Nearly a decade ago, Robert Eggers helmed his first horror film, The Witch, before he went on to direct The Lighthouse and The Northman. Later this year, Eggers is revisiting his horror roots with Nosferatu, a remake of the 1922 silent film. The first trailer for Nosferatu premiered over the weekend in theaters, and it’s now online as well. And if the plot seems very familiar, it’s probably because the original Nosferatu was already an unauthorized take on Bram Stoker’s Dracula.
Bill Skarsgård, who played Pennywise the Dancing Clown in Warner Bros.’ two-part adaptation of Stephen King’s It and will reprise the role in the upcoming prequel series Welcome to Derry, will portray the monstrous Count Orlok in Nosferatu. Unlike most of Hollywood’s vampires, Orlok is hideously ugly, and the trailer goes out of its way to withhold his appearance. But his shadow looms over the city, and Orlok himself is set upon a young woman named Ellen Hutter (Lily-Rose Depp).
The trailer shows that Ellen doesn’t understand what’s happening as Orlok exerts his influence over her. Like her counterpart in Dracula, Mina Harker, Ellen already has a husband, Thomas Hutter, as played by Superman‘s Nicholas Hoult. However, Orlok’s obsession with Ellen means that Thomas is simply another obstacle to overcome, and it’s doubtful that the vampire is losing any sleep during the day over his rival.
Willem Dafoe, who co-starred in Eggers’ The Lighthouse, has the Abraham Van Helsing-like role, Professor Albin Eberhart Von Franz. His character is the only one who truly realizes the threat that Count Orlok represents to Ellen and everyone else in the city. But even that knowledge may not be able to stop this vampire.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson also stars in the film as Friedrich Harding, with Emma Corrin as Anna Harding, Simon McBurney as Herr Knock, and Ralph Ineson as Dr. Wilhelm Sievers.
Nosferatu will haunt theaters on December 25.
