bond, Jessica Rothe

UPIRO
West Coast Premiere
Director: Óscar Martín
Country: Spain
Runtime: 106 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Óscar Martín, Elena Muñoz

ADULT SUPERVISION
West Coast Premiere – Co-Presented with Killer Movies with Josh Miller
Director: Alex Schulman
Country: Sweden
Runtime: 108 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests:

IN THIS DARKNESS I SEE YOU
World Premiere
Director: Nadim Tabet
Country: Lebanon / France / Saudi Arabia / Qatar
Runtime: 85
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests:

TEN WILL
Special Screening
Director: Max DeFalco
Country: United States
Runtime: 74 min
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Max DeFalco

ANCHORS AWEIGH
West Coast Premiere
Director: Matt Barats
Country: United States
Runtime: 71 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Matt Barats

ERIE
World Premiere
Director: Alison Eve-Hammersly
Country: United States
Runtime: 89 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:

KINKI
West Coast Premiere
Director: Koji Shiraishi
Country: Japan
Runtime: 104 minutes
Year: 2025
Distributor:
Guests:

THE DARK GETS IN
World Premiere
Director: Sean Hogan
Country: UK
Runtime: 91 min
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Sean Hogan

HINTER
World Premiere
Director: Britt Falardeau
Country: United States
Runtime: 102 min
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests:

THE PERIL AT PINCER POINT
West Coast Premiere
Directors: Noah Stratton-Twine and Jake Kuhn
Country: United Kingdom
Runtime: 83 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Noah Stratton-Twine, director Jake Kuhn

UNDER THE SHADOW
10th Anniversary Screening
Director: Babak Anvari
Country: United Kingdom / Jordan / Qatar
Runtime: 84 minutes
Year: 2016
Distributor: Vertical Entertainment / XYZ Films
Guests: Narges Rashidi

CROWLEY
World Premiere of Restoration
Director: Ricardo Islas
Country: Uruguay
Runtime: 74 min
Year: 1987
Distributor: Terror Vision
Guests:

SUNDAY 35MM EDITION – HOLIDAY
Director: George Cukor
Country: United States
Runtime: 95 min
Year: 1938
Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Guests: Isabel Sandoval

MOONGLOW
West Coast Premiere
Director: Isabel Sandoval
Country: Philippines / Taiwan / Japan
Runtime: 120 minutes
Year: 2026
Distributor:
Guests: Director Isabel Sandoval

MISSION
U.S. Premiere
Director: Paul Wright
Country: United Kingdom
Runtime: 87 minutes
Year: 2026

The post Beyond Fest 2026 Announces Massive Lineup That Includes ‘Beware Boiúna’, ‘Victorian Psycho’, And More appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The poster comes with a brand new tagline: “Devoureth All Mankynde.”

Check out the new poster for Werwulf below, which gives us a sneak peek at the movie’s werewolf and comes bathed in a perfectly atmospheric classic black & white horror feel.

“We shot on 35mm film, and we used an orthochromatic treatment in post to make the skin tones more wrecked [with complexions that appear sickly or discolored]. Additionally, we’ve found a way to incorporate the grain structure of black-and-white film onto color film. So it has a very unique look.” Robert Eggers recently explained to Esquire.

Set in 13th century England, Werwulf sees a mysterious creature stalk the land as local folklore becomes a terrifying reality. The film hits theaters on December 25 via Focus Features.

Here’s the logline: “Witness Robert Eggers’ most visceral and haunting experience yet. Focus Features presents Werwulf, a harrowing tale of devotion, damnation and the devil within.”

Eggers recently teased, “It’s the darkest thing I’ve ever written. By far.”

Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Nosferatu), Lily-Rose Depp (Nosferatu), Willem Dafoe (The Lighthouse), Ralph Ineson (The Witch), and Bodhi Rae Breathnach (Hamnet) star.

The post ‘Werwulf’ – Official Poster for Robert Eggers’ New Nightmare Is One of the Most Striking We’ve Seen in Years appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Set in 13th-century England, Werwulf sees a mysterious creature stalk the land as local folklore becomes a terrifying reality. The film hits theaters on December 25 via Focus Features.

Eggers directs from a script he penned with his The Northman co-writer Sjón.

It’s not just our first glimpse at the medieval werewolf tale, it’s also a first look at Eggers’ unique visual approach. “We shot on 35mm film, and we used an orthochromatic treatment in post to make the skin tones more wrecked [with complexions that appear sickly or discolored]. Additionally, we’ve found a way to incorporate the grain structure of black-and-white film onto color film. So it has a very unique look.” Eggers recently told Esquire.

Eggers also noted that Taylor-Johnson spent time with a real wolf, studying its behavior for his cursed portrayal.

The filmmaker also recently teased, “It’s the darkest thing I’ve ever written. By far.”

That certainly seems to be the case with the new trailer.

Lily-Rose Depp (Nosferatu), Willem Dafoe (The Lighthouse), Ralph Ineson (The Witch), and Bodhi Rae Breathnach (Hamnet) also star.

Werwolf will also reunite Eggers with frequent collaborator Craig Lathrop, the production designer on all his previous works.

Like Eggers’ previous effort, Nosferatu, this bloody horror tale arrives in theaters on Christmas Day.

The post Aaron Taylor-Johnson Undergoes Bestial Transformation in First ‘Werwulf’ Trailer appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Here’s the logline: “Witness Robert Eggers’ most visceral and haunting experience yet. Focus Features presents Werwulf, a harrowing tale of devotion, damnation and the devil within.”

Additionally, Eggers has revealed some exciting details in a chat with Esquire today. Of particular note, don’t expect to see classic werewolf movie cliches in Eggers’ Werwulf.

“The cool thing about going back into the past is that you can kind of hit a reset button,” Eggers explains. “So all the clichés of being bitten by a werewolf and silver bullets and a lot of the stuff that has become almost campy doesn’t exist in the mythology of this movie.”

Eggers continues that thought, “So you don’t need to have seen Lon Chaney Jr.’s The Wolf Man or An American Werewolf in London to get what’s going on here.”

Instead, Eggers’ inspirations dig back much further than those classic tales.

He explains, “I learned that basically because of protections for the wool trade, there was a big effort to get rid of all the wolves in England. It was pretty successful. So the movie takes place around 1300, and that’s as late as it could be because once there were no wolves in England, there was no more werewolf lore in England.”

“That became interesting, that it was going to be set so medieval,” Eggers adds.

Set in 13th century England, Werwulf sees a mysterious creature stalk the land as local folklore becomes a terrifying reality. The film hits theaters on December 25 via Focus Features.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Nosferatu), Lily-Rose Depp (Nosferatu), Willem Dafoe (The Lighthouse), Ralph Ineson (The Witch), and Bodhi Rae Breathnach (Hamnet) star.

The post ‘Werwulf’ Official Synopsis – Robert Eggers Throwing Modern Werewolf Cliches Out the Window appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Check out your first look at Aaron Taylor-Johnson in Werwulf below.

Robert Eggers tells Esquire of Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s leading character, “He’s a farmer. He’s a man who is cursed. It’s a story about a man who is cursed and is trying to find salvation through love. He’s a character who is haunted and in great pain.

“It’s a really brutal, unforgiving, merciless, grotesque world. More than ever, it’s mud and blood and dung and rain and pain and suffering. Aaron’s performance is incredibly harrowing.”

Set in 13th century England, Werwulf sees a mysterious creature stalk the land as local folklore becomes a terrifying reality. The film hits theaters on December 25 via Focus Features.

Robert Eggers recently teased, “It’s the darkest thing I’ve ever written. By far.”

“I promise you, Werwulf is on a whole other level,” Focus Features’ Peter Kujawski told Letterboxd. “No one has seen a movie that looks or feels like this movie does.”

Eggers directs from a script he penned with his The Northman co-writer Sjón.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Nosferatu), Lily-Rose Depp (Nosferatu), Willem Dafoe (The Lighthouse), Ralph Ineson (The Witch), and Bodhi Rae Breathnach (Hamnet) star.

The post ‘Werwulf’ – First Look at Aaron Taylor-Johnson in Robert Eggers Werewolf Movie appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Focus Features chairman Peter Kujawski sat down for a new interview with Letterboxd, and he promises that Robert Eggers’ next horror movie is “on a whole other level.”

“I promise you, Werwulf is on a whole other level,” Kujawski teases. “No one has seen a movie that looks or feels like this movie does.”

“To deliver the scares that this movie does, but also deliver a really, really intimate portrait of the experience of a werewolf—the emotional experience of a man going through that curse. It’s not just a plot device for Rob. It is a question of the foundational nature of man in the world,” Kujawski continues. “That monsters can exist, and the horror of living is so felt and present in this movie, that I really think audiences are gonna respond on a whole other level when they discover what he’s made.

“Like all of his films, this has high-level terror and anxiety, but it’s done in a way that gives you these weird shafts of light and hope.”

Set in 13th century England, Werwulf sees a mysterious creature stalk the land as local folklore becomes a terrifying reality. The film hits theaters on December 25 via Focus Features.

Eggers directs from a script he penned with his The Northman co-writer Sjón.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Nosferatu), Lily-Rose Depp (Nosferatu), Willem Dafoe (The Lighthouse), Ralph Ineson (The Witch), and Bodhi Rae Breathnach (Hamnet) star.

The post ‘Werwulf’ – Focus Features Chairman Promises a Robert Eggers Horror Movie On a “Whole Other Level” appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

After kicking off February with a look at one of the lesser-loved Michael Crichton film adaptations in Sphere (listen) and being introduced to the batshit insanity that is the Drew Barrymore-starring Doppelganger (listen), we’re continuing our February coverage with a look at Robert Eggers‘ debut film The Witch (2015).

Set in early 1600s New England, The Witch sees a Puritan Separatist family being preyed upon by an evil witch that lives in the nearby woods. When she takes the family’s baby, the blame falls on eldest daughter Thomasin (Anya Taylor-Joy), who must convince her mother (Kate Dickie) and father (Ralph Ineson) that she is not the feared witch of the woods.

Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get a new episode every Wednesday. You can subscribe on iTunes/Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, iHeartRadio, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Amazon Music, and RSS.

Episode 374: The Witch (2015) feat. Becky Darke

Bring your baby-sized mortar and pestle and cherished silver cup to the party because we’re discussing Robert Eggers’ feature directorial debut: the audacious folk horror film The Witch (2015)! Joining us for the conversation is Hammer Time podcast co-host Becky Darke!

Join us as we marvel at all of the research Eggers did to ensure maximum authenticity, crafting a period film thats as scary as it is stomach-churning. That it all ends in a (somewhat debatable) “good for her” ending is just the icing on the cake.

Plus: big witchy tits, inky darkness courtesy of all the natural lighting, being “allergic to exposition,” and a ringing endorsement from the Satanic Temple.

Cross out The Witch!

Coming Up Next: We’re unlocking the Patreon vault to revisit our thoughts on Scream VI (2023) in advance of the release of Scream 7 (2026).

P.S. Subscribe to our Patreon for over 456 hours of Patreon content including this month’s new episodes on Hannibal Season 3 Episodes 1 & 2, Whistle, The Strangers: Chapter 3, Saim Raimi’s Send Help, a new audio commentary on 10 Cloverfield Lane and our continuing coverage of Mike Flanagan’s The Haunting of Hill House (2018) on the Requel tier.

The post Allergic to Exposition in Robert Eggers’ ‘The Witch’ [Horror Queers Podcast] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The period horror film began filming in the UK last fall and is set to hit theaters on December 25 via Focus Features.

Set in 13th century England, Werwulf sees a mysterious creature stalk the land as local folklore becomes a terrifying reality.

Eggers directs from a script he penned with his The Northman co-writer Sjón.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Nosferatu), Lily-Rose Depp (Nosferatu), Willem Dafoe (The Lighthouse), Ralph Ineson (The Witch), and Bodhi Rae Breathnach (Hamnet) star.

Eggers and Sjón produce alongside Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner for Working Title. Maiden Voyage’s Chris Columbus and Eleanor Columbus are executive producing.

Eggers is currently attached to helm a new take on A Christmas Carol for Warner Bros. and a Labyrinth sequel for TriStar. It’s unclear which project will be next now that Werwulf is in the can.

The post Robert Eggers’ ‘Werwulf’ Wraps Production for Christmas Release appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The 14-year-old Irish-English actress joins Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Lily-Rose Depp, Willem Dafoe, and Ralph Ineson in the movie.

Slated to hit theaters on December 25 via Focus Features, Werwulf began filming in the UK last fall.

Set in 13th century England, the horror film sees a mysterious creature stalk the land as local folklore becomes a terrifying reality.

Eggers directs from a script he penned with his The Northman co-writer Sjón.

Focus is producing and financing. Eggers and Sjón produce alongside Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner for Working Title. Maiden Voyage’s Chris Columbus and Eleanor Columbus are executive producing.

Breathnach can next be seen co-starring with Jason Statham in the action thriller Shelter, in theaters January 30.

The post ‘Hamnet’ Actress Bodhi Rae Breathnach Joins Robert Eggers’ ‘Werwulf’ appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

To close out the first quarter of this century, the Halloweenies hit the archives and revisit all the horror movies released between 2000 to 2025. After careful consideration, the gang has made their lists, checked them twice, and given them to Santa Gerber to collate them all into a bonafide top 25. Did your favorites make the cut?

Find out by streaming the first of two episodes below. This installment covers their picks from No. 25 to No. 11, and as you’ll see, their choices are as varied as they’re scary. Let us know what we’ve missed so far in the comments below, and return next Monday when we close out the entire run with the 10 best slices to see what else survived the cutting room floor.

Subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, and RSS. New to the Halloweenies? Catch up with the gang by revisiting their essential episodes on past franchises such as Halloween, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, Scream, The Evil Dead, Chucky, Alien, and the Universal Monsters. Next year? Hellraiser!

You can also become a member of their Patreon, The Rewind, for hilariously irreverent commentaries (e.g. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Re-Animator, Darkman), one-off deep dives on your favorite rentals (e.g. Killer Klowns from Outer Space, Manhunter), and even spinoffs like their recent run Fortune & Glory: An Indiana Jones Podcast.

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The post The Top 25 Horror Movies of the Last 25 Years Pt. 1 [Halloweenies Podcast] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

What does it mean to live deliciously? What is the cost of a pretty dress, a stick of butter, or any other treat our heart desires? Dare we allow ourselves to feel fleeting joy and must this always be considered a sin? As women, we’re taught to sacrifice our own needs to support others and uphold the status quo. Patriarchal norms tell us that we’ve been built to suffer so that others can thrive and that our own happiness will come at the expense of those more deserving.

When the Devil (Daniel Malik) whispers this distressing question to a shattered young woman left orphaned and alone, it feels like she’s walking into a trap. But Robert Egger’s The VVitch builds a case for Thomasin (Anya Taylor-Joy) to satisfy her own desires, and by proxy, invites the rest of us to taste the joy of self-indulgence. 

Dragged into the wilderness by her pious father William (Ralph Ineson), Thomasin becomes the family scapegoat. Her infant brother’s apparent death, the loss of her mother’s silver cup, and a plague of misfortune surrounding the family are all laid at the burgeoning woman’s feet. But deceptive villains lurk nearby. A malicious witch haunts the woods, preying on the struggling family. William wallows in his own incompetence while his children pay for his sinful pride.

But is Eggers’ New England Folktale a cautionary story about the dangers of indulgence or a necessary shedding of toxic skin and the destruction of a family system built to victimize its women?

In the latest episode of Bloody FM’s The Lady Killers Podcast, co-hosts Jenn Adams, Sammie Roffman, and Rachel Reeves are joined by special guest Ashley Casseday to chat about historical witchcraft, dangerous piety, and the many different interpretations of Eggers’ shocking film. Is Thomasin’s ascendance a happy ending? Does the witch really exist? Why does William chop so much wood and has a crow ever done anything so disturbing? They’ll converse over the cauldron and celebrate 100 episodes with Eggers’ strangely empowering folktale.

Stream below and subscribe now via Apple Podcasts and Spotify for future episodes that drop every Thursday.

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The post Celebrating 100 Episodes with Robert Eggers’ ‘The Witch’ [The Lady Killers Podcast] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The genre-bending film will be the subject of movie parties exclusively at Alamo Drafthouse theaters next Friday, November 14.

Stow away with Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson for an interactive screening with a live host and grayscale props: lanterns, whoopee cushions, and even baked bean slime.

Dress in your best The Lighthouse costume for a chance to win a collectible prize.

The 2019 film follows two lighthouse keepers, played by Dafoe and Pattinson, on a remote and mysterious New England island in the 1890s.

As an approaching storm threatens to sweep them from the rock and strange apparitions emerge from the fog, each man begins to suspect that the other has become dangerously unmoored.

Robert Eggers (The Witch, Nosferatu) directs from a script he co-wrote with brother Max Eggers.

Eggers reunites with Dafoe on his 13th century werewolf movie Werwulf, now in production, after which they plan to work together again on A Christmas Carol with Dafoe as Scrooge.

The post Alamo Drafthouse Theaters to Host Robert Eggers’ ‘The Lighthouse’ Movie Party Next Week appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

ScreenDaily reports, “Filming is underway on Robert Eggers’s Werwulf in the UK. Production is based out of Sky Studios Elstree with location filming in Dartmoor, Devon.”

Willem Dafoe, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Lily-Rose Depp will star.

Set in the 13th century and being described as a medieval horror movie, Robert Eggers’ Werwulf will howl its way into theaters from Focus Features on Christmas Day 2026.

“The story centres around a mysterious creature who stalks a foggy countryside as local folklore becomes a terrifying reality for the villagers.”

The filmmaker co-wrote the screenplay for Werwulf alongside Sjón, the Icelandic poet and novelist who previously co-wrote the Viking movie The Northman with Eggers.

Chris Columbus, who produced Nosferatu, is on board to produce Werwulf.

Eggers recently teased, “It’s the darkest thing I’ve ever written. By far.”

The post ‘Werwulf’ – Filming Is Underway on Medieval Werewolf Movie from Director Robert Eggers appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Deadline reports today that Willem Dafoe is also in talks to star in Eggers’ Werwulf for Focus Features, the duo re-teaming after The Lighthouse, The Northman and Nosferatu.

Dafoe is also reportedly being eyed to play Ebenezer Scrooge in an upcoming adaptation of the classic Charles Dickens tale A Christmas Carol for Eggers, we recently learned.

Set in the 13th century and being described as a medieval horror movie, Robert Eggers’ Werwulf will howl its way into theaters from Focus Features on Christmas Day 2026.

The filmmaker co-wrote the screenplay for Werwulf alongside Sjón, the Icelandic poet and novelist who previously co-wrote the Viking movie The Northman with Eggers.

Chris Columbus, who produced Nosferatu, is on board to produce Werwulf.

Stay tuned for more on Robert Eggers’ Werwulf as we learn it.

The post ‘Werwulf’ – Willem Dafoe in Talks to Join Robert Eggers Werewolf Movie appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Additionally, Lily-Rose Depp (Nosferatu) is currently in talks to join the film as well.

Set in the 13th century and being described as a medieval horror movie, Robert Eggers’ Werwulf will howl its way into theaters from Focus Features on Christmas Day 2026.

The filmmaker co-wrote the screenplay for Werwulf alongside Sjón, the Icelandic poet and novelist who previously co-wrote the Viking movie The Northman with Eggers. Sjón has also been announced as the co-writer for a new Labyrinth movie being directed by Eggers.

Chris Columbus, who produced Nosferatu, is on board to produce Werwulf.

While Universal hasn’t had much success with their recent attempts to bring classic monsters back to life for today’s audiences, with this year’s Wolf Man performing poorly at the box office, their Focus Features branch is looking to pick up some of that slack. Nosferatu has out-grossed recent “Universal Monsters” films including The Invisible Man, Renfield, The Last Voyage of the Demeter, Abigail and the aforementioned Wolf Man, so staying in the Robert Eggers business and allowing him to make his own prestige monster movies is a wise choice.

Stay tuned for more on Robert Eggers’ Werwulf as we learn it.

The post ‘Werwulf’ – Aaron Taylor-Johnson Joins Robert Eggers Werewolf Movie With Lily-Rose Depp in Talks appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Eggers will write and direct his own adaptation of the classic Christmas ghost story, with frequent Eggers collaborator Willem Dafoe reportedly being eyed to play Ebenezer Scrooge.

Deadline notes, for clarity, “Insiders add while negotiations are not under way with any talent, Eggers is writing the role of Ebenezer Scrooge for his longtime collaborator Willem Dafoe as the top choice to play the classic Charles Dickens character.”

Chris Columbus and Elenor Columbus (Nosferatu) are attached to produce.

Written by Charles Dickens, the holiday classic tale of A Christmas Carol has of course been adapted for the screen countless times over the years, with notable film adaptations including Scrooge (1951) starring Alastair Sim, Scrooge (1970) starring Albert Finney, A Christmas Carol (1984) starring George C. Scott, Scrooged (1988) starring Bill Murray, The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) starring Michael Caine, and A Christmas Carol (2009) starring Jim Carrey.

In the classic tale, “Ebenezer Scrooge, a curmudgeonly, miserly businessman, has no time for sentimentality and largely views Christmas as a waste of time. However, this particular Christmas Eve, he will be visited by three spirits who will show him the error of his ways.”

A Christmas Carol is classically a period piece ghost story, which makes it perfect fodder for Robert Eggers to put his personal stamp on. As Luiz H.C. wrote here on Bloody Disgusting just last year, “Isn’t it weird how the single most influential piece of Christmas-related media is technically a horror story? One can even make the argument that Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carolpaved the way for the rise of Victorian Spiritualism during the following decade.”

Stay tuned for more on Robert Eggers’ A Christmas Carol.

The post Robert Eggers Directing His Own ‘A Christmas Carol’ for Warner Bros. appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Both the 132-minute theatrical cut and the 136-minute extended cut will be available on the streaming service, along with a behind-the-scenes featurette, Nosferatu: An Inside Look.

Other vampire films on Peacock include Werner Herzog‘s Nosferatu the Vampyre, Dan Curtis’ Dracula, Dracula’s Widow, Count Dracula’s Greatest Love, The Carmilla Movie, Carmilla, Stake Land, Stake Land II, and The Reflecting Skin.

A reimagination of F.W. Murnau‘s 1922 silent horror classic, Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman and the terrifying vampire infatuated with her, causing untold horror in its wake.

Bill Skarsgård stars as Count Orlok with Nicholas Hoult, Lily-Rose Depp, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Emma Corrin, and Willem Dafoe.

Meagan Navarro wrote in her 5-skull review, “It’s so impeccably crafted, boasting production design and values rarely seen in horror like this, without sacrificing the taboo-pushing, visceral horror in the process. It’s operatic and dramatic, bold and revolting, with a powerful final shot for the ages.”

Eggers’ highest grossing film with $156.3 million worldwide, Nosferatu is Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and took to the top spot on Bloody Disgusting’s Top 15 Best Horror Movies of 2024.

The film is currently available on Digital and hits 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD on February 18 from Universal.

The post Robert Eggers’ ‘Nosferatu’ Will Stream on Peacock Next Week appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Set in the 13th century and being described as a medieval horror movie, Robert Eggers’ Werwulf will howl its way into theaters from Focus Features on Christmas Day 2026.

On stage at a recent event, Eggers promised – or warned, perhaps – that Werwulf is shaping up to be the darkest horror movie he’s ever made – and that’s saying something!

Eggers teases, “It’s a medieval werewolf movie. And it’s also the darkest thing I’ve ever written. By far.”

The filmmaker co-wrote the screenplay for Werwulf alongside Sjón, the Icelandic poet and novelist who previously co-wrote the Viking movie The Northman with Eggers. Sjón has also been announced as the co-writer for a new Labyrinth movie being directed by Eggers.

Chris Columbus, who produced Nosferatu, is on board to produce Werwulf.

While Universal hasn’t had much success with their recent attempts to bring classic monsters back to life for today’s audiences, with this year’s Wolf Man performing poorly at the box office, their Focus Features branch is looking to pick up some of that slack. Nosferatu has out-grossed recent “Universal Monsters” films including The Invisible Man, Renfield, The Last Voyage of the Demeter, Abigail and the aforementioned Wolf Man, so staying in the Robert Eggers business and allowing him to make his own prestige monster movies is a wise choice.

Stay tuned for more on Robert Eggers’ Werwulf as we learn it.

pic.twitter.com/klJLFCzhce

— EggersFilms (@EggersFilms) February 7, 2025

The post Robert Eggers Says Upcoming ‘Werwulf’ Is the Darkest Thing He’s Ever Written appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

According to the outlet, Eggers has “closed a deal” to make the movie for TriStar.

Deadline further details, “Plot details for Eggers’ Labyrinth are under wraps, but we’re told the film is a sequel, rather than a remake of Jim Henson’s 1986 classic.”

In Labyrinth, which starred David Bowie and Jennifer Connelly…

A 16-year old girl is given 13 hours to solve a labyrinth and rescue her baby brother when her wish for him to be taken away is granted by the Goblin King.

Eggers is co-writing the script with frequent collaborator Sjón (The Northman, Werwulf). Chris and Eleanor Columbus (Nosferatu, Werwulf) will produce alongside Lisa Henson.

Brian Henson will be executive producing Eggers’ Labyrinth sequel.

Fede Alvarez (Evil Dead) had originally been scheduled to direct a sequel to Jim Henson’s classic 1986 movie, while Scott Derrickson (Sinister) had more recently been attached.

The original Labyrinth was directed by the late Jim Henson in the direct wake of The Dark Crystal, and though it wasn’t a smash hit at the box office at the time, the years have been kind to the 1980s movie. It’s fondly remembered for David Bowie’s performance (and costume) as Jareth the Goblin King, as well as the puppet work from Jim Henson’s Creature Shop.

While the original movie never did spawn any follow-up film projects, the world of Henson’s Labyrinth has expanded over the years with various books, video games and comics.

The post Robert Eggers Writing and Directing New ‘Labyrinth’ Movie for TriStar Pictures appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Presented from February 5 through February 9, the program kicks off with a special 35mm screening of Nosferatu, joined by eight films selected by Eggers as companion pieces.

“I am honored to share this collection of films that inspired my adaptation of Nosferatu,” Eggers said in a statement. “It’s a world of Gothic Romance, fairy tales, and folklore, made by filmmakers with a passion to transport the audience to another time, another place, and another way of thinking and believing.”

Eggers continues, “From the overwhelmingly atmospheric work of David Lean or Thorold Dickinson’s Queen of Spades that utilize massive set builds on soundstages—to the visually naïve and yet terrifying She-Butterfly by Serbian filmmaker Đordje Kadijević, all the films have the ability to enthrall your imagination and make you a believer yourself.”

Join FLC for this special series made up of the films that inspired Eggers’s spellbinding new take on fiction’s most famous monster, an eclectic can’t-miss array of gothic Hollywood deep cuts, rare works of Eastern European folk horror, and captivating evocations of 18th-century England, as well as a special screening on 35mm of his own Nosferatu.

Tickets will go on sale on January 17 at 2pm, with an early access period for FLC Members starting January 17 at noon. Tickets are $17; $14 for students, seniors (62+), and persons with disabilities; and $12 for FLC Members. See more and save with 3+ Film Package ($15 for GP; $12 for students, seniors (62+), and persons with disabilities; and $10 for FLC Members).

All films screen in the Walter Reade Theater (165 W. 65th St.) or Francesca Beale Theater (144 W. 65th St.). Here’s the full lineup of films that Eggers has hand-selected for you…

Nosferatu

Robert Eggers, 2024, U.S., 35mm, 132m

For his fourth feature film, Robert Eggers exhumes what might be considered the urtext for all horror cinema: F.W. Murnau’s landmark masterpiece, 1922’s Nosferatu (itself an adaptation, or perhaps more accurately a transformation, of Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel, Dracula).

Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult) seeks to provide financial stability for his wife Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp) by selling a decrepit local villa to a Transylvanian nobleman, the reclusive Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård). Hutter’s journey is marked by myriad strange and frightening events, but little does he know that his otherworldly encounter with Orlok will summon a seemingly unstoppable, plague-like evil to his own doorstep.

Rendered with all of the rich detail and disarming atmospherics that have characterized his work to date, Nosferatu is Eggers at the height of his powers: an astonishing, meticulously crafted, and oddly touching parable about desire, disease, and death. Also featuring Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Emma Corrin, Willem Dafoe, and others. A Focus Features release.

Wednesday, February 5 at 6:00pm at the Walter Reade Theater

Svengali

Archie Mayo, 1931, U.S., 16mm, 81m

A Pre-Code sound take on George du Maurier’s 1894 novel Trilby, this eerie mystery stars John Barrymore as the titular music teacher, who controls (and ultimately destroys) the young women under his tutelage through his curious powers of suggestion. Svengali sets his sights on Trilby O’Farrell (Marian Marsh), an artist’s model, and the sinister teacher’s pattern of manipulation and ruin seems to be repeating itself yet again—but Trilby’s old lover, Billee (Bramwell Fletcher), seeks to discover the truth about Svengali’s hypnotic influence.

Barrymore’s turn in the lead role is itself a feat of silver-screen mesmerism, portraying Svengali as a cruel yet magnetic figure who wields his own charisma as an instrument of terrible power. 16mm collection print courtesy of the UCLA Film & Television Archive.

Thursday, February 6 at 6:15pm at the Francesca Beale Theater

Beauty and the Beast

Jean Cocteau, 1946, France, 35mm, 96m

French with English subtitles

Among world cinema’s greatest fairy tales, Jean Cocteau’s 1946 adaptation of Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont’s 1757 story endures as one of the medium’s most beloved and influential fantasies. Jean Marais (as the feral Beast) and Josette Day (as the young Beauty who transforms his heart) turn in historically romantic and utterly magnetic performances that, combined with a delirious array of exquisite sets and costumes and Cocteau’s penchant for harnessing the artifice of filmmaking to conjure a world beyond and yet within our own, cohere into a timeless reflection on wonder, romantic desire, and death.

Friday, February 7 at 6:00pm at the Walter Reade Theater

Saturday, February 8 at 1:30pm at the Walter Reade Theater

Great Expectations

David Lean, 1946, U.K., 118m

Perhaps the definitive film adaptation of Charles Dickens, David Lean’s classic 1946 rendition endures as one of the all-time great (and most faithful) transfigurations of literature into cinema. The timeless story of orphan Pip (Anthony Wager and John Mills) as he grows up in 1810s London with the help of an unknown benefactor, Great Expectations—the first of Lean’s signature takes on Dickens, the other being 1948’s Oliver Twist—is powered by an astonishing ensemble cast, assembled by production company Cineguild, including Valerie Hobson, Jean Simmons, Alec Guinness, William Currie, Martita Hunt, and others. But most pertinent here: the film’s graceful, dimensional depiction of 19th-century England, expertly photographed by DP Guy Green.

Saturday, February 8 at 3:45pm at the Walter Reade Theater

The Queen of Spades

Thorold Dickinson, 1949, U.K., 95m

Drawing from Alexander Pushkin’s short story of the same title, Thorold Dickinson’s stunning, baroque fantasy conjures a sense of the supernatural that verges on the surreal. Set in 1806, the film follows a Russian military officer (Anton Walbrook) who seeks to learn the secret of a countess (Edith Evans) who purportedly sold her soul in exchange for learning the secret to winning high-stakes card games. He (along with a friend and fellow officer) begins courting the countess’s young ward in the hopes of getting closer to the countess, but soon enough his scheme goes badly sideways—and, perhaps, supernatural. An object lesson in the power of cinema to evoke atmosphere and the sense of an invisible world beyond the veil of the visible.

Friday, February 7 at 8:15pm at the Walter Reade Theater

Sunday, February 9 at 5:15pm at the Walter Reade Theater

Andriesh

Yakov Bazelyan, Sergei Parajanov, 1954, USSR, 63m

Russian with English subtitles

Sergei Parajanov’s feature debut was this mesmerizing fairy tale adaptation, drawn from the work of Moldavian writer/poet Emilian Bukov. The story concerns a young shepherd boy who dreams of becoming a knight and receives an enchanted flute, which assists him in his journey to the castle of an evil wizard known as Black Whirlwind. Shot by The Color of Pomegranates DP Suren Shahbazyan and expanding upon one of his earlier student films, Andriesh affords us a fascinating glimpse at Parajanov’s artistry at the very beginning of his career, his mastery of cinematic pictorialism already in evidence. Courtesy of the Oleksandr Dovzhenko National Centre.

Friday, February 7 at 4:30pm at the Walter Reade Theater

Sunday, February 9 at 2:00pm at the Walter Reade Theater

The Innocents

Jack Clayton, 1961, U.K., 100m

A seminal gothic chiller, Jack Clayton’s second feature (following his Oscar-nominated debut, Room at the Top) draws its plot from Henry James’s 1898 novella A Turn of the Screw, adapted for the occasion by William Archibald and Truman Capote. Deborah Kerr stars as Miss Giddens, a woman working her first job as a governess for a rich bachelor (Michael Redgrave), moving to his country estate to look after two orphans who are in his custody. But as time passes, Miss Giddens increasingly believes that the estate is haunted, and that the children’s outbursts are evidence of spectral possession…. A touchstone work examining the relationship between the paranormal and the psychological, The Innocents endures as one of cinema’s finest ever ghost stories.

Saturday, February 8 at 6:15pm at the Walter Reade Theater

Sunday, February 9 at 7:30pm at the Walter Reade Theater

The Eve of Ivan Kupalo

Yuri Ilyenko, 1968, USSR, 71m

Ukrainian with English subtitles

Loosely based on a story of the same title by Nikolai Gogol, Yuri Ilyenko’s 1968 adaptation is a visually astonishing work on the borderline between cinematic narrative and pure poetry. Humble farmer Piotr wishes to marry the beautiful Pidorka, but, of course, her father disapproves. But a mischievous demon who lives somewhere in the countryside might hold the key to Piotr being able to obtain the object of his desire, setting the stage for a Faustian bargain with otherworldly consequences. A beguiling and transfixing work in which images overflow with symbols, theological and folkloric motifs, and visual touches ranging from the surreal to the ethnographic, The Eve of Ivan Kupalo is one of Ilyenko’s richest films. Courtesy of the Oleksandr Dovzhenko National Centre.

Thursday, February 6 at 8:15pm at the Francesca Beale Theater

Sunday, February 9 at 3:30pm at the Walter Reade Theater

The She-Butterfly / Leptirica

Đordje Kadijević, 1973, Serbia, 63m

Serbian with English subtitles

A consummate work of cinematic folk-horror, Đordje Kadijević’s 1973 feature follows a young man who, in the hopes of persuading a rich, stern landowner to accept his bid to marry the landowner’s daughter, takes a job as a miller in the rural village Zaroshje. But no sooner does he start the job than a series of eerie events takes place at the flour mill, and it becomes increasingly apparent to the villagers that the mill has become home to a legendary vampire, Sava Savanović. Drawn from Milovan Glišić’s story “After 90 Years”—among the earliest modern treatments of vampires, predating Stoker’s Dracula by 17 years—and from regional folklore, The She-Butterfly is a visually and aurally rich example of an approach to horror cinema that is refreshingly distant from Hollywood’s genre conventions and tropes, and perhaps even more unsettling.

Wednesday, February 5 at 9:15pm at the Walter Reade Theater

Saturday, February 8 at 8:30pm at the Walter Reade Theater

Preview Conjuring Nosferatu: Robert Eggers Presents with the official trailer below.

The post ‘Conjuring Nosferatu: Robert Eggers Presents’ – Eggers Selected These 8 Films for Lincoln Center Series appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

A big time box office success story, Nosferatu has thus far scared up $156 million at the worldwide box office, and it can now officially call itself an Academy Awards nominee.

Nosferatu has been nominated for Best Cinematography, Best Production Design, Best Makeup & Hairstyling, and Best Costume Design, competing against the following films…

Best Cinematography

• The Brutalist
• Dune: Part Two
• Emilia Pérez
• Maria
• Nosferatu

Best Production Design

• The Brutalist
• Conclave
• Dune: Part Two
• Nosferatu
• Wicked

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

• A Different Man
• Emilia Pérez
• Nosferatu
• The Substance
• Wicked

Best Costume Design

• A Complete Unknown
• Conclave
• Gladiator II
• Nosferatu
• Wicked

The 97th Academy Awards air March 2 from the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood.

Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is of course a remake of the 1922 classic directed by F.W. Murnau, which itself was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s legendary horror novel Dracula.

Nosferatu joins the Francis Ford Coppola-directed Bram Stoker’s Dracula as an Oscar nominee, with the 1992 film winning categories including Best Costume Design and Makeup.

Bill Skarsgård stars as the legendary vampire Count Orlok, alongside Nicholas Hoult, Lily-Rose Depp, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Emma Corrin, and Willem Dafoe.

Succumb to Robert Eggers‘ Nosferatu from the comfort of your own sarcophagus on Digital today, with 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD to follow on February 18 via Universal.

The post ‘Nosferatu’ Nominated for Four Academy Awards Including Best Production Design appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Focus Features has already dated Werwulf for theatrical release on Christmas Day 2026.

The Hollywood Reporter details, “Eggers wrote Werwulf with Sjón, who co-wrote heady Viking saga The Northman with the filmmaker. While details are scarce, sources say the story is set in 13th century England. The script also features dialogue that was true to the time period and has translations and annotations for those uninitiated in Old English.”

“Initially, Eggers was planning on shooting the feature in black and white, but that is no longer the case,” THR’s exclusive report also notes. “Suffice to say that considering the setting and the dialect, Eggers is promising another deep dive into a muddy, costumed and violent time period consistent with his oeuvre, which has earned him a loyal film following.”

Chris Columbus, who produced Nosferatu, is on board to produce Werwulf.

While Universal hasn’t had much success with their recent attempts to bring classic monsters back to life for today’s audiences, with this year’s Wolf Man off to a slow start at the box office, their Focus Features branch is looking to pick up some of that slack. Nosferatu has out-grossed recent “Universal Monsters” films including The Invisible Man, Renfield, The Last Voyage of the Demeter, Abigail and the aforementioned Wolf Man, so staying in the Robert Eggers business and allowing him to make his own prestige monster movies is a wise choice.

Stay tuned for more on Robert Eggers’ Werwulf as we learn it.

The post ‘Werwulf’ – Robert Eggers Directing a 13th Century Werewolf Movie for Christmas 2026 appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

In addition to the 132-minute theatrical cut, viewers can sink their fangs into a 136-minute extended cut.

Special Features:

• Nosferatu Extended Cut
• Audio Commentary by Writer-Director Robert Eggers
• Nosferatu: A Modern Masterpiece – Explore the deepest, darkest depths of Nosferatu with the actors and artists whose commitment and craftwork take the classic vampire epic to horrifying new heights.
  • Breathing Life Into a Dream – Filmmaker Robert Eggers’ lifelong dream becomes a startling cinematic nightmare as the actors collaborate on transformative performances to make his Gothic vision an astonishing reality.
  • Becoming Count Orlok – Practical makeup FX seamlessly meld with Bill Skarsgård’s bold interpretation of Count Orlok to resurrect a villain whose unsettling appearance is both creepy and captivating.
  • Capturing the Mood – From sunlight, snowfall, and shadows to candlelight and complicated camera moves, see how each visually rich detail contributes to Nosferatu’s incredibly eerie atmosphere.
  • Recreating 1838 – Open a virtual time capsule with production designer Craig Lathrop, whose intricately detailed sets immerse viewers in an entirely authentic world.
  • Dressing the Part – Whether accenting Count Orlok’s otherworldliness or telling background tales through clothing, watch costume designer Linda Muir fashion distinct looks that extend each character’s story.
  • The End is Just the Beginning – Visual effects supervisor Angela Barson and composer Robin Carolan enhance Nosferatu‘s nightmarish fantasy using stunning CGI and a breathtaking score.
• Deleted Scenes
  
  • Ellen at the Window
  • Harding’s Bedchamber/Dark Corridor
  • Behold, the Third Night

A reimagination of F.W. Murnau‘s 1922 silent horror classic, Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman and the terrifying vampire infatuated with her, causing untold horror in its wake.

Bill Skarsgård stars as Count Orlok with Nicholas Hoult, Lily-Rose Depp, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Emma Corrin, and Willem Dafoe.

Meagan Navarro wrote in her 5-skull review, “It’s so impeccably crafted, boasting production design and values rarely seen in horror like this, without sacrificing the taboo-pushing, visceral horror in the process. It’s operatic and dramatic, bold and revolting, with a powerful final shot for the ages. And Eggers’ Nosferatu happens to be set over Christmas. That all but ensures this macabre masterpiece is destined to become a new holiday horror classic.”

Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, Nosferatu is Eggers’ highest grossing film with $156.3 million worldwide and took to the top spot on Bloody Disgusting’s Top 15 Best Horror Movies of 2024.

The post Robert Eggers’ ‘Nosferatu’ Extended Cut Sinks Its Fangs Into Digital Today, Physical Media in February appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

On the show Conversations @ Curzon, Eggers recently spilled the beans that he actually did make a brief attempt to put his own spin on Frankenstein. Alas, it just wasn’t working out.

Eggers tells the show, “Sometimes you know you’ve got a dud. I’m super, super-excited for Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein. But when my son was born, I had an unconscious urge – I’m sure because of that – I started to try to do Frankenstein.”

“After two weeks,” Eggers continues, “I was like, ‘There’s no way I can do this. It’s impossible.’ So I’m glad that Guillermo is finally making his. No comment, but [mine] definitely sucked.”

Guillermo del Toro is indeed adapting Mary Shelley’s classic novel for Netflix, with the film expected to release sometime later this year. Jacob Elordi will be playing Frankenstein’s monster in del Toro’s movie, alongside Mia Goth, Christoph Waltz, and Oscar Isaac.

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein follows scientist Victor Frankenstein, who plays god and brings a monster to life. The story has of course been adapted countless times over the years in film, television and beyond, and we can expect del Toro’s vision will be quite unlike any others.

Del Toro said of his longtime passion project way back in 2008, “The best moments in my mind of Frankenstein, of the novel, are yet to be filmed.” Stay tuned for more as we learn it.

The very first person to bring Frankenstein to the screen? Thomas Edison!

The post Robert Eggers Once (Briefly) Contemplated His Own ‘Frankenstein’ Movie appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

“Your power is rooted in darkness. You must feel it.”
“No. You know what I feel? Bored.”

This article contains heavy spoilers for 2024’s Nosferatu and Season 5 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Society has been telling vampire stories for over a century, whether it’s the austere gothic horror of Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel, Dracula, more palatable and playful stories, like the Twilight series and The Vampire Diaries, or something in between, such as Fright Night or The Lost Boys. Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu harkens back to the vampire’s vicious roots and his interpretation of F. W. Murnau’s 1922 original became one of 2024’s biggest horror movies and it’s still going strong. Nosferatu is dark, disturbing, and dedicated to its craft, yet among all the dread and despondency is a surprisingly feminist vampire tale. Lily-Rose Depp’s Ellen Hutter spends most of Nosferatu being stalked, manipulated, and chained up, yet she still possesses incredible power – although it’s not fully understood, even by herself. Nosferatu’s slant on this story is as stimulating as it is scary. However, there’s another take on Dracula from 25 years earlier that presents a similar story that’s even more subversive and empowering. Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s “Buffy vs. Dracula,” written by Marti Noxon and directed by David Solomon, uses Dracula to help Sarah Michelle Gellar’s Buffy Summers better understand herself, her power, and her role as a feminist icon.

Every Buffy season is transformative and challenging, but season five is especially revelatory for the Slayer. Buffy gains a sister, loses a mother, and grapples with several different identity crises, all while she prepares for battle against a literal God. Buffy’s fifth season is frequently regarded as not only one of the series’ best years, but one of the most impressive seasons out of any of Joss Whedon’s productions. It’s a masterpiece in serialized storytelling that doesn’t just sublimely connect all the season’s dots, but brings together several ideas and themes that have been present since Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s start. Buffy’s season premieres are typically heavy, introspective experiences, so audiences were understandably caught off-guard with season five’s “Buffy vs. Dracula.” This season premiere is just as deep as its predecessors and it elegantly sets up broader questions about Buffy’s identity and the Slayer’s role in society, yet this is regarded as one of Buffy’s most polarizing entries because of its cavalier approach to Dracula (Rudolf Martin) and the episode’s oddly comical slant.  Even the title “Buffy vs. Dracula” is very tongue-in-cheek and undercuts the episode’s serious subject matter. The only thing more farcical would be if it were titled “Buffy and the Scooby Gang Meet Dracula!”

“Buffy vs. Dracula” is admittedly tonally dissimilar from many Buffy episodes. It even starts with Buffy and her friends goofing around on a sunny beach. However, Buffy is very careful to not make Dracula himself a joke. He triggers comical events, such as Buffy’s starstruck demeanor, Xander’s insect-eating fealty, and Spike’s petty grudges with the vampire and how he’s made life more difficult for his own kind, but Dracula himself is deathly serious. Dracula instead feels like he’s out of a completely different series. He talks in flowery gothic prose instead of witty Whedon-speak one-liners. The only “funny” thing he does is the mist materialization gag that ends the episode, but even that is largely comical because of Buffy’s reaction to it. Much of Buffy’s fifth season involves an altered reality that dark monks have created for sinister purposes. It almost feels like Dracula is a byproduct of this alternate universe and that he’s a vestige of Bram Stoker’s novel who’s been plucked out and dropped into Sunnydale. 

Buffy the Vampire Slayer uses Dracula to tell a personal story that connects to Buffy’s ongoing evolution. That being said, it’s still entertaining to see this thought-provoking episode indulge in many of the classic Dracula tropes, not unlike Eggers’ Nosferatu. “Buffy vs. Dracula” gives Dracula additional vampire powers that aren’t typically explored in the series, such as his ability to turn into a bat, a wolf, and weaponize a hypnotic thrawl on others. Xander fulfills the Renfield role and becomes the episode’s central comic relief, while Giles becomes Buffy’s resident Jonathan Harker and temporarily loses himself to a trio of vampire brides. These are the details that stand out most when “Buffy vs. Dracula” is broken down purely on a story level and they’re fun Dracula fan service. However, these touches aren’t really important or what the episode is actually about.

It’s easy to get lost in Xander’s funny fealty and the ways in which Dracula ruffles everyone’s feathers. Beyond this silliness, some of the most compelling material to come out of “Buffy vs. Dracula” involves how the Dark Prince prods Buffy regarding her power. Curiously, Dracula doesn’t minimize Buffy’s strength, but instead tells her that she could be even more magnificent if she became his vampiric bride. This material would fall flat if it were to happen in Buffy’s first or second seasons, but it hits with greater intensity five years in. Nobody expects Buffy to become a vampire by the end of the episode, but it’s a heavier proposition for Buffy. On some level, after everything that she’s experienced, it feels as if there is some level of temptation to just escape in this immortal fantasy. She can’t and she won’t, but Dracula comes along at the perfect time when he’s actually able to get in Buffy’s head and have her question herself. This makes it all the more significant that Buffy could be some infamous Vampire Queen and thrive through killing, but she instead chooses to be humanity’s thankless protector. It’s a powerful theme that courses through the season and reaches a devastating breaking point in the season’s finale, where Buffy makes the ultimate sacrifice. 

In a deleted scene from “Buffy vs. Dracula,” Dracula goes even further with this level of dissection. “I know intimately what it is to be different,” he tells Buffy. “Human, but not quite. Of the world, but still an outsider. You see? We understand each other. Both of us are born of darkness, masters in the art of death.” Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård) echoes a comparable line in Nosferatu when he tells Ellen, “Love is inferior to you. I told you, you are not of humankind.” Buffy and Ellen both buy into their dark tempter’s words, but it’s an empowering message to Buffy and an imprisoning one to Ellen. Buffy spends an entire season grappling with how she’s a “master in the art of death,” which pushes her down a dark path – one that’s not always healthy for her – but one that’s traveled on her own volition. Dracula’s words may literally echo in Buffy’s head in “Buffy vs. Dracula” as he hypnotizes her through their blood bond. However, it’s merely the seed of suggestion that eats away at her doubts through the rest of the season.

Buffy and Dracula’s final confrontation turns into a battle of will as Buffy asserts herself against Dracula’s hold over her and the dark life that he promises. Buffy does drink Dracula’s blood, but it’s a legacy of Slayer strength that brings her back to her senses and gives her the power to persevere. It’s not just Buffy’s strength that overpowers the Dark Prince, but generations of female-driven Slayer confidence that defeats this predatory threat. Ellen may be doomed to perish in Nosferatu and become a cautionary tale. Alternatively, Buffy is able to channel past cautionary tales and failed promises to become an inspirational anomaly. 

“Buffy vs. Dracula” explores the idea that the Slayer’s reputation is just as prominent to vampires as Dracula’s is to humans. Dracula explicitly comes to Sunnydale because he’s heard repeated tales of Buffy’s incredible accomplishments. When the dust — or rather the mist — settles here, Buffy is the one who is left standing and in the position of power. Five years of Slayer duties trumps centuries of dark acts. Buffy doesn’t just survive this experience, but she’s left invigorated and eager to learn more about the history of the Slayers and the full extent of what her privileged role represents. She wants to create a bright future for herself, and others, by building a legacy that’s even more prolific than that of Dracula. 

Vampire stories like Nosferatu and “Buffy vs. Dracula” are dense in darkness, not just visually, but as a force that’s emblematic of what Ellen and Buffy are fighting against. These vampire narratives are tonally extreme, yet they explore very similar dialogue on this topic. At one point in Nosferatu, Anna Harding asks Ellen, “What is this insufferable darkness?” During another, Ellen questions, “My dreams grow darker…Tell me, does evil come from within us? Or beyond?” The latter of these statements is more or less the ongoing mantra for Buffy’s fifth season as Buffy attempts to get to the center of the Slayers, but also herself. Buffy also repeatedly subverts the idea of darkness and the power that it holds. At one point, Buffy boasts to Dracula, “How do you like my darkness now?” It’s a powerful, purifying asset to her, rather than a totally corrupting force. Even earlier, Dracula tells Buffy, “Your power is rooted in darkness. You must feel it,” while an unphased Buffy retorts, “No. You know what I feel? Bored.” Darkness may control Dracula, Count Orlok, and Ellen, but not Buffy.

Robert Eggers has spoken candidly about how Depp’s Ellen possesses a unique understanding of the “shadow side of the world” and that this dark gift is not just misunderstood – but persecuted – in her world. It’s hard to not draw parallels here between Ellen and Buffy, both of whom are forced to work through a world that needs them, yet doesn’t have the right tools to celebrate them. They’re forced to suffer and sacrifice. Buffy is blessed enough to have a better support system, but she still faces astronomical hurdles that are too much to overcome. 

Buffy may not perish at Dracula’s hands, but she still meets her end in a similar fashion to Ellen. Part of the reason that Ellen ultimately “submits” to Orlok and sacrifices herself to take him out is that she feels that she doesn’t belong in a world that’s progressively moved away from magic. Ellen feels that she doesn’t fit in and is an aberration, which on many levels aligns with Buffy’s decision to sacrifice herself to save the world when this soul-searching season reaches its end. The message that Buffy carries with her for over a season – “your gift is death” – is ultimately empowering. However, it still concludes with Buffy cold and underground. 

Both Buffy and Ellen’s fates are regarded as morose losses for the greater good, yet it’s only Buffy that features what one might consider to be a happy ending. It’s hard to imagine Ellen with a gravestone epitaph that’s a fraction as congratulatory as Buffy Summers’ headstone. Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu and Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s “Buffy vs. Dracula” both transform the classic vampiric figure into a catalyst for feminist growth and self-discovery. However, Buffy is the one that does more with this revelation and channels it into an entire season of challenging character development that proves that a girl is strong enough to not just defeat Dracula, but a God.

The post “Buffy vs. Dracula” – Revisiting Buffy’s Subversive Dracula Episode 25 Years Later appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Here in the United States, Nosferatu scared up $40.3 million in its 5-day holiday weekend debut, which Variety notes is “the biggest Christmas Day launch and weekend haul for a genre film, overtaking the benchmark set in 1998 by Robert Rodriguez’s high school sci-fi story The Faculty with $4.4 million on opening day and $11.6 million over the traditional weekend.”

“Heading into the extended Yuletide frame, Nosferatu was projected to open to $25 million from 2,992 North American theaters,” Variety further details. “Focus Features reported that 40% of opening weekend crowds purchased their tickets the day before they saw the movie.”

Nosferatu took a bite out of $11.5 million on Christmas Day alone, with the film’s traditional 3-day opening weekend frame pulling in $21.1 million. That gives it the highest opening weekend of Robert Eggers’ career thus far, surpassing The Witch, The Lighthouse, and The Northman.

The production budget for Nosferatu was a reported $50 million, so it’ll need to keep making money in the coming weeks in order to turn a profit for Focus Features. But the film is off to one hell of a good start as the calendar flips over to 2025, the box office success no doubt driven by rave reviews that have thus far given the film a 86% Fresh score on Rotten Tomatoes.

One of those rave reviews came courtesy of Bloody Disgusting’s head critic Meagan Navarro, who declared Nosferatu to be the very best horror movie released this entire year.

Meagan writes, “There’s not a single facet of Nosferatu that doesn’t impress for the sheer artistry on display. Bill Skarsgård’s unrecognizable transformation as Count Orlok startles, but it’s Lily-Rose Depp’s mesmeric performance as Ellen, the outcast trapped on society’s margins and forced to become both victim and hero, that stuns.”

“Productions on this scale are rare in horror,” Meagan’s 5-star review continues, “and Nosferatu is operatic and dramatic, bold and revolting, with a powerful final shot for the ages.”

Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is of course a remake of the 1922 classic directed by F.W. Murnau, which itself was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s legendary horror novel Dracula.

[Related] The 100 Year History and Legacy of ‘Nosferatu’

Stay tuned for more box office reporting on Nosferatu as the numbers roll in.

The post ‘Nosferatu’ Scares Up $40 Million Christmas Weekend Debut appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Bram Stoker’s Dracula is arguably the most important and well-known horror text in modern history. Originally published in 1897, this epistolary novel follows a young solicitor and his wife as they’re attacked by an ancient vampire attempting to move from his isolated castle to the bustling UK. Stoker’s gothic story was itself adapted from centuries of folklore describing a night-dwelling beast who seduces then sucks the blood of innocent victims. Twenty-five years after publication, F.W. Murnau brought Stoker’s novel to the screen in the 1922 silent film Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror. Set in 1838, this loose and unauthorized retelling chronicles a similar vampiric plague in the fictional town of Wisborg, Germany. More than a century later, Robert Eggers tackles these two classic texts while adding his particular brand of feminist mysticism. Rather than a helpless victim corrupted by darkness, his version of the vampire’s bride is a sensitive heroine with transcendental talents who gives her life to vanquish the bloodthirsty beast. 

Both Dracula and Nosferatu center a damsel in distress with varying levels of agency. Stoker’s Mina Harker is a young and dutiful wife sent to stay with a wealthy friend named Lucy while her husband Jonathan travels to the castle of a Transylvanian nobleman called Count Dracula. Revealed to be an ancient vampire, Dracula follows Mina to the seaside town of Whitby and begins transforming Lucy into a creature of the night. While she does have some agency, Mina’s life revolves around caring for others. A former teacher’s assistant, the idealistic young woman has given up her own career and learned to type with plans of serving as secretary for her husband’s ambitions. Stoker’s Mina is a traditional woman of the time, valued for her purity and content to dedicate her time and energy to her husband.

Her 1922 counterpart has even less humanity. Ellen (Greta Schröder) is the new wife of Hutter (Gustav von Wangenheim) who spends her time playing with kittens and mourning the death of freshly cut flowers. She’s devastated when her husband embarks on a business trip to the castle of Count Orlok and whiles away the hours staring at the sea. Like Mina, the corruption of this virtuous woman becomes the vampire’s true threat and the men in her life will do anything to prevent this offensive defilement. Thus both wives become extensions of their husbands rather than characters themselves. They are punished for simply existing in the orbit of these wreckless men and fall into the undead creature’s sights by mistake.

Unlike Murnau’s original ingénue, Eggers’ Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp) is a complex character unto herself. Born with second sight, she has established a psychic connection with the ancient Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård) who appears as a spectre in the open window of her childhood bedroom. Describing her mysterious powers, she remembers accurately predicting the contents of her Christmas presents and foreseeing her mother’s untimely death. Though born into relative privilege, Ellen knows the hell that would befall her should anyone discover her unique talents and call her a witch. She expresses a vague fear of being sent to a sanitarium and recalls her father’s shame and scorn after discovering his daughter in the midst of a mystical trance. Longing for connection, she reaches out to the darkness and catches the attention of Nosferatu. 

This subtle shift in origin presents Ellen as the more powerful character. Though Orlok is a dreadful beast, his evil did not spark her supernatural abilities and they do not revolve solely around him. Over the years this dark being has haunted her dreams, occasionally taking control of her body to cause terrible outbursts and seizures, but she has found a way to resist his attacks. Her marriage to the virtuous Thomas (Nicholas Hoult) has brightened her days and given her the strength to pull away from the vampire’s grip. Unfortunately, it seems that Orlok has discovered their union and orchestrated a way to bring Thomas to his castle. Not only will a trip to the Carpathian Mountains place him in mortal danger, Ellen fears this contact will plunge her back into Orlok’s otherworldly realm. Rather than a byproduct of a business deal gone horrifically wrong, Eggers’ Ellen lies at the heart of the horror.

A work of post-Enlightenment fiction, Dracula features a male fixation with innovation and technology. As Lucy’s life hangs in the balance, a doctor named Abraham Van Helsing arrives to perform a dazzling blood transfusion designed to save her from the undead curse. This academic warrior has become known throughout the literary world as a vampire hunter skilled at using new technology to battle centuries-old folklore. Murnau’s variant is Professor Bulwer (John Gottowt), a Swiss Paracelsian who specializes in parasitic plants and demonstrates the predatory nature of phantom-like organisms. Both credentialled men take charge of the paranormal mission and use scientific knowledge to defeat an occult figure, dismissing ancient traditions as regressive barbarism. 

Eggers’ Swiss doctor, Professor Albin Eberhart von Franz (Willem Dafoe), has a more charitable view of the natural world. Though still a Paracelsian, he’s been ejected from the medical community for studying occult practices and naturopathy. By opening himself up to the feminized wisdom of ages past and embracing the more mystical side of the world, he’s able to pinpoint the monster’s weakness and find a way to defeat him. In Ellen, he recognizes a kindred spirit and sees her disturbing trances as a method for communicating with the forces that plague the city rather than the demented ravings of a madwoman. By embracing her telepathic powers, he devises a plan to distract the foolhardy Thomas and battle Count Orlok on the demon’s own terms.  

Other than Franz, the men of Eggers’ story prove to be quite ineffective. Should Thomas heed his wife’s warnings about this ill-advised trip, Orlok’s plague would never befall their family or the city at large. But the young house agent is consumed with earning a respectable position in his employer’s firm. He not only ignores his wife’s pleas to stay, but presses on in spite of grave local legends about the vampire’s castle. Thomas claims a desire to provide for Ellen and give her the finer things in life, likely idolizing his wealthy former schoolmate Friedrich (Aaron Tayloe-Johnson). Seeing the strength of his friend’s marriage to Anna (Emma Corrin), Thomas believes he can replicate it through financial stability. He’s also in debt to the prosperous shipbuilder and longs to see himself as above taking charity. Ellen insists she only wants her husband to stay and delivers dire warnings about the horrors to come. But Thomas ignores her strenuous pleas and sends her to stay with Friedrich and Anna, promising to return after securing his fortune.

For his part, Friedrich provides Ellen with a warm and loving home, but never fails to mention his own generosity. He calls on Dr. Sievers (Ralph Ineson) to treat her mysterious malady, but endorses controlling treatment that leaves her drugged and tied to the bed to prevent her seizures from damaging his property. Friedrich is a loving husband and father but clearly views women as subservient. When Ellen dares to have an honest conversation about the dark curse headed their way, he viciously chides her for speaking above her station and insists she adopt manners when addressing a man of his importance. Despite his outward strength, Friedrich falls victim to Orlok’s spell and sleeps through the massacre of his children and wife. Their deaths tear the fragile man apart and he sneaks into the crypt to lay with Anna’s body. For all his wealth and bluster, Friedrich cannot stop the plague from destroying his family and crumbles under the weight of his own emotion. 

Rather than a dehumanized female prize or leverage in a sinister struggle for power, Eggers allows Ellen to be a complete human being. Even in the grips of his depravity, Orlok needs her willing consent to consummate their unholy union. No longer an extension of her husband’s house and a tangible measurement of his injury, Ellen is the key to Orlok’s undoing. The hideous Count gives her three nights to renounce her love for Thomas and return to their dark compact, threatening her loved ones if she will not agree. Desperate to save Thomas, Ellen conspires with Franz to offer herself to the beast then distract him with her blood until first morning’s light. 

Both versions of this conclusion require a female sacrifice, but Eggers gives his heroine agency and empowerment. In a book she’s been forbidden to read, Murnau’s Ellen learns that it must be “a maiden wholly without sin” who can defeat the monster. By contrast, Eggers’ Ellen is “a pure-hearted woman,” leaving important space for her humanity. She’s allowed to transcend the unrealistic ideals for Victorian women and sacrifice herself regardless of the fact that she is not perfect. Questioning her own virtue, Ellen asks Franz, “if evil comes from within or beyond,” implying feelings of guilt and responsibility for Orlok’s attack. However, Franz assures her that whether man or woman, we all have darkness lurking in the recesses of our hearts. It’s only by confronting our sins and imperfections that we can find the strength to drive them out and combat evil from a place of understanding. 

In fact it’s because of Ellen’s rare gift that she is able to become the city’s ultimate savior. The brave woman calls out to Orlok and invites him into her bedchamber where she willingly agrees to be his dark bride. Consumed with feeding, he forgets to return to his ornate sarcophagus. As the sun rises, Orlok lifts his head, but Ellen issues a dreadful invitation. “More,” she whispers, directing the monster back to her breast where he continues draining her life’s blood. This simple addition implies choice and empowerment while elevating the character to a position of strength. Whereas Murnau’s Ellen simply succumbs to the vampire’s attack, Eggers’ heroine has willingly given her life to save the man she loves and a city plagued with the vampire’s curse. But not because she is without sin. In fact, it’s because she has command of witchlike powers that she is able to defeat this powerful entity. Eggers’ Ellen is not vilified for her connection to darkness, but becomes a hero because of her supernatural skill. 

We’re introduced to the doomed young woman as she prays for absolution, mirroring a moment from the director’s debut film The Witch. This dark story follows another young woman tempted by darkness who ultimately finds salvation by rejecting the shackles of a patriarchal world. Eggars concludes his fourth film with a grim depiction of victorious death. Lying underneath Count Orlok’s bleeding corpse, Ellen’s ruined body is honored by a scattering of lilacs. This image recalls Murnau’s introduction to his arguably reductive character. When Hutter presents his young wife with a bouquet of flowers, she’s shocked that the delicate blossoms will die as a result of being clipped from the earth. A relic of its time, Murnau’s film gives Ellen little more humanity than the flowers she holds. Valued only for her purity, she is a beautiful specimen who dies as a symbol of feminine grace. Eggers’ Ellen is a multifaceted woman, likely a witch, who is only made stronger because of her flaws.

The post How ‘Nosferatu’ Became a Feminist Retelling of a Horror Classic appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The history of Nosferatu reaches back over one hundred years and is one of the greatest and most consistent of all horror legacies. Ostensibly retellings of Dracula, the major Nosferatu films become something unique from the world’s most famous vampire with far more sinister underpinnings than the majority of “official” Dracula stories. Nosferatu in all its forms leans into the ideas of plague, despair, and the occult with imagery that is among the most unsettling in all of horror history.

Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror (1922)

Though the original film has long been most attributed to director F.W. Murnau, the true driving force behind Nosferatu: Eine Symphonie des Gauens was its producer/art director Albin Grau. The great historian of German Expressionist film Lotte H. Eisner described Grau as an “ardent spiritualist,” but today we may well call him an occultist. He immediately saw the cinematic potential of Bram Stoker’s Dracula but did not have, nor could he or his small production company Prana-Film afford, the rights to the novel. So he, along with scenarist Henrik Galeen, crafted a script that they thought would escape unnoticed from the watchful eye of Stoker’s widow Florance. They changed the names and locations from the novel while maintaining its basic structure. Jonathan Harker became Hutter, Mina became Ellen, Van Helsing became Professor Bulwer, Renfield became Knock, and Dracula became Count Orlok. The primary action was translated from England to the town of Wisborg, Germany. In fact, the entirety of the complicated novel is simplified to three major settings: Orlok’s Transylvanian castle, the ship sailing to Wisborg, and the tiny German town itself.

What gives Nosferatu its singular character is its many deviations from the source material. The look of Count Orlok is wholly unique and may well have been designed by Grau, as implied by his pre-production drawings. He chose to build up actor Max Schreck’s (yes, that was his real name) features with putty, gave him a bald pate, and large pointed teeth located centrally in his mouth, giving the vampire a unique rat-like appearance that underscored the film’s themes of plague. As with Egger’s remake, Murnau’s Nosferatu was only four years removed from the height of a global pandemic that claimed millions worldwide. Fairly or unfairly, the rat has served as the symbol of pestilence for centuries thanks to their role in the spread of the bubonic plague throughout medieval Europe. In hindsight, the plague of rats can also be interpreted as indicting the political and social climate of Germany under the Weimar Republic, which governed the nation from the end of World War I to 1933, as being fertile soil for pestilential ideas to take hold. This of course came to fruition in the rise of Adolph Hitler and the Nazi party a mere eleven years after the release of Nosferatu.

Today, the film is rightly regarded as a masterpiece and F.W. Murnau, in large part because of Nosferatu, was declared by Lotte Eisner to be “the greatest film-director the Germans have ever known.” Murnau’s direction along with the brilliant cinematography of Fritz Arno Wagner infused Nosferatu with some of the most unforgettable imagery in all of film history. The emergence of Orlok from his coffin aboard the ship, his shadow climbing the staircase to Ellen’s (Greta Schröder) room before extending through the chamber door, Orlok clinging at the window frames of his derelict home. It is no wonder that the film has captured the imagination of filmgoers and filmmakers for over a century, and it is something of a miracle that it even still exists. After Florence Stoker learned about the film, she immediately sued Grau and Prana-Film. The judge in the case ordered all prints of the film destroyed but underground groups of cinephiles protected copies which were eventually smuggled out of the country, spreading to London and eventually throughout the world.

Nosferatu: Phantom Der Nacht (1979)

In the late 1970s, Werner Herzog made two films back-to-back that were attempts to connect with the best of his German heritage. The first of these was Nosferatu (the second, Woyzeck, would begin filming only five days after Nosferatu wrapped) which he described as his connection with his cinematic grandfathers. He has often described his generation of German filmmakers, which most notably includes Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Wim Wenders, and himself, as a generation without fathers because they had either bought into the Nazi culture or fled the country because of it. “As the first real post-war generation, we were orphans with no fathers to learn from”; Herzog told author Paul Cronin for the book Werner Herzog: A Guide for the Perplexed, “we had no active teachers or mentors, people in whose footsteps to follow. This meant it was the grandfathers—Lang, Murnau, Pabst and others—who became our points of reference.” Herzog was drawn to Nosferatu for several reasons, not least among them is his feeling that Murnau’s film was “the very best German film ever,” and sought connection with his forebearers by creating his own version of it, which he has never thought of as a remake. “It goes its own way with its own spirit and stands on its own feet as a new version,” he later said.

And the film is genuinely unique from its predecessor while still embodying some of its greatest aspects. By the time Herzog set out to make his version of Nosferatu, Dracula had long since fallen into the public domain. He dispensed with the trappings from the original film that were meant to veil, however thinly, Nosferatu’s origins in Bram Stoker’s novel and chose to call his Count Dracula rather than Orlok, Hutter once again became Jonathan Harker (Bruno Ganz), now married to Lucy (Isabella Adjani), and Roland Topor played Renfield (and one of the most bizarre and hilarious Renfields at that) rather than Knock. Locations, however, maintained similarity to Murnau’s film as did the look of the vampire, the emphasis on plague symbolized by droves of rats, and the centrality of Lucy as the one who holds the power to destroy the evil that has invaded her hometown.

The touches that make the film a true “Herzogian” film rather than a mere rehashing of the original are multitude but the most notable have to do with the vampire, the leading lady, and the way the locations are captured on film. The film marked Herzog’s second of five collaborations with the legendarily volatile and unpredictable Klaus Kinski, and Herzog has described it as their most pleasant working experience. “For almost the entire shoot he was happy and at ease with himself and the world, though he would throw a tantrum maybe every other day.” This was a marked improvement over their relationship on Aguirre: The Wrath of God (1972) which turned out to be a mere foreshadowing of the hurricane that was in store for him on Fitzcarraldo (1982). For Nosferatu, Herzog and Kinski sought to “humanize” the vampire, giving him “a real existential anguish” that Schreck’s soulless, rodent-like bloodsucker lacked. “I wanted to endow him with human suffering, with a true longing for love and, importantly, the one essential capacity of human beings: mortality,” Herzog said, “He is deeply pained by his solitude and inability to join with the rest of humanity.”

Adjani’s Lucy is also given more to do than Schröder’s Ellen and has a great deal of agency in the film. One of the film’s most striking scenes finds her in the middle of the town square as dozens of coffins move past her on the shoulders of men carrying them out of the town. Nearby, dazed men and women dance around bonfires stoked by the furniture from homes that no longer need any of these mere possessions as the occupants are all dead and rats invade the streets. It is a startling image that evokes sequences from Herzog films that came before like Even Dwarfs Started Small (1970) and many more to come. Another striking sequence happens early in the film as Harker travels to Castle Dracula on foot through places that strike the viewer as places that no one else has ever seen. This is one of Herzog’s greatest gifts as a filmmaker—to go places that no one else would go to show us sights that have never been seen and to place his camera so that these sights seem to be otherworldly. The film is a piece of poetic beauty infused with a constant and unrelenting sense of dread.

Shadow of the Vampire (2001)

As much as I love all the “official” versions of Nosferatu, and though this stands just outside that realm, Shadow of the Vampire is my personal favorite of all of them to date (though I should note that as of this writing I have not seen Eggers’ interpretation). The premise of the film is rather simple—what if the mysterious Max Schreck was actually a vampire—but offers great insight into the filmmaking process, the “war of art,” and even the nature of reality itself all packed into a brisk ninety-five minutes. It is all very “meta” but not in a pretentious way by any means. In fact, the film captures much of the eeriness of Murnau’s film, while also being a compelling drama and a very, very funny movie. Produced by noted vampire enthusiast Nicolas Cage and directed by E. Elias Merhige, who caught the eye of the producer with his dark, surreal film Begotten (1989), Shadow is a perfect marriage of filmmakers and material. Like Albin Grau, Merhige is fascinated by the occult and had a close relationship with Werner Herzog at the time he made the film. (I have often wondered what this film would have been like with Herzog in the role of Murnau as it would have taken on a further layer of metanarrative quality, but then we would have missed out on one of John Malkovich’s great performances.)

Shadow of the Vampire features one of the most brilliant casts ever assembled for a film of this type including John Malkovich as Murnau, Udo Kier as Grau, Cary Elwes as Wagner, Catherine McCormack as Greta Schröder, and Suzy Izzard (credited as her stage name Eddie Izzard) as Gustav von Wangenhein who played Hutter in Nosferatu. All give excellent performances but Willem Dafoe as Max Schreck is nothing short of astounding and received a much-deserved Oscar nomination for the role. The core of the film comes down to the lengths that an artist will go to in order to see their vision to fruition, no matter the costs to themselves or anyone else. The filmmakers are depicted as mad scientists wearing lab coats and goggles, a necessity in the era due to the residue created by the lights of the time, but the image is striking. Murnau is regularly referred to as “Herr Doktor” and this Dr. Frankenstein of sorts repeatedly declares filmmaking to be an act of war. “Our battle, our struggle is to create art. Our weapon is the moving picture,” he says as the company boards a train for their first location, and throughout the film the camera is compared to a machine gun. In the end, this fictional version of Murnau’s vision becomes so all-consuming that the real world becomes the artifice and what is within the frame, the only thing that is real. Shadow of the Vampire is an unparalleled interrogation of the madness of creativity.

It is also the most difficult of any of these films to see. Despite its all-star cast, being produced by a Hollywood icon, and ownership by Lionsgate and Universal, it has not been available to stream for some time and is trapped on an out-of-print DVD. The online rip (that as of this writing is up on YouTube) is not of great quality as it is standard definition and highly pixilated. In light of the buzz around Nosferatu at the moment, no film is more deserving of a High-Definition streaming and physical release. I will use every bit of my bully pulpit (as small as it may be) to bang the drum for a Blu-ray/4K release of this brilliant film. I have a feeling it would serve some boutique label, or perhaps even the major studio that owns the rights and uses clips of it for attractions at their theme parks, very well.

Shadows and Influence

Several other films have taken the name of Nosferatu and used it for various purposes. Klaus Kinski took it upon himself to return to his vampiric character, with very different results from Herzog’s film, in 1988’s Nosferatu in Venice, directed by Augusto Caminito. Mimesis: Nosferatu (2018) sees a high school teacher, Professor Kinski (Joseph Scott Anthony), mounting a stage production of Dracula heavily influenced by Murnau’s film and starring a vampire obsessed student named Michael Morbius (Connor Alexander) in the lead role. The film contains a number of vampire-related easter eggs including several names inspired by Fright Night, Salem’s Lot, and even Twilight. It also features several brief appearances by Lance Henriksen as an enigmatic mentor creating a cult of vampires in the mold of Max Shreck’s Count Orlok. Also released this year, after a long gestation period, was Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror starring Doug Jones in the role of the vampire. The film, funded by a Kickstarter campaign, is more-or-less a shot for shot remake of the Murnau film with its modern actors inserted into computer generated recreations of the locations and sets used in the original.

Perhaps even more prevalent have been the many films that either pay homage or reflect the influence of Nosferatu to create various effects—from the frightening to the comic. In 1979, the same year as Herzog’s film, Tobe Hooper’s television movie of Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot featured Reggie Nalder as Kurt Barlow, a creature clearly modeled off Max Schreck’s Orlok, that has very little resemblance to the character as described in King’s book. Other homages include Ben Fransham as Petyr in the 2014 film and Doug Jones as Baron Afanas (at least in the early seasons) in the television version of What We Do in the Shadows (2019-present). Just last year Javier Botet played the grey, bald, and bat-eared vampire to great effect in The Last Voyage of the Demeter for which the character is credited as Dracula/Nosferatu. The reach of Nosferatu can be found throughout film history in characters as diverse as the animalistic forms of the vampires in Fright Night (1985) and The Lost Boys (1987) to various incarnations of Gary Oldman’s Count in Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992) to Danny Huston’s Marlow in 30 Days of Night (2007) and beyond.

It seems likely that Eggers’ new version of the film will stand shoulder to shoulder with the long and towering legacy of Nosferatu. It seems to me that horror fans are hungry for a retelling of the classic version of the vampire myth that is genuinely unsettling even, dare I say, scary. With the innumerable variations of vampires over the years there is something refreshing about returning to the basics of why these creatures invade our dreams and our fears in the first place. There is a primal quality to Nosferatu that is found only in that version of Dracula, one that lacks romance or remorse and simply preys upon our deepest, darkest, and most potent fears.

The post Chasing Shadows: The 100 Year History and Legacy of ‘Nosferatu’ appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Releasing in theaters on Christmas, Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th-century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.

Lily-Rose Depp stars as Ellen Hutter, the woman who unwittingly summons the beast and finds herself locked in a dark love triangle that also includes her pure-hearted husband Thomas (Nicholas Hoult).

“What’s really interesting about their dynamic is that it’s not so straightforward as she’s being pursued by this disgusting beast that she wants nothing to do with,” Depp told Bloody Disgusting about Ellen and Orlok’s relationship. “There is a real yearning and connection that goes both ways between the two of them.”

Depp continues, “That was an interesting line to toe because Rob [Eggers] wanted there to be, especially, without giving anything away, a real palpable sensuality in those [late] scenes, which I think makes everything all the more terrifying and complex and fascinating to watch. Because he also represents the darkness within her that she’s trying to come to terms with. Again, without giving anything away, I think indulging in that also represents accepting within herself.” 

Eggers dove deep when researching for Nosferatu, pulling from folklore for his central antagonist. In other words, he had a specific vision in mind for Count Orlok. Yet Skarsgård still brought something unexpected to his performance that surprised the director and added depth to the vampire’s connection to Ellen.

Eggers tells us about his Count Orlok, “I mean, I suppose it is in the writing. I was thinking back to [George Gordon] Byron’s poem, that was potentially one of the first or second times that a vampire is mentioned in English language literature, and even there, the vampire, in the Anglo-literary tradition, has some melancholy and some pathos. So I suppose I was thinking about that.

“But I was so obsessed with making him a villain that I sort of forgot about it. And Bill brought that pathos. It was really important because it’s obviously Ellen’s story; she’s the victim of this vampire, and she’s also the hero of the story. But Orlok is just as alone as she is.“

It’s that strange loneliness of both characters that’s at the heart of Nosferatu. I wrote in my review, “Nosferatu isn’t a love story in the conventional sense – this demonic Strigoi isn’t capable of such an emotion – but it does depict one of the most riveting and macabre love triangles in cinema. Thomas and Ellen’s love is pure and wholesome and occasionally even raw, but Ellen remains an irresistible siren to her violent, evil ex-lover. One willing to destroy everything.”

My 5-star review for Bloody Disgusting continues, “It’s a grotesque twist on a love triangle, one that Eggers fearlessly pushes into revolting territory thanks to his eponymous vampire.“

The post A Macabre Love Triangle: Robert Eggers and Lily-Rose Depp Discuss the Sensuality of ‘Nosferatu’ appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Set to release in theaters on Christmas Day, the R-rated Nosferatu “is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman and the terrifying vampire infatuated with her, causing untold horror in its wake.” 

Skarsgård previously teased that he “worked with an opera singer to bring his voice down to its lowest possible pitch” and “spent three to six hours every day in makeup and prosthetics.” But transforming the actor so fully went beyond altering his voice and appearance. Writer/Director Robert Eggers drew from folkloric origins when creating his vision of Count Orlok, which didn’t just reflect in the character’s design but in the way his vampire would feed.

We won’t spoil the details, but let’s just say that this version of Count Orlok eschews convention when it comes to movie vampires and the way they feed on their victims.

“Very often, folk vampires didn’t drink blood,” Eggers tells Bloody Disgusting. “They would sometimes suffocate people. They would sometimes return to their widows and fornicate with their widows until they died from being oversexed. But these early folk vampires, if they did drink blood, they would often drink it from the chest.”

Eggers continues, “For this film that is both a scary horror movie but also a tale of obsession, a love triangle, a Gothic romance, there’s something poetic about drinking heart blood. I also think it comes from Old Hag syndrome; sleep paralysis where you’re having a waking dream, and you feel the pressure on your chest. So that’s where it comes from.”

When Count Orlok does feed in Nosferatu, the sound is intense and nauseating. So much so that even Eggers was surprised. “The sound, honestly, I didn’t expect the sound to be quite so intense,” the filmmaker reveals. “But Damian Volpe, the sound designer, played it for me. It was even crazier in the first version, but I thought, ‘There’s actually something to this.’ The slurping is so visceral; we dialed it down a little bit from the first draft, but it’s pretty cool.“

The sound design only enhances Eggers’ unique take on the character and material. I wrote in my 5-star review, “It’s a grotesque twist on a love triangle, one that Eggers fearlessly pushes into revolting territory thanks to his eponymous vampire. There’s nothing romantic at all about the walking corpse with an insatiable appetite for blood, though lust may be a different story.”

Focus Features will release Nosferatu in theaters for Christmas on December 25, 2024.

The post How Classic Folk Vampires Inspired ‘Nosferatu’ Director Robert Eggers’ Version of Count Orlok appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The sheer volume of Dracula adaptations, official or otherwise, naturally begs the question of whether there’s anything left to mine from Stoker’s foundational story. Writer/Director Robert Eggers (The Northman, The Witch) immediately dispels any notion that his adaptation could possibly offer another straightforward yet handsomely crafted retread. The filmmaker’s steadfast commitment to period authenticity and immersive set pieces delivers a breathtaking, immersive experience, but it’s the way that Eggers reinterprets Murnau’s seminal work as a psychosexual gothic tragedy that transforms this adaptation into a mesmeric macabre masterpiece.

The first drastic departure comes before the Nosferatu title card even appears as it introduces protagonist Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp), a social outcast begging for an end to her loneliness. She cries out into the dark for an angel to save her, but instead, her pleas awaken a menacing evil, Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård), creating an impenetrable bond of death and obsession between them. Years later, Ellen finds salvation in new husband Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult), but Orlok’s quest to claim Ellen as his is only just beginning.

Depp turns in an incredible physical performance as Ellen, a preternaturally gifted woman born centuries ahead of her time. This Ellen is an outsider for her premonitions and eerie bouts with melancholy that present as horrific seizures that only her doting but clueless husband seems to quell. Of course, these violent fits come right at dusk, a vulgar display of power hailing all the way from Transylvania from an undead abusive lover.

Nosferatu isn’t a love story in the conventional sense – this demonic Strigoi isn’t capable of such an emotion – but it does depict one of the most riveting and macabre love triangles in cinema. Thomas and Ellen’s love is pure and wholesome, and occasionally even raw, but Ellen remains an irresistible siren to her violent, evil ex-lover. One willing to destroy everything. It’s a grotesque twist on a love triangle, one that Eggers fearlessly pushes into revolting territory thanks to his eponymous vampire. There’s nothing romantic at all about the walking corpse with an insatiable appetite for blood, though lust may be a different story.

Much has been touted about Bill Skarsgård’s unrecognizable transformation as Count Orlok, instilling monstrous expectations. Eggers, presenting a more traditional Transylvanian nobleman for Orlok’s garbs and origins, doesn’t shy away from making his central villain as repulsive as possible. It’s in the startling glimpses of his putrid flesh or the nauseating animalistic slurps of Orlok’s feeding as he hovers over prey in sexually prone ways. Yet it’s not the most jaw-dropping aspect of Skarsgård’s portrayal; the committed actor trained extensively with an opera singer to lower his voice an entire register. Orlok doesn’t just look intensely commanding but sounds dangerously powerful as well.

There’s not a single facet of Nosferatu that doesn’t impress for the sheer artistry on display. Night scenes aren’t simply well-lit; they’re re-envisioned as monochromatic nightmares, evocative of black and white gothic horror classics. Craig Lathrop’s exquisite production design whisks audiences on a tactile journey filled with dread-inducing decrepit castles, a city torn asunder by plague, gypsy camps, and beyond. Robin Carolan’s triumphant score, combined with Damian Volpe’s unsettling sound design, only furthers the immersive gothic spell. As beautiful as the costuming, set pieces, and dreamy cinematography can be, complete with quiet long takes and ethereal camera work, it’s equally matched by the horror on display. Violent deaths, an excess of blood, and necrophilia ensue in great abundance.

Ellen and Count Orlok make for one of the more morbid visions of Beauty and the Beast, but that also applies to Eggers’ visual language and storytelling. It’s so impeccably crafted, boasting production design and values rarely seen in horror like this, without sacrificing the taboo-pushing, visceral horror in the process. It’s operatic and dramatic, bold and revolting, with a powerful final shot for the ages. And Eggers’ Nosferatu happens to be set over Christmas. That all but ensures this macabre masterpiece is destined to become a new holiday horror classic.

Nosferatu releases in theaters on December 25, 2024.

The post ‘Nosferatu’ Review – Robert Eggers’ Macabre Masterpiece Heralds a New Holiday Horror Classic appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Additionally, we’ve learned that Eggers’ Nosferatu will be playing up on the big screen in 35mm in select locations, with a new poster this week providing us with a rundown of those theaters.

See Nosferatu in 35mm at the following locations beginning December 25…

• Alamo Brooklyn – New York, NY
• Chinese Theater – Los Angeles, CA
• New Beverly – Los Angeles, CA
• Music Box – Chicago, IL
• Alamo New Mission – San Francisco, CA
• Coolidge Corner – Boston, MA
• Alamo South Lamar – Austin, TX
• The Belcourt – Nashville, TN
• Hollywood Theatre – Portland, OR

Succumb to the darkness and grab your tickets now. Nosferatu has been rated “R” by the MPA for “Bloody violent content, graphic nudity and some sexual content.”

Additionally, find two brand new official posters down below.

[Related] Eggers Shares the Classic Horror Movies That Inspired His Vampire Epic

Bill Skarsgård is playing Nosferatu in the film, in theaters everywhere December 25.

Nicholas Hoult, Emma Corrin, Willem Dafoe, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Lily-Rose Depp also star in Robert Eggers’ big screen resurrection of the Nosferatu legend.

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham. 

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979.

The 1922 silent movie followed the vampire Count Orlok, who wants to buy a house in Germany and becomes enamored with the real-estate agent’s wife. It was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” which almost led to all copies being destroyed.

The post See Robert Eggers’ ‘Nosferatu’ On the Big Screen in 35mm at These Locations! appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

We’re exclusively unveiling Robert Egger’s Guest Selects video, which highlights unexpected genre picks below.

The filmmaker provides insight into underseen classics that include The Innocents, The Queen of Spades, Svengali, Cries and Whispers, and Angels & Insects. If you’re already rushing to the Alamo Drafthouse website to grab Nosferatu tickets, select locations will also be programming Eggers’ Guest Select Cries and Whispers on December 27. That should make for a great double feature.

Bill Skarsgård is playing Nosferatu/Count Orlok in the film, in theaters December 25, 2024.

Nicholas Hoult, Emma Corrin, Willem Dafoe, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Lily-Rose Depp also star in Robert Eggers’ big-screen resurrection of the Nosferatu legend.

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs, and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham. 

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979. Eggers brings his vision to screen this Christmas. We may not be able to get a peek at Count Orlok until the film releases, but Eggers’ Alamo Drafthouse Guest Selects at least gives a strong indication of what to expect in terms of stunning gothic horror.

Nosferatu has been rated “R” for “Bloody violent content, graphic nudity, and some sexual content.”

Tickets are on sale now!

The post ‘Nosferatu’ Director Robert Eggers Shares His Alamo Drafthouse Guest Selects That Inspired His Vampire Epic [Exclusive] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Nosferatu has been rated “R” by the MPA for…

“Bloody violent content, graphic nudity and some sexual content.”

Bill Skarsgård is playing Nosferatu/Count Orlok in the film, in theaters December 25, 2024.

Nicholas Hoult, Emma Corrin, Willem Dafoe, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Lily-Rose Depp also star in Robert Eggers’ big screen resurrection of the Nosferatu legend.

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham. 

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979.

The 1922 silent movie followed the vampire Count Orlok, who wants to buy a house in Germany and becomes enamored with the real-estate agent’s wife. It was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” which almost led to all copies being destroyed.

The post ‘Nosferatu’ Rated “R” for Bloody Violence and “Graphic Nudity” appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Bill Skarsgård is playing Nosferatu/Count Orlok in the film, whose appearance has been hidden from the film’s marketing up to this point. And a new preview piece from Entertainment Weekly today suggests that will remain the case until the day of December 25, 2024.

According to the outlet, “Only when audiences arrive in theaters on premiere day this Christmas will the general public see the results of the full hair, make-up, and prosthetics.”

Entertainment Weekly also notes that the hiding of Nicolas Cage’s look in Longlegs by NEON’s marketing campaign “only confirmed that this was the right decision” for Nosferatu.

“I think the best way to discover Orlok is through the movie for the first time,” Bill Skarsgård tells Entertainment Weekly “The movie functions on that, as well. He lives in the shadows for a long time, and it teases the reveal of the character as the movie progresses.”

Co-star Willem Dafoe teases, “The only thing that I thought was really great and felt really fresh is he looks like he could have been from Romania as opposed to a suave English guy or something. He had a look that was rooted in historic accuracy and a folk tradition.”

Check out a gallery of new images below and learn more on Entertainment Weekly.

Nicholas Hoult, Emma Corrin, Willem Dafoe, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Lily-Rose Depp also star in Robert Eggers’ big screen resurrection of the Nosferatu legend.

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham. 

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979.

The 1922 silent movie followed the vampire Count Orlok, who wants to buy a house in Germany and becomes enamored with the real-estate agent’s wife. It was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” which almost led to all copies being destroyed.

The post The ‘Nosferatu’ Marketing Campaign Will NOT Reveal the Title Character Until the Film’s Release appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Bill Skarsgård is playing Nosferatu/Count Orlok in the film, whose appearance still remains hidden in a new batch of Nosferatu character posters debuted by IGN this morning.

The five character posters instead spotlight stars Nicholas Hoult, Emma Corrin, Willem Dafoe, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Lily-Rose Depp, and you can check them out below.

Nosferatu will release in theaters on December 25, 2024.

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham. 

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979.

The 1922 silent movie followed the vampire Count Orlok, who wants to buy a house in Germany and becomes enamored with the real-estate agent’s wife. It was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” which almost led to all copies being destroyed.

The post Five ‘Nosferatu’ Character Posters Spotlight Count Orlok’s Latest Batch of Victims appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Heretic Parfum’s Nosferatu is available starting tomorrow, Thursday, October 31 on Heretic Parfum’s website for $125.

The limited edition scent is described as, “cold, pale and pellucid, the fragrance evokes the uneasy chill of encountering an apparition.”

“A scent as atmospheric as the film, the perfume transports the wearer into the dark spaces inhabited by Count Orlok himself. The Eau de macabre opens with top notes of lilac and ambrette seed that fall into a heart chord of violet, orris root and petrichor. The mysterious dry-down is woven around vegan ambergris and Oud absolute.”

The cap of each 30ml bottle is engraved with Count Orlok’s sigil and comes packaged in an exquisite black coffret complete with printed fragrance notes and inspiration.  Bill Skarsgård is playing Nosferatu/Count Orlok in the film, but his appearance remains shrouded in secrecy.

The special release makes for a Halloween treat that should hold us over until Robert Eggers’ latest arrives in theaters on Christmas.

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham.  Willem Dafoe, Nicholas Hoult, Emma Corrin and Lily-Rose Depp star alongside Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven the Hunter), Simon McBurney and Ralph Ineson in the film.

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979.

Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu will release in theaters on December 25, 2024.

The post ‘Nosferatu’ Limited Edition Scent by Heretic Parfum Lets You Smell like Count Orlok appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Bill Skarsgård is playing Nosferatu/Count Orlok in the film, whose appearance remains hidden even in this latest official trailer. A smart play from Focus Features that further builds dread and anticipation while we spend the next few months waiting for this classic horror throwback.

Nosferatu will release in theaters on December 25, 2024.

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Willem Dafoe, Nicholas Hoult, Emma Corrin and Lily-Rose Depp also star alongside Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven the Hunter), Simon McBurney and Ralph Ineson.

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham. 

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979.

The 1922 silent movie followed the vampire Count Orlok, who wants to buy a house in Germany and becomes enamored with the real-estate agent’s wife. It was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” which almost led to all copies being destroyed.

The post ‘Nosferatu’ – Succumb to the Darkness and Watch the Official Trailer for Robert Eggers Remake appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The 30-second video, which you’ll find embedded below, moves up a gothic pillar of some sort to reveal the date “9/30/2024” etched into the stone, and it’s pretty safe to say that Focus Features is promising the film’s official trailer this coming Monday, September 30, 2024.

This lines up with a scoop earlier this week indicating that a 2-minute, 30-second trailer for Nosferatu has been rated for release, and it now looks like next Monday is indeed the day.

Today’s video was tweeted out with the following mysterious message:

‘Til you bid me come, shall you watch the world become as naught.

Nosferatu will release in theaters on December 25, 2024.

Bill Skarsgård is playing Nosferatu/Count Orlok in the film.

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Willem Dafoe, Nicholas Hoult, Emma Corrin and Lily-Rose Depp also star alongside Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven the Hunter), Simon McBurney and Ralph Ineson.

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham. 

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979.

The 1922 silent movie followed the vampire Count Orlok, who wants to buy a house in Germany and becomes enamored with the real-estate agent’s wife. It was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” which almost led to all copies being destroyed.

‘Til you bid me come, shall you watch the world become as naught. pic.twitter.com/jy9EEMVAYe

— Nosferatu (@NosferatuFilm) September 27, 2024

The post Mysterious ‘Nosferatu’ Video Teases Full Trailer for Next Week appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Bill Skarsgård is playing Nosferatu/Count Orlok in the film, and we get a fresh preview of his take on the character via this official poster. Does Eggers’ Nosferatu have… hair?!

Check out the new Nosferatu poster below…

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Willem Dafoe, Nicholas Hoult, Emma Corrin and Lily-Rose Depp also star alongside Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven the Hunter), Simon McBurney and Ralph Ineson.

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham. 

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979.

The 1922 silent movie followed the vampire Count Orlok, who wants to buy a house in Germany and becomes enamored with the real-estate agent’s wife. It was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” which almost led to all copies being destroyed.

The post Official Poster for ‘Nosferatu’ from Director Robert Eggers Gives Us a New Look at Count Orlok appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Preview the classic gothic horror atmosphere of the upcoming Nosferatu below.

Bill Skarsgård is playing Nosferatu/Count Orlok in the film.

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Willem Dafoe, Nicholas Hoult, Emma Corrin and Lily-Rose Depp also star alongside Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven the Hunter), Simon McBurney and Ralph Ineson.

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham. 

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979.

The 1922 silent movie followed the vampire Count Orlok, who wants to buy a house in Germany and becomes enamored with the real-estate agent’s wife. It was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” which almost led to all copies being destroyed.

The post New ‘Nosferatu’ Images Preview the Dark Gothic Vibes of the Robert Eggers Remake appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Check out a brand new image above and expect more soon.

Bill Skarsgård is playing Nosferatu/Count Orlok in the film.

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Willem Dafoe, Nicholas Hoult, Emma Corrin and Lily-Rose Depp also star alongside Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven the Hunter), Simon McBurney and Ralph Ineson.

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham. 

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979.

The 1922 silent movie followed the vampire Count Orlok, who wants to buy a house in Germany and becomes enamored with the real-estate agent’s wife. It was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” which almost led to all copies being destroyed.

The post ‘Nosferatu’ – Bloody New Look at Lily-Rose Depp in Robert Eggers Remake appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Focus Features will release Nosferatu in theaters for Christmas on December 25, 2024.

Watch the official teaser trailer for Nosferatu below, which sets the stage for the iconic movie monster’s return with a first look bathed in dark gothic vibes. Bill Skarsgård is playing Nosferatu/Count Orlok in the film, and this first teaser trailer smartly keeps the monster hidden in the shadows. But his sinister presence is lurking around every corner…

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Willem Dafoe, Nicholas Hoult, Emma Corrin and Lily-Rose Depp also star alongside Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven the Hunter), Simon McBurney and Ralph Ineson.

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham. 

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979.

The 1922 silent movie followed the vampire Count Orlok, who wants to buy a house in Germany and becomes enamored with the real-estate agent’s wife. It was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” which almost led to all copies being destroyed.

The post ‘Nosferatu’ Trailer – Robert Eggers Remakes a Horror Classic appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Bill Skarsgård will be playing the title character (also known as Count Orlok) for Robert Eggers, and he teases his top secret performance in a new chat with Esquire this week.

We say “top secret,” of course, because the movie’s marketing hasn’t yet revealed the look of the character. But it sounds like Skarsgård dove scary deep into the role. For starters, Esquire explains that the actor “worked with an opera singer to bring his voice down to its lowest possible pitch,” and “spent three to six hours every day in makeup and prosthetics.”

“It took its toll,” he tells Esquire in his own words.  “It was like conjuring pure evil. It took a while for me to shake off the demon that had been conjured inside of me.”

“I do not think people are gonna recognize me in it,” Skarsgård continues.

He additionally teases, “He’s gross. But it is very sexualized. It’s playing with a sexual fetish about the power of the monster and what that appeal has to you. Hopefully you’ll get a little bit attracted by it and disgusted by your attraction at the same time.”

Focus Features will release Nosferatu in theaters for Christmas on December 25, 2024.

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham. 

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979.

The 1922 silent movie followed the vampire Count Orlok, who wants to buy a house in Germany and becomes enamored with the real-estate agent’s wife. It was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” which almost led to all copies being destroyed.

The post Bill Skarsgård Teases His ‘Nosferatu’ Look and Performance; “Gross” and “Very Sexualized” appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Here are the coolest horror collectibles unveiled this week!

Crimson Peak 4K UHD from Arrow Video

Crimson Peak will haunt 4K Ultra HD on May 21 via Arrow Video. The 2015 Gothic horror/romance is presented in 4K with Dolby Vision, approved by director Guillermo del Toro, and original DTS:X Master Audio sound.

Del Toro co-wrote the script with frequent collaborator Matthew Robbins (Mimic, Pinocchio). Mia Wasikowska, Jessica Chastain, Tom Hiddleston, Charlie Hunnam, and Jim Beaver star with Doug Jones and Javier Botet appearing as ghosts.

The limited edition set comes with a double-sided poster, four double-sided postcards, and an 80-page book featuring writings by David Jenkins and Simon Abrams, an interview with del Toro, and conceptual illustrations by Guy Davis and Oscar Chichoni, all housed in a slipcase with art by Davis.

All the special features from Arrow’s 2019 Blu-ray edition are included: audio commentary by del Toro; The House is Alive: Constructing Crimson Peak, a feature-length documentary with cast and crew; an interview with del Toro; six making-of featurettes; deleted scenes; and more.

Humanoids from the Deep Figure from Amok Time

Humanoids from the Deep may not be the most marketable horror movie of the ’80s, but special effects legend Rob Bottin (The Thing, RoboCop) designed a cool creature for it — which Amok Time Toys has turned into an action figure.

Released as part of the retro-inspired Monstarz line, the toy stands 4″ tall and has six points of articulation, including a hinged jaw. Three versions are available for $20 each: standard (limited to 650), yellow glow (limited to 250), and red glow (limited to 200).

Deathdream 4K Ultra HD from Blue Underground

Deathdream (also known as Dead of Night) will be released on 4K Ultra HD on May 21 via Blue Underground. The 1974 horror film been newly restored in 4K 16-bit from the 35mm negative with Dolby Vision HDR and 1.0 DTS-HD Master Audio.

Bob Clark (Black Christmas, A Christmas Story) directs from a script by Alan Ormsby (Cat People, Popcorn), inspired by W.W. Jacobs’ classic short story “The Monkey’s Paw.” John Marley, Lynn Carlin, Richard Backus, and Henderson Forsythe star.

Special features include: three audio commentaries (one with Clark, one with Ormsby, and a new track with historians Troy Howarth and Nathaniel Thompson); interviews with Ormsby, Backus, actors Anya Liffey and Gary Swanson, composer Carl Zittrer, and production manager John Cardos; “Tom Savini: The Early Years” featurette; and more.

The Lighthouse Screenplay Book from A24

A24 has released The Lighthouse screenplay book for $60. It’s the 11th installment in the studio’s series of 8×11 hardcover editions, which also includes the likes of The Witch, Hereditary, and Midsommar.

In addition to Robert & Max Eggers’ original script, the 216-page tome includes an introduction by actor Willem Dafoe, essays by authors Lauren Groff and Ian McGuire, full-page stills, and excerpts from a 1881 lighthouse keeper’s guide.

Monolith Blu-ray from Well Go USA

Monolith will invade Blu-ray on April 23 from Well Go USA. Starring Evil Dead Rise’s Lily Sullivan, the Australian sci-fi horror thriller marks the feature directorial debut of Matt Vesely.

In her review, Jenn Adams calls Monolith “a low-fi thriller that needles its way under the skin and will likely have viewers interrogating the dark secrets in their own lives.”

Special features include: a commentary by Vesely, writer Lucy Campbell, and producer Bettina Hamilton; a behind-the-scenes featurette; and the trailer.

For more merch madness, peruse the Killer Collectibles archives. You can also visit Broke Horror Fan.

The post 5 of This Week’s Coolest Horror Collectibles Including ‘The Lighthouse’ Screenplay Book from A24 appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Entertainment Weekly has shared a new image from Nosferatu this morning, giving us our first look at Willem Dafoe’s character in the film, Professor Albin Eberhart Von Franz.

Eggers describes the character as “a crazy vampire hunter.”

Focus Features will release Nosferatu in theaters for Christmas on December 25, 2024.

Willem Dafoe, Bill Skarsgård, Nicholas Hoult, Emma Corrin and Lily-Rose Depp will star in Nosferatu, with Skarsgard playing Nosferatu/Count Orlok in the film.

As we’ve recently learned, the cast also includes Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven the Hunter), Simon McBurney (The Conjuring 2) and Ralph Ineson (The Witch).

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham. 

Focus is distributing in the U.S. with Universal Pictures International handling international.

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979.

The 1922 silent movie followed the vampire Count Orlok, who wants to buy a house in Germany and becomes enamored with the real-estate agent’s wife. It was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” which almost led to all copies being destroyed.

The post ‘Nosferatu’ 2024: First Image of Willem Dafoe as a Mad Vampire Hunter in Robert Eggers Remake appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

This latest shot gives us another look at Nicholas Hoult’s character in the movie, while again teasing the appearance of Bill Skarsgård as classic horror icon Count Orlok.

Eggers tells Total Film in their 2024 Preview issue, “Bill lost a tremendous amount of weight. He’s so transformed in every aspect that I don’t know if people will give him the credit. You can’t detect any Bill here. He worked with an opera coach to lower his voice an octave. I think people are going to think we treated it digitally, but that’s his performance.”

Focus Features will release Nosferatu in theaters for Christmas on December 25, 2024.

Willem Dafoe, Bill Skarsgård, Nicholas Hoult, Emma Corrin and Lily-Rose Depp will star in Nosferatu, with Skarsgard playing Nosferatu/Count Orlok in the film.

As we’ve recently learned, the cast also includes Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven the Hunter), Simon McBurney (The Conjuring 2) and Ralph Ineson (The Witch).

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham. 

Focus is distributing in the U.S. with Universal Pictures International handling international.

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979.

The 1922 silent movie followed the vampire Count Orlok, who wants to buy a house in Germany and becomes enamored with the real-estate agent’s wife. It was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” which almost led to all copies being destroyed.

The post ‘Nosferatu’ – New Look at Nicholas Hoult in Next Year’s Robert Eggers Remake appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Focus Features will release Nosferatu in theaters for Christmas on December 25, 2024.

Peter Kujawski, Chairman of Focus Features, said in an official statement released this afternoon, “The audacious filmmaking of Robert Eggers is always a gift for fans, and we can promise that his Nosferatu is planning quite the Christmas feast.”

Willem Dafoe, Bill Skarsgard, Nicholas Hoult, Emma Corrin and Lily-Rose Depp will star in Nosferatu, with Skarsgard playing Nosferatu/Count Orlok in the film.

As we’ve recently learned, the cast also includes Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven the Hunter), Simon McBurney (The Conjuring 2) and Ralph Ineson (The Witch).

“Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Eggers (The Witch, The Northman) directs and he wrote the script. Eggers also serves as a producer alongside Chris Columbus, Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham. 

Focus is distributing in the U.S. with Universal Pictures International handling international.

F.W. Murnau directed the original 1922 version of Nosferatu, while fellow German filmmaker Werner Herzog notably directed his own version of the classic tale back in 1979.

The 1922 silent movie followed the vampire Count Orlok, who wants to buy a house in Germany and becomes enamored with the real-estate agent’s wife. It was an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” which almost led to all copies being destroyed.

The post ‘Nosferatu’ Movie from Director Robert Eggers Sets Christmas 2024 Release Date appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.