Renfield Is Finally Giving Dracula’s Henchman The Attention He Deserves

With the debut trailer for Renfield, Dracula’s henchman is finally getting the attention he so richly deserves. While much anticipation about the horror comedy has swirled around Nicolas Cage’s depiction of Dracula, scenes from the trailer reveal that Nicholas Hoult’s Renfield will be the star as a minion under the long shadow of his infamous employer. Aside from attending group therapy sessions to work through his complicated relationship with his boss, Renfield also reveals a few powers of his own normally reserved for the Count.

Typical depictions of Renfield, like Francis Ford Coppola’s horror movie Bram Stoker’s Dracula, have shown a feral minion who shuffles along at Dracula’s side like Dr. Frankenstein’s Igor, eagerly doing his bidding while patiently waiting for the Prince of Darkness to recognize his efforts. Count Dracula always promises to turn Renfield into a vampire but continuously dangles that prize just out of his reach. Each of his boss’s excuses is designed to ensure his enduring loyalty as well as his subservience.

Dracula’s Henchman Will Be More Than A Comedic Lackey In Renfield

Unlike previous depictions of the character, Hoult’s Renfield performs his duties with reluctance and isn’t simply around to lighten the mood, thus having more in common with Stoker’s novel Dracula. Most adaptations, like the Christopher Lee Hammer Dracula movies, only take the vampire character seriously. However, in Renfield, the characters played by Cage, Awkwfina, and Ben Schwartz will provide the comic relief so often given to Dracula’s henchman. This gives Renfield a chance to perform a different function in the movie and be more well-rounded.

Since everything that happens in Renfield comes from his perspective, he has a chance to create his personal narrative. In a comedy, he also doesn’t have to occupy space as the only character providing slapstick to make Dracula seem more intimidating. Renfield is viewed as a competent employee in his own right, whose only problems come from an employer who doesn’t recognize his personal needs nor treat him as an equal.

Having Superpowers Gives Renfield An Entirely Different Goal

Typically, Renfield is thought of as a groveling minion who relies on Dracula’s abilities to protect him, but in one memorable scene in the trailer, eating insects actually gives Renfield superpowers. By granting Renfield these powers instead of continuously making the promise, Dracula has made him more capable of standing up for himself. Renfield shows a minion who decides to stop being a pushover after suddenly realizing that he has his own agency.

Because Renfield no longer wants to be a vampire, he’s free to have entirely different goals. This includes becoming a normal person far removed from the vampire business and anything to do with Count Dracula. Without being a dutiful lackey or a source of comic relief, he can be a more complete character, and when Renfield is released, he’ll finally get to tell his story as a fully developed hero rather than Dracula’s henchman.