Robert Eggers is continuing his cult films of the occult.
The “Witch” and “The Northman” auteur takes on his long-gestating reimagining of “Nosferatu,” with Bill Skarsgård playing the titular vampire. “The Idol” breakout Lily-Rose Depp stars as Ellen Hutter, a woman whose soul is seduced by Count Orlok (Skarsgård) while her husband Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult) fights to save her.
Eggers writes and directs the remake of F. W. Murnau’s 1922 film, which was later adapted by Werner Herzog in 1979. The official description for Eggers’ “Nosferatu” reads: “Robert Eggers’ ‘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.”
Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Emma Corrin, Ralph Ineson, Simon McBurney, and Eggers’ longtime “The Lighthouse” and “The Northman” collaborator Willem Dafoe also star.
Lead actor Skarsgård told Esquire that the titular role “took its toll” on him, in part due to the “sexual fetish” of playing a blood-thirsty monster.
“It was like conjuring pure evil,” Skarsgård said. “It took a while for me to shake off the demon that had been conjured inside of me. 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.”
Anya Taylor-Joy was originally cast in the Ellen Hutter role in 2016 after having collaborated with Eggers on “The Witch” and “The Northman.” The “Furiosa” star exited the project due to scheduling conflicts. The COVID-19 pandemic also pushed “Nosferatu” back until after Eggers’ “The Northman” was completed. Harry Styles was also attached at one point for the part of Thomas Hutter before Hoult was cast.
Eggers previously told IndieWire that the film had “fallen apart twice” before going into production. “Nosferatu” was shot on film and marks Eggers’ latest collaboration with Focus Features after his 2022 Viking epic “The Northman.”
Eggers serves as a producer alongside “The Witch” and “The Lighthouse” producer Chris Columbus, plus Eleanor Columbus, Jeff Robinov, and John Graham.
“Nosferatu” will be released in theaters on Wednesday, December 25 from Focus Features. Check out the trailer below.
