The First ‘Dracula’ Movie Is Actually A Long Lost 103-Year-Old Film

Unlike what most people think, the first Dracula film is not the well-known Nosferatu film, but an Austrian silent movie named Drakula halála, which premiered in 1921. Only a few pieces of evidence including a novel adaptation of Drakula halála still exist, however, Nosferatu remains the first Bram Stoker novel-based production.

Although the 103-year-old movie is rightfully the first, it tells a different story of a destitute seamstress named Mary Land whose father lives in an “insane asylum.” Dracula kidnaps her after her father’s death but escapes until meeting him again, where he asks to be shot to prove his immortality. The movie ends with the bullet piercing through Dracula’s heart and killing him.

The first Dacula movie is a 103-year-old lost film

The F.W. Murnau-directed film Nosferatu featured Max Schreck as Transylvanian count and vampire Orlok. Amid a lawsuit from author Stoker’s heirs, several changes had to be made to the characters’ names and details; however, the court ruled that all copies of the film be destroyed, but some prints survived.

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Despite not being the first true adaptation of Stoker’s novel, Nosferatu inspired some of the characteristics associated with vampires, including the fact that they have to sleep all day as sunlight could kill them. On the other hand, Drakula halála’s version of the character was relatively closer to Stoker’s version, but Nosferatu continues to take the spotlight.

‘Dracula’ remakes

Another Nosferatu remake was released in 1979, and a new one to be released this year stars Bill Skarsgård playing the lead as Count Orlok. The upcoming goth film is directed by Robert Eggers, who started developing the film after The Witch in 2015. “The audacious filmmaking of Robert Eggers is always a gift for fans, and we can promise that his Nosferatu is planning quite the Christmas feast,” Focus Features chairman Peter Kujawski said, noting the release date.

The comeback, which is described as a “gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman and the terrifying vampire infatuated with her, causing untold horror in its wake,” will also feature Nicholas Hoult, Lily-Rose Depp, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Willem Dafoe, and others.