One of the contemporary masters of horror will soon present his interpretation of the iconic vampire Nosferatu, Robert Eggers (“The Witch: A New England Folk Tale”, “The Lighthouse”). The director is to serve viewers a gothic horror story, which he believes has been missing in recent years. However, the story is supposed to be different from the original and shift the center of gravity to the character of Ellen Hutter.
In the production about the legendary vampire, the audience will be able to see many respected actors: Bill Skarsgård as Count Orlok, Lily-Rose Depp as Ellen Hutter, Nicholas Hoult as Thomas Hutter or Willem Dafoe as Professor Albin Eberhart von Franz.
In an interview for Deadline, Robert Eggers talked about the phenomenal performance of Lily-Rose Depp, who was very involved in her character. Already at the casting stage, she showed her extraordinary acting talent. During the audition, she surprised the director by being able to show a whole range of intense emotions.
“Me, the casting director, and even the cameraman we burst into tears because it was so powerful. She was, just like in the movie, incredibly brave, raw and powerful. “Her ability to tune into this dark and haunted place so quickly is phenomenal,” Eggers said, entranced.
Ultimately, the director decided to reduce the number of shots due to the physical intensity that could have been exhausting for the actress.
“It was very physically demanding for her. I tend to do a lot of takes, but there are moments when you realize we only have so many takes because it’s so exhausting for her. It’s her. We didn’t enhance it with CGI. She makes these moves,” he added.
The director also talked about the heroine’s controversial relationship with Count Orlok, which is, in a sense, based on madness, obsession and demonic possession:
“Ellen has always understood and sensed others and is very attuned to the other world. She is a deep person, but she has no chance to talk about these things. As a young woman in this period, she also has no authority. So she is called melancholic, crazy and so next. This is a very misunderstood character. As much as Orlok is a demon, there is something that he offers. (…) The archetypal motif is not so much love obsession. And I think that’s the nature of this relationship.”
The premiere of the horror film “Nosferatu” was announced for December 25. The production will be released in Polish cinemas less than two months later, on February 21, 2025.
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