Future Vampires Part Three: 8 Final Upcoming Movies

Welcome to part three of Vin’s Vampire Ventures! If you haven’t read the first two parts of my sinister series, don’t be afraid to check out part one (2021-2022) and part two (2023-2024) covering upcoming vampire movies. The full set can be found here.

As you might remember, I’ve been sinking my teeth into twenty-two vampire films that are expected to arrive in the next three years. The previous articles tackled seven titles each, but here is the third and final set with not seven, but eight upcoming movies, all expected for 2024 and beyond. Prepare your calendars and watch parties now, cause these are going to rock with friends!

Julius Avery’s Van Helsing

Not much is known about the upcoming Van Helsing reboot, other than the fact that it’s “an original horror/thriller” about the famous monster hunter created by Bram Stoker in his original Dracula novel. Universal Pictures previously tried to launch a Van Helsing franchise in 2004 with Hugh Jackman as the lead. Even though that film flopped, the studio has allegedly continued to view the property as a top priority in the 17 years since.

Julius Avery (Overlord) is directing and writing, based on an original draft by Eric Pearson (Black Widow, Godzilla vs. Kong), with James Wan producing. Deadline notes that this could be a dark, R-rated interpretation, which lines up with Wan’s previous producer-only film credits in the Mortal Kombat, Conjuring, and Saw franchises. Coincidentally, Syfy’s Van Helsing show featuring “Vanessa Helsing” just finished its fifth and final season, so that might be worth a watch while we wait for Avery’s film to release.

• • Directed by Julius Avery, Written by Julius Avery and Eric Pearson, Based on characters by Bram Stoker
  • Produced by Universal Pictures, Atomic Monster
  • Announced December 1, 2020 by Deadline

 

Natasha Kermani’s Abraham’s Boys

Another Van Helsing project, Abraham’s Boys will be a sequel to Bram Stoker’s novel, written and directed by Natasha Kermani and based on a short story from Joe Hill (Locke & Key, The Black Phone). The film is expected to follow Max and Rudy Van Helsing, whose overprotective father starts to become bizarrely paranoid and erratic. Interestingly, the contemporary drama is set to “explore the boys’ trauma” from the perspective of “a young Asian woman who is no stranger to death.” While little else is known about Abraham’s Boys just yet, Kermani’s latest film Lucky was a huge horror hit on Shudder this year. So if you’re interested, you can check out Joe Hill’s story and Kermani’s film to get a taste of what to expect!

• • Directed by Natasha Kermani, Written by Natasha Kermani, Based on the short story by Joe Hill, Based on characters by Bram Stoker
  • Produced by Tea Shop Productions
  • Announced June 7, 2021  by Deadline

Deon Taylor’s Blacula

A modern reimagining of the 1972 classic of the same name, Deon Taylor’s Blacula is also expected to “pick up” from 1973’s Scream Blacula Scream. Whether reboot or soft sequel, the upcoming Blacula will definitely be a timely take, as the story will reportedly be set in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic. Like in the original movie, Blacula will be an African prince entombed by Dracula for trying to stop the slave trade. Reawakened in the modern-day, Blacula seeks vengeance for America’s racial injustices of the past 200+ years. The filmmakers are hoping that the film will appeal to audiences around the world and open important dialogues. Blacula (1972) was a blaxploitation horror classic that basically launched an entire subgenre, so if you haven’t seen it yet, you should hunt it down to learn what Blacula is all about!

• • Directed by Deon Taylor, Written by Deon Taylor and Micah Ranum
  • Produced by MGM, Bron and Hidden Empire Film Group
  • Announced on June 17, 2021 by Variety 

The Hunger is a book adaptation announced by Berlanti Schechter Productions for Angela Robinson (Professor Marston & the Wonder Women) to direct from a script by Jessica Sharzer (American Horror Story), although the script has yet to be written. Berlanti Schechter Productions signed a first-look deal with Netflix in July 2021, so this may be a straight-to-streaming release.

Little is known about Robinson’s take on the film, but an earlier film adaptation in 1983 is a cult classic erotic horror starring Catherine Deneuve, David Bowie, and Susan Sarandon. A bisexual vampiress (Deneuve) uses the blood of her victims to live thousands of years alongside her handpicked human partners. Although she promises them immortality, it does not come with eternal youth, dooming her lovers to an eternal life of pain. When her current boyfriend (Bowie) starts rapidly aging, he seeks out a scientist who studies aging (Sarandon). Naturally, things only get more complicated as the film evolves into a gothic tale of queer empowerment.

Robinson and Sharzer teaming up to remake this sound like a really fun, twisted R-rated horror flick! Be sure to also check out Professor M and American Horror Story: Hotel to get an idea of what to expect, but please note that both have a hard R / TV-MA rating.

• • Directed by Angela Robinson, Written by Jessica Sharzer, Based on the book by Whitley Strieber
  • Produced by Berlanti Schechter Productions
  • Announced May 18, 2021 by Deadline
  • Netflix First-Look deal July 6, 2021 by Netflix

Chloé Zhao’s Dracula

Just before becoming an Oscar superstar this spring, Chloé Zhao announced that she would be writing, producing, and directing a Dracula movie in the vein of a “futuristic sci-fi western.” Sci-fi westerns aren’t an unfamiliar concept, having already formed their own subgenre with favorites like Star Wars, Back to the Future III, Cowboy Bebop, Firefly, and Westworld. Zhao said her inspiration was “the concept of the Other” that vampires embody, along with the quandary of immortality she began to explore in her current film Eternals. Universal Pictures additionally noted that Zhao’s film will focus on vampires as “overlooked and misunderstood” outsiders. It sounds like this project might be a ways away, so while we try to imagine what Chloé Zhao’s Dracula might be like, be sure to catch Eternals in theaters now!

• • Directed by Chloé Zhao, Written by Chloé Zhao, Based on characters by Bram Stoker
  • Produced by Universal Pictures
  • Announced February 4, 2021 by Variety

Derek Kolstad’s Hellsing

Hellsing is an upcoming live-action manga adaptation written and produced by Derek Kolstad (John Wick, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Nobody). The original manga was a clever action-horror series following the immortal vampire Alucard, who is a reimagining of Dracula. Alucard operates as part of Hellsing, an England-based organization that protects the world against various supernatural threats. There was a 13-episode anime adaptation in the late 2000s.

The producers behind the project praised the manga for its quirky wit and the potential for building rich mythology. No director has been attached yet.

• • Written by Derek Kolstad, Based on the manga by Kouta Hirano, Based on characters by Bram Stoker
  • Produced by Amazon Studios, Automatik Entertainment, Ranger 7 Films, Soluble Fish Productions
  • Announced March 4, 2021 by Deadline
  •  

 

Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu 

Hot on the heels of 2014’s horror sensation The Witch, Robert Eggers signed on to remake F. W. Murnau’s legendary Nosferatu (1922), with Anya Taylor-Joy (Last Night in Soho, The Queen’s Gambit) to star. The production partners are expected to be Studio 8 and Parts & Labor. Although the project has been completely put on hold, Eggers has been nothing but busy, having completed The Lighthouse (2019) and finishing the upcoming The Northman (2022) in the time since the announcement. Speaking to IndieWire, Eggers admitted that Nosferatu has a “very close, magical connection” for him and that his film would focus on the “origins of the folk vampire,” with the trademark approach that he applied in The Witch and The Lighthouse.

Taylor-Joy has been busy as well and recently told LA Times that she expects to start Nosferatu immediately after her other upcoming projects (The Menu, Furiosa, and Laughter in the Dark).

Update March 28, 2022: After being briefly attached, Harry Styles left the project. Eggers later confirmed that Styles’ role would have been Thomas Hutter, the human protagonist of the original 1922 film. Additionally, Egger’s usual cinematographer Jarin Blaschke was confirmed for the film, with plans to shoot in Prague.

Update September 30, 2022: After seven years, Taylor-Joy has finally left the project. Lily-Rose Depp was cast as her replacement and Bill Skarsgard joined as the titular vampire. The film is now set at Focus Features and producers include Jeff Robinov, John Graham, Eggers, Chris Columbus and Eleanor Columbus. A new synopsis reveals “In the new reimagining, Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman (Depp) in 19th century Germany and the ancient Transylvanian vampire (Skarsgard) who stalks her, bringing untold horror with him.”

Update October 7, 2022: After starring in Renfield, Nicholas Hoult is staying in the vampire realm by joining the cast of Nosferatu. It is unknown who he will be playing, but it’s reasonable to assume he will fill Harry Styles’ former role of Thomas Hutter. 

• • Directed by Robert Eggers, Written by Robert Eggers
  • Produced by Focus Features
  • Announced July 28, 2015 by Deadline
  • Eggers interview November 11, 2016 by IndieWire
  • Taylor-Joy update August 14, 2017 by Variety
  • Taylor-Joy interview August 24, 2021 by Los Angeles Times
  • Harry Styles left; Blaschke update March 28, 2022 by The New Yorker
  • Hutter character details April 12, 2022 by IndieWire
  • Taylor-Joy left; Focus Features, Depp and Skarsgard updates September 30, 2022 by Deadline
  • Hoult update October 7, 2022 by Deadline