Nicolas Cage Is Not Happy About His Chance To Play Dracula And He’s Absolutely Right
Nicolas Cage feels he did not get the chance to portray a fully nuanced version of Dracula in Renfield, due to it being a supporting role.
Fans will get to see Nicolas Cage playing Dracula in Universal Pictures’ upcoming film Renfield. Cage told Variety that he was excited to take on the role, seeing it as a good challenge for himself. Now that filming has wrapped up and the movie is set to release in April, the actor has a few critiques of his character and hopes to expand on the role in the future.
In Renfield, the iconic vampire is a supporting role. The main character of the upcoming film is Dracula’s servant, Renfield (played by Nicholas Hoult), and not Dracula himself. Nicolas Cage, who was inspired to take on the role of Dracula after stunning performances in the past from Christopher Lee, Frank Langella, Bela Lugosi, and Gary Oldman, felt he was not able to play the character to his full potential.
Nicolas Cage notes how there were a few moments that allowed viewers to catch a fleeting glimpse into Dracula’s psyche. Occasionally you could see “some of the pathos is Dracula’s eye” according to Cage. However, constrained to a role as a supporting character, the vampire was not given the screen time he needed to shine.
After playing the character in Renfield, Nicolas Cage has expressed interest in possibly reprising the role in the future. The actor noted how he would love to take on a film where the bloodsucker can have more screen time. Nicolas Cage said he is keeping his eye on an upcoming Dracula project that could allow him to delve deeper into the character’s psyche.
In the meantime, fans can be excited to see Nicolas Cage’s interpretation of Dracula in Renfield. Even if he was not able to explore the character as much as he wanted to, we are sure Nicolas Cage’s Dracula will be a good one. The actor spent a lot of time preparing for the role and has gotten career advice from the best, including legendary rock stars.
The star is known for the great lengths he will go to when trying to embody a character. His most iconic roles include playing Ben Sanderson in Leaving Las Vegas, Benjamin Franklin Gates in National Treasure, and Ronny Cammareri in Moonstruck. The actor even had baby teeth pulled for his role in the 1984 film Birdy.
When crafting Dracula for Renfield, Nicolas Cage did his research to make sure he was doing the character justice. Nicolas Cage turned to past iterations of Dracula and took inspiration from Christopher Lee to help him. Lee played the first Dracula in the 1958 film named after the character.
Nicolas Cage pointed to his affinity for Christopher Lee’s version and his past with the actor. The two spent time together doing a scene on Season of the Witch. Nicolas cage notes how Lee reminded him of his father and took an immediate liking to the actor.
From there, Nicolas Cage took inspiration from his father, August, to help him embody the notorious bloodsucker, Dracula. While we may not be getting to see a huge performance by the character, if Nicolas Cage’s past roles tell us anything it’s that he is sure to be great.
We may even be able to look forward to Nicolas Cage reprising the role sometime in the future in his own movie. Renfield is set to release on April 14, 2023.
