It's Pennywise actor Bill Skarsgård and Lily-Rose Depp join the cast of Robert Eggers' remake of F.W. Murnau's iconic silent horror movie, Nosferatu. The 1922 influential German horror movie is an unauthorized and unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula novel and one of the earliest films focusing on vampires. Eggers announced his Nosferatu remake in 2016, but the film has suffered through a lengthy period of development hell.
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Released in March 1922, Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror is one of Murnau's most renowned and influential films. Produced in Germany, the story is based partially on Stoker's seminal vampire novel, as a young couple is targeted by the bloodthirsty Count Orlok (Max Shreck) when he moves to the German town of Wisborg. A controversial film at the time due to the Stoker estate winning a lawsuit over the film adapting the novelist's work without permission, Nosferatu has nevertheless remained an influential piece of early 20th-century cinema, inspiring the horror genre and being referenced across pop culture. And despite Egger's revealing his Nosferatu remake had suffered schedule delays in March, The Northman director's next film has received a promising update.
As reported by Deadline, Eggers' Nosferatu remake will now be produced by Focus Features and has found its two lead stars in Skarsgård and Lily-Rose Depp. Known for his role as monstrous clown entity Pennywise in Andy Muschietti's adaptations of Stephen King's horror novel It, Skarsgård will portray the Transylvanian vampire count that stalks Depp's character across 19th century Germany in Eggers' reimagining of Murnau's silent movie. Harry Styles and Anya Taylor-Joy were previously attached to star in Eggers' remake, but were unable to join the production due to scheduling conflicts.
Why Bill Skarsgård Is Perfect For Nosferatu
Skarsgård was praised for his creepy performance as Pennywise across Muschietti's two-part adaptation of King's 1986 novel, in which he embodied the entity's twisted glee when using his victim's fears to torture them. Since the actor has already terrified audiences with his portrayal of one icon of horror, it is understandable why he has been cast as the vampiric count in Eggers' remake. Schreck's original performance is one of the film's most enduring aspects, with his physical appearance and presence as Count Orlok when he stalks his prey frightening viewers and laying the groundwork for how vampires are depicted to this day. As such, Skarsgård has already proven that he is more than able to create a terrifying, impactful physical performance that lingers in the audience's minds long after the credits roll.
Despite Eggers joking about his Nosferatu remake's delays being due to supernatural interventions from beyond the grave by Murnau, Skarsgård and Depp's casting is a promising development for the director's long-anticipated reimagining. Despite many of the film's prints being destroyed following the Stoker lawsuit and otherwise lost to time, Murnau's 1922 silent film has an unshakable place in pop culture and inspired many creatives since, including Eggers himself. With the Nosferatu remake having finally found its lead roles, dedicated horror fanatics are sure to be anticipating their first glimpse of Skarsgård as Count Orlok.