Renfield is a 2023 American comedy horror film directed and produced by Chris McKay, and written by Ryan Ridley from a story by Robert Kirkman, who also served as producer. Inspired by characters from the 1897 novel Dracula by Bram Stoker.
The film stars Nicholas Hoult as Renfield and Nicolas Cage as Dracula. The film also stars Awkwafina, Ben Schwartz, Adrian Martinez, Shohreh Aghdashloo.
The film was announced in 2014, focusing a story of the character Renfield in the classic monster universe, but the film entered development hell after the commercial failure of The Mummy (2017). Kirkman later came in and pitched a new version of the film to the studio, leaning more into the comedic aspects of the story, and the production rights were acquired by Skybound Entertainment. Dexter Fletcher was originally announced as director in 2019, but McKay eventually replaced him, working off the Ridley's script and Kirkman's original pitch. Much of the cast joined between August 2021 to January 2022, and filming took place from in February to August 2022, on a production budget of $65 million.
Renfield had its world premiere at the Overlook Film Festival on March 30, 2023, and was released in the United States on April 14, 2023, by Universal Pictures. The film received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the comedic tone and performances but criticized the story. It has grossed $12 million worldwide.
Plot[]
In the early 20th century, Transylvanian vampire Count Dracula meets English lawyer R. M. Renfield. Renfield hopes to broker a deal for some land, but ends up becoming Dracula's familiar. After killing Renfield, and being killed himself by Van Helsing, Dracula reforms himself and elects to resurrect Renfield to continue serving as his assistant.
Ninety years later, Renfield relies on the superhuman strength and agelessness Dracula gave him through regularly eating bugs. Dracula has recently had a close call with some vampire hunters who almost killed him, so the duo moves to New Orleans to recuperate. There, Renfield discovers a 12-step self-help group for persons in co-dependent relationships, and plans to hunt out the group's abusive lovers so he can kill and give to Dracula to feast on without feeling remorse. On following one to a warehouse with stolen drugs, Renfield is confronted by several criminals before they are all attacked by an assassin hired by the rival Lobo crime family.
After killing the assassin, Renfield unsuccessfully attempts to hunt down the man who hired him, Teddy Lobo, who drives off in a hurry, and a weakened Renfield drags the corpses back to Dracula's lair in the basement of the dilapidated Charity Hospital. Teddy runs into a sobriety checkpoint that is run by Rebecca Quincy, a second-generation police officer, who arrests Teddy after he hurls bricks of cocaine at her. At the police station, Teddy is released from custody by corrupt police officers, while Rebecca has a confrontation with her sister Kate, an FBI agent.
Dracula tells Renfield that the criminals he has brought as food are insufficient, and that the vampire desires the blood of someone pure and innocent instead. Renfield goes to a restaurant to abduct commoners while Rebecca is also led there by clues from the crime scene. The two are caught in an attack on Rebecca's life that Teddy has been pressured into making so that the fierce reputation of the Lobos will be reestablished. Instead, Renfield and Rebecca defend themselves, killing several gang members and leading Teddy to escape.
Teddy's mother, Bellafrancesca, orders him to hunt down the man who killed her footsoldiers, and he ends up encountering Dracula when Renfield is away. The two agree to form an alliance while Renfield has taken to heart the teachings of his self-help group and decides to make a life for himself apart from his master. Setting up an apartment and changing his attitude to one of helpfulness, Renfield gives a statement to the police to help them try to finally stop the Lobos. However, Dracula learns of Renfield's betrayal and slaughters the support group members in front of his former minion.
Rebecca appears and finds Renfield surrounded by dead bodies, causing her to arrest him until she is swarmed by corrupt police officers and the Lobos, who also want revenge on Renfield. Rebecca refuses to hand Renfield over, and she barely escapes with him. The next morning, Rebecca finds that Renfield has saved her life, and he explains his true origin while confirming that he wants to reform himself. The two fight through a group of corrupt police officers and decide to storm the Lobos' headquarters, only to find that Dracula has empowered over a half-dozen gang members to have all of Renfield's supernatural abilities, including Teddy.
After a fight, Renfield kills Teddy. Rebecca heads to stop Dracula only to find that Kate is beaten to near-death and only the healing properties of Dracula's blood can save her, which he will offer in exchange for Rebecca's loyalty. She tricks Dracula, leading to him having a final standoff with Renfield and Rebecca that ends with the two collaborating to capture him in a magical circle.
Renfield and Rebecca beat Dracula into pieces, capture his healing blood, and divide up the bits of his corpse into pieces of concrete that they scatter across the water system, either finally destroying the vampire or at least making it very hard for him to reform his body. Renfield later resurrects his self-help group friends with him feeling empowered to make a new life for himself.
Video[]
Cast[]
- Nicholas Hoult as Renfield
- Awkwafina as Rebecca,
- Adrian Martinez as Chris,
- Shohreh Aghdashloo as Bellafrancesca Lobo
- Nicolas Cage as Dracula
- Brandon Scott Jones as Mark
- Jenna Kanell as Carol
- Bess Rous as Caitlyn
- Camille Chen as Kate
- James Moses Black as Captain Browning
- Caroline Williams as Vanessa
- William Ragsdale as Older Priest
- Miles Doleac as Vampire Hunter
Additionally, Helen Chandler and Edward Van Sloan respectively appear as Mina Harker and Van Helsing via archive footage from Dracula (1931).