The Big Picture

• Dracula Untold was intended to be the start of a new franchise for Universal but failed to meet expectations.
• Universal had plans for a "Dark Universe" but canceled them after the failure of The Mummy.
• Dracula is still popular and there are several upcoming adaptations of the iconic character in development.

While it seems like audiences are inundated with a new incarnation of Spider-Man or Batman nearly every year, there have been countless depictions of Bram Stoker’s iconic gothic vampire Dracula on the big screen. There are certainly quite a few genuine classics of the horror genre that have featured the character; F.W. Murnau’s 1922 masterwork Nosferatu is an essential piece of the German Expressionist movement, Universal’s 1931 film Dracula introduced a version of the Count (played in a legendary performance by Bela Lugosi), 1958’s The Horror of Dracula introduced Christopher Lee’s legendary depiction of the character, Werner Herzog’s 1979 remake Nosferatu the Vampyre was just as horrifying as the original, and Francis Ford Coppola’s 1992 epic Bram Stoker’s Dracula introduced analyzed sexual frustration and heartbreak. However, Dracula is also a property that Hollywood wanted to mine for a potential franchise, and Universal attempted to launch a new series with 2014’s Dracula Untold. Nearly a decade later, word on a sequel featuring the return of Luke Evans as Vlad the Impaler has been near silent.

Why Did Universal Make a Dracula Movie?

Dracula Untold was released during a time when studios didn’t seem to have a clear direction on what to do with the most iconic monster characters in cinematic history. The Mummy franchise had spiraled out of control, and Mary Shelley’s masterpiece of horror fiction was adapted into two embarrassing projects, the action movie I, Frankenstein and the off buddy-comedy Victor Frankenstein. While these characters belong to the public domain, and can therefore be used by any filmmaker as long as it’s not adapting a specific version that already exists, Universal Studios had a proud legacy of owning these characters and intertwining their stories. From the 1930s to the 1950s, Universal created the first cinematic universe of sorts with classic horror films like Frankenstein, The Bride of Frankenstein, The Invisible Man, The Wolf Man, The Mummy, The Creature From The Black Lagoon, and of course, 1931’s Dracula. These characters would later appear in crossover events, cameo in each other’s films, and even face off with Abbott & Costello a few times.

What Is ‘Dracula Untold’ About?

Given the success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and every studio’s desire to launch a similarly connected universe, Universal moved forward with a new Dracula adaptation that could feasibly set up the premise for a recurring series. To its credit, the debut director Gary Shore and screenwriters Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless actually had a pretty interesting concept on their hands with Dracula Untold. Rather than tell the same “haunted mansion” story that previous iterations had utilized, Dracula Untold examined the mythology of the characters and tried to treat the material as a tragic historical epic in the style of a Ridley Scott film. The film begins as a traditional historical epic before slowly introducing the supernatural element of the Master Vampire (Charles Dance), who is forced to reside in a secretive, bone-encrusted cave in the enigmatic Broken Tooth Mountain.

Set in the 15th century, Dracula Untold introduces Evans as Vlad Drăculea, the Prince of Wallachia and Transylvania, and former ward of the Sultan and soldier in the Ottoman Empire. Vlad is capable of monstrous things during wartime, but he’s frightened by his own abilities and fears what unleashing his true rage would look like. He wants to support his kingdom, his wife Mirena (Sarah Gadon), his children, and the future of Europe, but learns that an Ottoman battalion intends to attack their kingdom. Their civilization would be on the peak of destruction, and Vlad has no other choice but to ask the Master Vampire (revealed to be an ancient Roman soldier named Caligula that sought the dark powers out of greed) to curse him with the powers of a vampire. Vlad uses his immortality and ability to transform into a cloud of bats to defend his kingdom. While Vlad’s transition into being a full-blooded vampire isn’t complete, he goes all the way down the dark path when a dying Miriena begs him to suck her blood.

Will ‘Dracula Untold’ Go on When Other Projects Have Taken Its Place?

The film concludes on a satisfying enough note that teased how Vlad could return for a sequel set during the modern day. Vlad has saved Europe from the threat of the Ottoman Empire, but he’s assumed to be dead in the aftermath of the final standoff. The last moments tease that, due to his vampirism, Vlad has survived and now wanders London in what appears to be modern times. The sequel hook occurs when it’s revealed that the Master Vampire has also survived and appears to be stalking him. While Dracula Untold grossed around $217.1 million, it also had a production cost of $70 million and received scathing reviews from critics. While the final scene was added in reshoots to tie the character into what could be the foundation of a new universe, Universal repositioned their upcoming reboot of The Mummy as the first entry in the “Dark Universe.”

The Mummy writer/director Alex Kurtzmann later confirmed that Dracula Untold was not part of the “Dark Universe” canon, and The Mummy was actively marketed as the official kickoff of the universe. By now, the failure of the “Dark Universe" has become a sort of legendary lesson about planning too far in advance; after the poor box office performance and terrible reviews for The Mummy, Universal canceled all plans for a connected universe. This included plans for Bill Condon’s remake of The Bride of Frankenstein starring Javier Bardem and Angelina Jolie, a reimagining of The Invisible Man with Johnny Depp, and the future of Russell Crowe’s Dr. Jekyll. Universal chose to refocus its efforts on the Blumhouse model. Leigh Weighnell rebooted a critically acclaimed version of The Invisible Man in 2020, and Universal chose to reboot the Dracula series in a more creative way with the Nicolas Cage comedy vehicle Renfield.

Dracula is more popular than ever. In addition to the recent release of Renfield, last year saw the release of The Last Voyage of the Demeter, a new take on Dracula set on the high seas. Production was stalled on Karyn Kusama's Dracula movie Mina Harker and Chloé Zhao’s new Dracula adaptation is at an unknown stage of development, but there’s bound to be another great director tempted by the iconic character. However, Dracula Untold’s dream of starting a new franchise may have died as a result of its box office and reviews, an unfortunate fate for a film that’s a lot more entertaining than it had any right to be.

Dracula Untold is available to stream on Netflix in the U,S.

Watch on Netflix