The terrifying trailer for Robert Eggers’ remake of Nosferatu suggests that there’s finally a worthy successor to the Keanu Reeves-starring gothic horror masterpiece that is Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Although it’s technically a reimagining of F.W. Murnau’s 1922 silent horror film of the same name, much like Murnau’s movie, Eggers’ Nosferatu is also a twisted adaptation of the original vampire novel, Dracula. Bill Skarsgård will star as Count Orlok, the movie’s take on Dracula, while Lily-Rose Depp will play Mina Harker stand-in Ellen Hutter and Nicholas Hoult will play Jonathan Harker stand-in Thomas Hutter.

The recently released trailer for 2024’s Nosferatu promises the scariest vampire movie in years. It’s full of jump scares and unsettling imagery, with a suitably creepy atmosphere over the whole thing. From the comedic, action-packed Renfield to the single-chapter-focused The Last Voyage of the Demeter, most of the recent Dracula movies have either subverted or satirized the familiar characters and plot points of Stoker’s iconic novel. Eggers’ film will be the first straightforward adaptation in a long time, and it looks to be every bit the masterwork of gothic horror that Francis Ford Coppola’s 1992 version was.

Nosferatu Looks Like The Best Gothic Horror Vampire Movie Since Bram Stoker’s Dracula

Coppola brought Dracula’s gothic visuals to life

Coppola’s 1992 Dracula movie, titled Bram Stoker’s Dracula to give credit where credit’s due, is still considered to be one of the last really great gothic horror vampire movies. Elements of gothic horror can be seen in The Others, Guillermo del Toro’s Crimson Peak, and a lot of Tim Burton films. But these movies rarely grab gothic horror by the horns like Coppola’s film did. Crimson Peak is more of a love story than a horror movie and Burton often puts a quirky, tongue-in-cheek spin on horror tropes, like with the zany, brightly lit vampires of Dark Shadows.

Nosferatu looks like it’ll not only honor this style of the genre, but be the best example of it in years. Universal’s Dracula movies with Bela Lugosi and Hammer’s Dracula movies with Christopher Lee will always be the most iconic cinematic interpretations of Dracula, but I’ve always been partial to Gary Oldman’s Dracula from Coppola’s version. With its rich color palette, campy performances, and sumptuous set design, Bram Stoker’s Dracula is the perfect visualization of the gothic style of Stoker’s novel. Based on the cinematography seen in the trailer, Eggers is borrowing that style in his own adaptation of Dracula.

Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu Trailer Hints At Avoiding Complaints From 1992’s Dracula Movie

Nosferatu is upending everything wrong with Bram Stoker’s Dracula

While Bram Stoker’s Dracula is a beautiful adaptation of the classic horror novel with stunning visuals and (some) brilliant performances, it has been met with some common criticisms. Coppola’s movie is typically criticized for favoring style over substance, for its lack of a solid story structure, and for not being all that scary of a movie. Based on its trailer, Nosferatu is doing the opposite of all these things. There’s plenty of emotion in the actors’ performances, there’s a clear structure holding the story together, and there are a handful of hair-raising jump scares.

There is one complaint about Bram Stoker’s Dracula that might be replicated in Eggers’ Nosferatu remake. Reeves has often been criticized for his shaky English accent in Coppola’s movie, and based on the brief snippets of dialogue heard in the trailer, Depp’s English accent might be just as shaky in Eggers’ movie. But that’s only a minor complaint; a hit-and-miss British accent isn’t enough to ruin a whole movie. If Depp nails every other aspect of the performance, which seems to be the case, then a less-than-perfect accent is forgivable.

Nosferatu Has A Great Chance To Repeat Bram Stoker’s Dracula’s Box Office Success

The vampire genre has struggled at the box office lately

In the past few years, the vampire genre has struggled at the box office. A lot of genres have been struggling to make the money they made before COVID, but vampires in particular seem to have been hit the hardest. Whether they’ve been panned by critics, like Morbius or The Last Voyage of the Demeter, or well-received by critics, like Abigail or Renfield, a lot of recent vampire movies have disappointed at the box office. If Nosferatu can replicate the success of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, then it could save the vampire genre.

When it arrived in theaters in 1992, Bram Stoker’s Dracula grossed $215,862,692 at the worldwide box office on a budget of $40 million (via Box Office Mojo). Adjusted for inflation, that’s worth about $481 million today. Nosferatu is unlikely to make that kind of money – no one in Nosferatu is quite as big as Winona Ryder and Keanu Reeves were in the ‘90s – but if it’s as good as Bram Stoker’s Dracula, then it could still be a hit. The Christmas release date is a good sign, because it shows that Universal sees it as a potential blockbuster.