NOSFERATU director Robert Eggers teases a new take on Count Orlok that will haunt your nightmares

For horror film fans, few films are as iconic Nosferatudirector F.W. Murnauis a silent classic from 1922 that introduced the world to one of cinema’s first vampires: the mysterious and plague-ridden Count Orlok.

Director Roberto Eggers is now trying to create a remake that will resurrect the creature in a way that promises to disturb and delight horror fans.

After a recent screening of Eggers’ remake in Los Angeles, Guillermo del Toro joined the director on stage to talk about his twisted new take on Count Orlok.

Eggers’ version of Orlok won’t be your typical neck-biting vampire. Instead, Eggers changes things up with a method of nutrition that seems awfully primal.

Unlike Dracula or even Max Schreck’s original Orlok, who famously went for the jugular, Eggers’ vampire targets the abdomen. Eggers explained: “[Count Orlok is] passing through the navel rather than the heart”.

This adds a dark touch to the feeding ritual. And it doesn’t end here. This vampire also feeds from the chest as it somehow gets past the sternum to reach the heart blood of its victim.

Eggers continued: “Also, of course, the vampire drinks from people’s breasts, which is not easy with a sternum, but because of, for example, the ‘old hag,’ much of the older tradition has it that the vampire – if they feed at all and not just suffocate you, feeding you from your heart’s blood.

The concept isn’t just blood for blood’s sake. Eggers links this style of feeding to European folklore and other supernatural myths, particularly creatures linked to sleep paralysis and harrowing nightmares. Looks like things could get very creepy.

Eggers and del Toro provided other insights into what makes this version of Orlok work. Bill SkarsgardCount Orlok is described as “an obscenely reanimated corpse,” a vision of decadence not unlike the repellent revenants of 1970s Italian horror.

In one particularly interesting detail, Eggers revealed that Orlok’s face is “red, it’s like a burning fire… with blood pooling under his flesh.” This will make for some interesting visuals as Orlok’s features are flushed with pooled blood, as if his own thirst is barely keeping him contained within his pale skin.

While Focus Features kept quiet about revealing Skarsgård’s Orlok, horror fans began to piece together a terrifying mental image. The references point to something nightmarish.

Thanks to Eggers’ keen eye for historical detail and psychological horror, this remake of Nosferatu is shaping up to be a fantastic reimagining of the classic film.

Nosferatu tells the dark and twisted story of a tormented young woman’s obsession (Lily-Rose Depp) in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire who haunts her, bringing with him unspeakable horror.

Speaking previously about the film, Eggers said: “It’s a scary movie. It’s a horror movie. It’s a gothic horror film. And I think there hasn’t been an old school gothic movie that’s actually scary in a while. And I think most audiences will find that to be the case.

The film is also the protagonist Emma Corrin (Deadpool 3), Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven the Hunter), Simon McBurney (The evocation 2) AND Ralph Ineson (The witch).

The film will be released in theaters on December 25, 2024.