Renfield - Hot Garbage Dracula

Back in 2021 we were approached by Chris Mckay and his team to do some early design exploration for Renfield played by Nicholas Hoult and Dracula played by Nicolas Cage.

Following a battle with vampire hunters in the opening scene, Dracula is left burnt by the sun, heavily scarred and injured. This look was termed Dracula’s “Hot Garbage” look and was particularly fun as we were given licence to explore the various ways the hunters might have skewered, burnt or melted (with holy water) Dracula. Mckay also wanted us to play with the idea of Dracula as a shapeshifter that could transform back and forth from a giant bat to a wolf or man during a battle. As the story progresses, Dracula slowly heals from his injuries, so we also explored a few stages of healing with him becoming gradually stronger and more recognizable.