Writer/director Robert Eggers recently dipped his toes into period epic territory with “The Northman” but is returning to the world of horror/suspense with a remake of the classic silent vampire film “Nosferatu” that was originally helmed by German filmmaker F. W. Murnau back in 1921. A familiar face is expected to be joining the cast as a new report from Deadline has revealed Eggers is currently in talks with actor Willem Dafoe to take a role in the new horror drama from Focus Features that already boasts a cast that consists of Lily Rose-Depp, Bill Skarsgård, and Nicholas Hoult in main roles.
This new version of “Nosferatu” is described as 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. However, Skarsgård is said to be playing the vampire in the film. It’s still a mystery what role Eggers eyes for Dafoe.
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Interestingly enough, Dafoe once played a fictional version of Max Schreck, who plays Count Orlok in “Shadow of The Vampire,” which pushed the premise Schreck was really a vampire and fed upon the film’s crew during production. Dafoe earned his second Oscar nomination for the role back in 2001. “Nosferatu” would mark the third project Eggers and the actor work together. Dafoe was the co-lead in the maritime thriller “The Lighthouse” which saw him play a surly lighthouse keeper opposite Robert Pattinson. More recently, he took the smaller role of a jester/shaman in the aforementioned Viking revenge epic, “The Northman.”
We’ll keep our fingers crossed that “Nosferatu” could be ready for release or the festival circuit closer to the end of the year or early 2024. It might be a smart move for Focus to release the horror project around Halloween, but then again, the genre has been doing fine year-round lately.