By: Amelia Lozano
With the spooky season upon us, I finally have a reasonable excuse to discuss my favorite resurgence in the media: vampires.
This has been a steadily-growing comeback. One could say that vampires have always been culturally relevant, but in recent years, there has been an especially huge surge in the number of vampire shows and movies going on air.
There is the series “Interview with the Vampire” based on Anne Rice’s gothic romance novels, the Netflix teen drama “First Kill,” the films “Renfield” and Robert Egger’s remake of “Nosferatu” (both starring Nicholas Hoult) and plenty, plenty more that I’m missing.
So what’s up with the recent thirst for more of the blood-sucking monsters?
In a historical sense, vampires originate from European folktales to explain unusual deaths, supernatural encounters and the unsettling process of decomposition in human bodies among other things.
Generally speaking, vampires have long been viewed as evil or grotesque, but recent vampire media has somewhat strayed from the horrific monster qualities of vampires. Or, at the very least, these qualities are downplayed in favor of humanizing vampires.
The film “Renfield” features Nicholas Holt’s titular character as a servant to Nicolas Cage’s Dracula – though the famed vampire is more akin to a bad boss than the terrifying threat the media expects him to be.
Similarly, the animated “Hotel Transylvania” film series does not meet traditional standards of vampires. Instead, the movie portrays Dracula as a goofy father to his goth vampire daughter.
Even media that doesn’t lean into the comedic caricatures of vampires tend to make the creatures more human or relatable to the viewer.
In AMC’s television adaptation of Anne Rice’s “Interview with the Vampire,” the main cast of vampires face both human and vampiric troubles. Louis de Pointe du Lac, played by Jacob Anderson, endures racial conflicts in 1910’s New Orleans while navigating his newfound vampirism; and, as the series progresses, he faces the pains of fatherhood and an abusive relationship all while growing stronger as a vampire.
Even in the film “Abigail,” starring Alisha Weir as the titular character, the evil ballerina-vampire is assigned human qualities. She is forever a child trying to reach the expectations of her vampire father.
Another personal favorite vampire story of mine is Mike Flanagan’s miniseries “Midnight Mass,” released in 2021 on Netflix. The series deals with religious trauma and the tensions between townsfolk on a small island where vampires begin to take over.
Robert Egger’s upcoming “Nosferatu” remake will come out on Dec. 25 and I’m personally very excited to see how the director adapts the story.
For people like me who have long been fascinated by vampires and all things creepy, this renaissance of blood-suckers will keep me fed this Halloween season.