| Dracula | |
|---|---|
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| Genre | |
| Created by | |
| Based on | Dracula byBram Stoker |
| Written by |
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| Directed by |
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| Starring | |
| Composers | |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 3 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Producer | Sue Vertue |
| Running time | 88–91 minutes |
| Production company | Hartswood Films |
| Original release | |
| Network | |
| Release | 1 January (2020-01-01) – 3 January 2020 (2020-01-03) |
Dracula is a horror drama television serial developed byMark Gatiss andSteven Moffat, loosely based on the 1897novel of the same name byBram Stoker. The series, consisting of three episodes, premiered on 1 January 2020 and was broadcast over three consecutive days onBBC One before releasing onNetflix.Claes Bang stars as thetitle character.
The series follows Dracula from his origins inEastern Europe to his battles withVan Helsing's descendants and beyond.[1] Netflix's description reads: "The Count Dracula legend transforms with new tales that flesh out the vampire's gory crimes - and bring his vulnerability into the light."[2][3]
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | UK viewers (millions) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Rules of the Beast" | Jonny Campbell | Mark Gatiss andSteven Moffat | 1 January 2020 (2020-01-01) | 6.99[5] | |
Jonathan Harker travels to Count Dracula's castle inTransylvania to assist with a property purchase in England. During Harker's stay, Dracula feeds on his blood and becomes youthful, while Jonathan becomes increasingly weak. Harker searches the castle, and discovers variousundead, all of whom were bitten by Dracula. Some retain some of their humanity and Dracula describes them as hisbrides. Dracula kills Harker, who immediately revives and throws himself into the river. Some time later Harker is found in the sea and taken to a convent, but his memories are impaired. He is questioned by Sister Agatha Van Helsing, accompanied by his fiancée, Mina. After almost attacking Mina, Harker tries to kill himself with a stake. Dracula, drawn by Harker's presence, arrives at the convent but is unable to enter without an invitation. After a verbal confrontation with Van Helsing, Dracula finds Harker, who is still undead, and addresses him through an open window. Explaining that the undead cannot kill themselves, he promises to end Harker's existence in return for an invitation inside. Harker agrees and Dracula enters, killing all the nuns ("I'm undead, not unreasonable.") except Van Helsing and Mina, whom he corners in a basement. | ||||||
| 2 | "Blood Vessel" | Damon Thomas | Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat | 2 January 2020 (2020-01-02) | 5.58[5] | |
Dracula is a passenger on theDemeter, which has been chartered to sail to England by a mysterious figure named Balaur. It carries other passengers, all of whom have a connection to Balaur, and cargo which includes boxes of soil from Transylvania. Dracula begins to kill passengers and crew, acquiring their memories and traits. It transpires that Dracula was Balaur and carefully selected his fellow passengers to prepare for his entrance into English society. The surviving passengers and crew search for the killer and discover an emaciated Agatha Van Helsing in one of the cabins. Dracula, who has been slowly draining her during the voyage, attempts to blame Agatha for the killings, but she convinces the others that Dracula is a vampire. After the surviving humans manage to set him on fire, Dracula throws himself into the sea. As the ship approaches Whitby, Dracula, who had been hiding on the ship, miraculously re-emerges. Agatha distracts him while the captain uses gunpowder to blow up the ship and prevent the vampire from reaching the shore. Dracula, however, manages to seal himself inside a coffin filled with his native soil as the ship sinks. | ||||||
| 3 | "The Dark Compass" | Paul McGuigan | Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat | 3 January 2020 (2020-01-03) | 5.22[6] | |
Dracula emerges from his coffin and surfaces on Whitby beach. He is met by Dr. Zoe Van Helsing, who tells him that 123 years have passed. He tries to feed on her, but her blood makes him vomit. He is imprisoned in a laboratory for study, and his blood is sampled. However, he contacts a lawyer who threatens to expose their illegal operations, and he is released. Zoe drinks Dracula's blood and begins to experience Sister Agatha's memories. Dracula becomes infatuated byLucy Westenra, a young socialite who does not fear him, and plans to make her his bride. Zoe, dying of cancer, begins to merge with Agatha's personality. Zoe travels to Dracula's London home. Lucy, now undead, also arrives but is horrified at what she has become, and is killed at her own request. Zoe exposes Dracula to the sunlight, but he is unaffected. Zoe explains that Dracula fears death above all and is greatly ashamed of this. He has conditioned himself to believe the legends as they allowed him to hide himself from the society that he feels unworthy of. Zoe dies and Dracula drinks her poisoned blood. The two share an epiphany in the sunlight. | ||||||
Development onDracula began in June 2017, withMark Gatiss andSteven Moffat reuniting to write the episodes.[7] In October 2018, the series was officially commissioned by theBBC, to air onBBC One andNetflix.[8]Claes Bang was set to star as the eponymous Dracula in November 2018.[9] According to the writers, Dracula in their version is "the hero of his own story" – the central focus of the narrative and main character, rather than a shadowy villain for more traditional heroes to overcome.[10] As with their TV seriesSherlock, they aimed to make their version of Dracula both faithful and faithless at the same time, taking details from the original novel, adding "a lot of new stuff" [that was not in the novel] and ignoring some passages from it.[11]
While the series includes a scene in which it is implied that Dracula and Harker have sex, Moffat has said that it is not correct to describe their interpretation of Dracula asbisexual: "He's bi-homicidal, it's not the same thing. He's killing them, not dating them."[12] He also added: "He's not actually having sex with anyone. He's drinking their blood."[13]
In February 2019,John Heffernan,Dolly Wells,Joanna Scanlan,Morfydd Clark and Lujza Richter joined the cast, with Gatiss also set to appear in the series.[14] In April,Jonathan Aris,Sacha Dhawan,Nathan Stewart-Jarrett,Catherine Schell, Youssef Kerkour andClive Russell joined the cast withJonny Campbell, Damon Thomas andPaul McGuigan announced as directors.[15]
Moffat revealed filming on the series had begun on 4 March 2019.[16] Filming took place atOrava Castle,Banská Štiavnica andZuberec inSlovakia and atBray Studios inBerkshire.[17][18] Filming was completed on 1 August 2019.[19] Bray Studios was the home of manyHammer Film Productions, the studio, having been initiated by the company (famed for its horror films includingDracula) as their base of productions in the 1950s.
The title sequence was made by Peter Anderson Studio.[20][21][22] In 2021 it was nominated for a BAFTA at the British Academy Television Craft Awards in the category "Television Craft – Titles & Graphic Identity".[22]
Dracula premiered on BBC One on 1 January 2020, and was broadcast over three consecutive days.[23] The three episodes were released on Netflix on 4 January 2020.[24] The documentaryIn Search of Dracula, with Mark Gatiss exploring the legacy of the famous Count, aired alongside the series onBBC Two on 3 January.[25][26] The overnight ratings for the three episodes were 3.60 million, 2.85 million, and 2.70 million respectively.[27][28][29]
To mark the series premiere, BBC Creative and Talon Outdoor constructed billboards stabbed with wooden stakes that would cast a shadow of the Count after sunset, and below the billboards was a stake inside a case with the label "In case of vampires - break glass". These billboards were put up on Brixton Road in London and Upper Dean Street inBirmingham.[30] The billboards won a number of awards and £100,000 worth of media space for the creators at the 2020 Outdoor Media Awards organised byClear Channel UK in partnership withCampaign.[31]
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The series was met with positive reviews.[32] OnRotten Tomatoes, the series garnered a 71% approval and an average rating of 7.2/10 from 55 critic reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "A delicious blend of horror and humor that more-or-less balances modern sensibilities and the character's beloved legacy,Dracula is a frighteningly fun - if not always faithful - time".[33]Metacritic assigned the series a score of 75 out of 100, based on 8 reviews, signifying "generally-favorable reviews".[34]
| Year | Award | Category | Nominee | Result | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Outdoor Media Awards | Visual Craft Award | Talon Outdoor/Havas Media BBC Media Planning/BBC Creative | Gold | [31] |
| Installation and Experience Award | Gold | ||||
| Grand Prix Winner | Won | ||||
| TV Choice Awards | Best New Drama | Dracula | Nominated | [35] | |
| Best Actor | Claes Bang | Nominated | |||
| 2021 | National Television Awards | Best New Drama | Dracula | Nominated | [36] |
| Saturn Awards | Best Television Presentation (under 10 Episodes) | Dracula | Nominated | [37] |
In February 2020, Bang expressed his interest in a second series. Gatiss said "Apparently if you pour blood onto Dracula's ashes he comes back. Who knows? Dracula tends to come back, that's what vampires do - but we have no idea [if the show will return]".[38]
Netflixoriginal ended series and miniseries (2019–present) | |
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| First released 2019 |
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| First released 2020 |
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| First released 2021 |
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| First released 2022 |
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| First released 2023 |
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| First released 2024 |
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| First released 2025 |
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