In quite possibly the greatest piece of casting in the history of cinema, Nicolas Cage will play Dracula in Universal's Renfield.
According to Deadline, the legendary thespian (Mandy, Pig) has signed on to play the iconic vampire in Chris McKay's monster movie, which has also enlisted Nicholas Hoult (X-Men: First Class, Mad Max: Fury Road) in the title role.
Ryan Ridley penned the script, which is based on an original story outline from Robert Kirkman. McKay will also produce alongside Samantha Nisenboim and Skybound Entertainment’s film team of Kirkman, David Alpert, Bryan Furst and Sean Furst.
In Bram Stoker's novel, R.M. Renfield was introduced as one of Dr. Seward's inmates before his backstory revealed that he was actually Dracula's attorney and Jonathan Harker's predecessor. Driven mad by the evil Count, Renfield became his willing acolyte, believing he would one day be given the gift of eternal life.
The character has appeared in most adaptations of the classic tale, and has been played by the likes of Dwight Frye in 1931's Dracula and Tom Waits in Francis Ford Coppola's 1992 version. We don't know if this film will simply retell the story from Renfield's point of view or come up with a brand new premise, but it has been confirmed to take place in the present day and will not be a period piece.
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Mark Cassidy is a writer, photographer, amateur filmmaker, and Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic from Dublin, Ireland.