Nicolas Cage reveals his compelling reason for wanting to do a solo Dracula movie after his supporting performance in the upcoming Renfield.
Renfield star Nicolas Cage speaks about his compelling reason for wanting to do a solo Dracula movie. It seemed like perfect casting when Cage was announced as the man to play the most famous of all movie vampires in a new film centered on Dracula’s famed lackey Renfield. That sense was only reinforced when the first trailer for Renfield dropped, previewing Cage’s unique and wacky take on Bram Stoker’s immortal bloodsucker. But, as Cage himself recently revealed, his Dracula only plays a small role in the new movie, ceding the spotlight to Nicholas Hoult’s Renfield.
Those disappointed by the news that Cage has limited screen time in Renfield should take heart however, as the actor has revealed his desire to do a solo Dracula film somewhere down the road. Speaking to Total Film (via Games Radar), Cage revealed why exactly he wants to further explore his Renfield character:
You know, there are some minor moments here where you get to see some of the pathos in Dracula’s eyes. That made me think that maybe one day I might like to try for a whole movie where you’re really understanding the psyche of the character. I didn’t really have the time to delve into that here.
Dracula Is Bound To Overshadow Renfield (Despite His Limited Screen Time)
Renfield is being billed as a horror-comedy that explores the amusing idea of Renfield as a mistreated employee looking to break away from the ultimate terrible boss after falling in love. The movie has a number of celebrated creatives behind the camera, including The Lego Batman Movie’s Chris McKay as director and Rick and Morty alum Ryan Ridley penning the script on a story idea The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman. With all of these pieces, there’s reason to believe the movie could pull off the trick of mining comedy from a second-fiddle horror character like Renfield.
But even if the movie succeeds at making Renfield’s situation amusing, it seems inevitable that Cage’s Dracula will overshadow Hoult’s character, if not the entire film. Talk about the movie pre-release has primarily focused on Cage, and when the trailer was released, the buzz about Cage’s wild Dracula performance only became louder. Producers are sure to have known that casting Cage was bound to create such buzz, given the way the internet obsesses over his every move.
It may be true that Cage’s Dracula is only on-screen for brief moments in Renfield, but Cage doesn’t need much screen time to completely dominate a movie. For better or worse, Dracula already feels like the main character of Renfield even if he isn’t. When the movie releases, audiences may be left feeling that they would prefer to watch Cage explore the psyche of Dracula, rather than giggle at jokes about Renfield being the horror equivalent of a jerky celebrity’s stressed-out personal assistant.
Source: Total Film (via Games Radar)
