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NOTE: This article is about the Robert Eggers/2024 remake version of Count Orlok. For information on the original film, 1979 and 2023 remake, please click these three here.

I am an appetite. Nothing more. O'er centuries, a loathsome beast I lay within the darkest pit 'til you did wake me, enchantress, and stirred me from my grave. You are my affliction.
~ Count Orlok to Ellen Hutter - his most famous quote.

Count Orlok, also known as the Nosferatu, is the titular main antagonist of the 2024 gothic supernatural horror film Robert Eggers's Nosferatu, a remake of the 1922 silent film Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror.

He is a sorcerer vampire and aristocrat who grows infatuated with Thomas Hutter's wife, Ellen Hutter, ever since she was young, and becomes angered over her marriage with Thomas as he plans to force her to submit to him by any means necessary. Originally, Orlok was a Solomonar who was cursed by the Devil to become a vampire.

He was portrayed by Bill Skarsgård, who also played Richard Persson in The Crown Jewels, Willard Russell in The Devil All The Time, Kro in Eternals, the Marquis de Gramont in John Wick: Chapter 4, and Pennywise in the It film duology adaptation.

Appearance[]

This version of Orlok closely resembles the original; he is skinny, tall, slightly stooped, with pale skin and sunken eyes, sharp fangs that are rat-like, a domed forehead, a hooked nose, and large hands with long, claw-like fingers and nails. Orlok also dresses entirely in black, complete with a hunting coat, dark pants, fur hat, and high heeled shoes.

Although Orlok has some similarities to the original version, this Orlok has a more corpse-like appearance, with the back of his body rotten. He also lacks eyebrows, one side of his head is bald and the other side has hair combed to the left. He also has a bushy moustache, making him bear an extremely close resemblance to Dracula from Bram Stoker's original novel. Orlok also has the addition of a sable coat as part of his attire.

Personality[]

Similar to the original film, Orlok is portrayed as a completely cruel and merciless monster, who has admitted that he feels nothing but hunger. He is completely uncaring towards others and views people as victims to drain blood from. He deeply enjoys wreaking havoc and hurting people in any way he can, being completely callous towards the suffering of others, even if he's the one causing the suffering. Although he tries to hide his monstrous nature through a polite facade, the heartless beast he is still shines through and it doesn't take long for him to show his true inhuman colors.

This version also somehow manages to be even worse than his original counterpart. Orlok is actively shown tormenting others in various and horrifying ways, including through psychic communication (especially with Ellen) that manages to drive some people to madness. Orlok is also lustful and obsessive towards Ellen and wishes to keep Ellen for himself to drink her blood and please himself and Orlok even raped Ellen when she was just a teenager. Orlok's obsession also made him very possessive and extremely savage, committing a large amount of heinous acts (including murder and draining blood) just to finally get to Ellen and drink her blood.

Overall, Orlok is a vicious and bloodthirsty vampire with no redeeming qualities and is nothing but a vile monster who cares for absolutely no one and only desires to satiate his own sadistic bloodlust and hunger.

Biography[]

Past[]

Orlok's past is unknown. It is only known that he was a Transylvanian nobleman and dark sorcerer who made a deal with the Devil; his soul would never leave the earth, but he would have to stay alive by consuming the blood of other humans. After the deal was made, Orlok was transformed into a sinister vampire.

From his isolated castle in the Carpathians, Orlok spent much of his time terrorizing villages, especially with plagues, causing the villagers to be afraid to go out at night. He also seems to have infected others with his curse as at least one other vampire is seen throughout the film. However, little by little, the villagers found ways to confront the vampires.

Years before the start of the film, a young, tearful Ellen prayed for a "protecting angel, a spirit of comfort... anything" to help ease her loneliness. Orlok sensed this and took advantage of it to link with her through psychic means. He de-seasoned the young Ellen, lured her out of her home and attacked her, apparently raping her.

As a result, Ellen was traumatized and Orlok began to haunt her. They both made a pact that she would give herself to him, but once Ellen met and fell in love with the young Thomas Hutter, he managed to make her not think about Orlok or any of her traumas or nightmares, and as Ellen lost her fear of Orlok, he lost his power over her, which enraged him.

The Count began to plan his revenge, hoping to finish off Hutter, and have Ellen all to himself.

Although it is unknown how they met or how long they were working together, it is revealed that Thomas' boss, Herr Knock, was a Satanist who had become Count Orlok's servant, with whom he began plotting a plan to separate Ellen from Thomas.

Nosferatu[]

Knock sent Thomas to Orlok's castle, claiming that the old earl intends to buy a rundown old mansion to move into, and promises to give him a nice incentive if he can get Orlok to sign the real estate deal with him.

Thomas arrives at the earl's castle at night, and is greeted at the door by Orlok himself, who leads him to the dining room, while pretending to be offended by the late arrival of the real estate agent. While eating dinner, Thomas comments that he saw the gypsies performing a strange ritual. Realizing that what he saw was the murder of another vampire, Orlok grumpily changes the subject and begins to inspect the documents of the real estate transaction, while ordering Thomas to eat. Thomas cuts off his finger, causing Orlok's lust for blood to make him ask him to go to the fire so that he can "ease his pain." Using his sinister powers, Orlok causes Thomas to lose track of time, and as he sits in a chair in front of the fireplace, he attacks him...

Thomas wakes up the next morning, dazed, and seeing bite marks on his chest, while rats (presumably controlled by Orlok) watch him.

At nightfall, Orlok summons Thomas to the library, where he pretends to sign the deed that will officially mark the sale, but in reality it is the paperwork for Thomas and Ellen's divorce, but since it is in Romanian, Thomas does not understand it and ends up signing. While Thomas signs, Orlok takes Hutter's locket, which contains Ellen's lock of hair and the scent of lilac. Somewhat enraged, Orlok comments on how lucky Thomas is, before handing him a bag of coins, claiming that it is the commission he owes him. Thomas asks the Count why the house is so old and dilapidated, but Orlok ignores the issue, telling Thomas to go to bed, at which point the estate agent asks for permission to leave as soon as possible, claiming that he is feeling ill. Orlok refuses permission to leave, and orders him to stay until he gets better.

That same night he attacks Thomas again, and feeds on him, but using his powers, he erases his memory, leaving only bite marks on his chest as evidence of his attack.

Dazed, confused, and half-sick, Thomas tries to escape the castle, only to discover that the vampire has locked him in by locking all the doors in the place except one; the one that leads to a crypt containing Orlok's own coffin, where Thomas finds the Count sleeping with rats and various maggots on his rotting skin.

Realizing the Count's true nature, Thomas tries to kill him by stabbing him with an iron spike, but Orlok wakes up before Hutter can reach his heart, and sends his pet wolves after him. As Thomas locks himself away, Orlok smells the lilac-scented pendant holding Ellen's lock of hair, and rekindles his mental bond with her, telling her that her husband will not be around much longer. Using his powers, Orlok's shadow manipulates the weakened Thomas into opening the door to the room he has locked himself in, prompting Hutter to open the door to the vampire and his wolves, as Ellen sleepwalks out of the Hardin house. Orlok torments them both as he feeds on Thomas.

As Ellen begins to get sick, Thomas attempts to escape but he falls into the river below Orlok's castle and is knocked unconscious. Through their psychic link, Orlok provokes an attack on Ellen.

With Thomas out of his way, Orlok boards a ship that sets sail for Ellen's hometown of Wisborg, where he uses his powers to kill everyone on board. Once there, he unleashes a plague upon the town, killing several people using rats. With full control of the town, Orlok visits Ellen in a dream and threatens her: she must surrender to him in three nights or else Thomas and all the town's inhabitants will die. That same night, he infects Anna Harding, the wife of Thomas' friend Friedrich, with the plague, causing her to go mad.

The following night, Orlok sucks the blood of Anna and her two children, and Friedrich himself dies after having sex with Anna's corpse. Realizing what they must do, Ellen and Professor Von Franz come up with a plan; while Von Franz takes Thomas and Dr. Sievers to Orlok's lair to burn it down so he has nowhere to hide, Ellen will lure the vampire away from them by pretending to submit to him.

That night Ellen calls out to Orlok, who believes he has accepted his fate, and finds her in his bedroom dressed as a bride. Orlok spends the night having sex with her and feasting on her blood, but then it begins to dawn. Realizing that Ellen has tricked him, and that he has no chance of escaping death, Orlok tries to escape, but Ellen holds him to prevent him from doing so, and Orlok begins to convulse and bleed from his mouth and eyes all while screaming in agony until he becomes a normal, skeletal corpse.

With Orlok's death, the plague in Wisborg comes to an end and all those the vampire has killed have been avenged, including Ellen, whose sacrifice has not only haven't been in vain, but she has saved the life of her beloved husband and died in peace, free at last from the torment to which the Count had subjected her for years, and her soul can ascend to Heaven instead of being subjected to Orlok.

Powers and Abilities[]

  • Vampire physiology: Orlok was one of the most powerful vampires on Earth. In addition to his physical benefits and mental abilities, Orlok also possess the ability to turn other human beings into vampires.
    • Blood absorption: Orlok can drink the blood of other beings in order to increase his life.
    • Plague accessory: Orlok is capable of unleashing plagues and infecting people with them, which he uses to terrorize villages of his choosing.
    • Telekinesis: Orlok is able to move things without manually doing so, such as him being able to move curtains without touching them.
    • Umbrakinesis: Orlok is able to use shadows in order to travel and affect people.
    • Supernatural strength: Orlok possesses great levels of strength, allowing him to easily slaughter humans.
    • Supernatural speed: Orlok can move at great speeds. When he runs, he appears as a blur. His reflexes are also equally sharp.
    • Sharp claws: Orlok's sharp claws allow him to tear into people.
    • Fangs: Orlok's fangs allow him to bite into other humans in order to feed from their blood.
    • Immortality: As a vampire, Orlok has an infinite lifespan and has the potential to live forever.
    • Animal manipulation: Orlok can control feral beasts like wolves and bats.
    • Dark magic: Orlok, as a vampiric sorcerer, is able to manipulate and use the Dark Arts and its magical capabilities.
    • Psychic abilities: Orlok has displayed several telepathic capabilities. He shares a psychic link with the vampires he sired and can cast realistic illusions into the minds of others, as well as read them.
      • Hypnotism: Orlok has the ability to hypnotize people so they could perform actions against their own will as seen with Ellen and implicitly Herr Knock.
      • Madness inducement: Orlok is able to drive people to insanity through his psychic abilities and communication.
      • Telepathy: Orlok is able to communicate with others through their mind.

Notable Victims[]

  • Vasilyev - Died of the plague.
  • Redenko - Died of the plague.
  • Captain Yusov
  • Clara Harding
  • Louise Harding
  • Anna Harding
  • Little Friedrich - Fetal death.
  • Friedrich Harding - Died of the plague.
  • Ellen Hutter (posthumously) - Drained of blood which distracted him from the oncoming sunlight that killed him from exposure.

Quotes[]

Soon I will be no more a shadow to you. Your spirit was never enough. Soon our flesh shall embrace and we shall be as one.
~ Count Orlok's promise to Ellen Hutter as he sails for Wisborg.
I shall persist to join you every night, first in sleep, then in your arms. Everything will be mixed with abomination, and you'll be knee-deep in blood. Everyone will cry. There will be none to bury the dead. You... are... promised... to... me!
~ Count Orlok possesing Ellen Hutter's body as he makes a premonition to Professor Albin Eberhart Von Franz.
Orlok: The broker lives. I had cast aside his carrion body for my hellhounds to feed on.
Knock: I shall then stifle out the bridesgroom, your Lordship.
Orlok: I have use in him.
Knock: Pray then, instruct me, my Lord. Charge me. Use me. Shall I fetch unto thee thy pretty belonging?
Orlok: The compact commands she must willingly re-pledge her vow. She cannot be stolen.
Knock: Yet my Lord, I beg thee.
Orlok: Silence, dog! Your entreaties grow insolent. You shall crave of me nothing.
Knock: My Lord.
Orlok: Away! Daybreak draws near. Anon the bells of dawn shall toll in despair of my coming. And I shall taste of you.
~ Count Orlok and Herr Knock.
Ellen: I have felt you crawling like a serpent in my body.
Orlok: It is not me. It is your nature.
Ellen: No! I love Thomas.
Orlok: Love is inferior to you. I told you, you are not of human kind.
Ellen: You are a villain to speak so.
~ Ellen meeting Count Orlok again after a decade.
Orlok: Yet even now we are fated. Your husband has signed his name, and covenanted you to my person for but a sack of gold.
Ellen: Lies!
Orlok: For gold he did absolve his nuptial bond.
Ellen: You know nothing of him!
Orlok: And the resignation must be completed by you, freely of thine own will.
Ellen: You are a deceiver.
Orlok: You deceive yourself.
~ Orlok confesses that he made Thomas sign divorce papers, but Ellen doesn't believe him, calling him a liar.
Orlok: And thought you I would not return? Thought you I would not? Your passion is bound to me.
Ellen: You cannot love.
Orlok: I cannot. Yet, I cannot be sated without you. Remember how once we were? A moment. Remember?
Ellen: I abhor you.
Orlok: YOU ARE FALSE! So you wish me to prove my enmity as well? I will leave you three nights! Tonight was the first. Tonight you denied yourself, and thereby you suffer me to vanish up the lives of those you love!
Ellen: Denied myself?! You revel in my torture!
Orlok: Upon the third night you will submit, or he you call your husband shall perish by my hand.
Ellen: No!
Orlok: 'Til you bid me come, shall you watch the world become as naught.
Ellen: NO!
~ Orlok attempting to rekindle his and Ellen until she rejects him and he threatens her by saying he will kill Thomas and all the citizens of Wisborg if she does not reciprocate.

Gallery[]

Screenshots[]


Behind the Scenes[]

Promotional[]

Videos[]

Trivia[]

  • Orlok was Skarsgard's second major role in a remake released in 2024; the first was Eric Draven in the poorly received remake of The Crow.
  • Although there was early mixed (though leaning towards positive) opinions on how Orlok looked in the remake, the wide majority generally agreed that he was one of, if not arguably the most accurate depiction of Bram Stoker's Dracula, not just in terms of design, but also in portrayal, being portrayed as a sickly inhuman man unable to control his thirst for pure blood.
  • Orlok's design in the film is partially inspired by folk vampire. Robert Eggers stated that "there's never been a version of Dracula or Nosferatu dressed like a Transylvanian nobleman with authentic Hungarian attire from the 16th century". Costume designer Linda Muir used Transylvanian military from around 1560 to the mid-1600s as inspiration for Orlok's design, incorporating pieces of clothing such as dolman, mente fur coat, or kolpak into Orlok's costume.[1][2]
  • Eggers wanted to distance this Orlok from previously cinematic vampires. He draw inspiration from folklore, resulting in a "hulking brute with a booming voice — less vampire, more undead Transylvanian nobleman", while still retaining some details from 1922's portrayal, such as fingernails, posture and the shape of the head.[3]
  • With Orlok being an ancient Romanian count, Eggers decided to have him speak a reconstructed form of the Dacian language in the film. Similar to his original version, Orlok's origin in the remake revealed that he was a Solomonar who had made a pact with Satan in a bid for immortality.[4][5]
  • Bill Skarsgård was originally set to play Thomas Hutter in the film, but Eggers decided to cast him as Orlok instead after seeing his performance as Pennywise in It Chapter Two. Skarsgård refused to have his voice digitally modulated to portray Orlok, so he was trained to lower his voice by Icelandic opera singer Ásgerður Júníusdóttir, incorporating Mongolian throat singing into his lines.[3][6]

External Links[]

References[]

Navigation[]

           Dracula logo Villains

Books
Dracula: Count Dracula | R.M. Renfield | Brides of Dracula
Dracul: Count Dracula
Dracula the Undead: Elizabeth Bathory

Movies
Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror: Count Orlok | Knock
Dracula (1931): Count Dracula | Brides of Dracula | R.M. Renfield
Son of Dracula: Count Alucard
Dracula (1958): Count Dracula | The Bride | Lucy Westenra
Dracula vs. Frankenstein: Groton
Nosferatu the Vampyre: Count Dracula
Dracula (1992): Count Dracula | Brides of Dracula | Lucy Westenra | R.M. Renfield | Ottomans
Dracula: Dead and Loving It: Dracula | R.M. Renfield
Dracula 2000: Count Dracula | Brides of Dracula (Lucy)
Shadow of the Vampire: Max Schreck
Van Helsing: Count Dracula | Brides of Dracula (Aleera, Marishka & Verona) | Vampires | Igor | Dwergi | Velkan Valerious | Grey Werewolf | Victor Frankenstein | Mr. Hyde
The Batman vs. Dracula: Dracula | Penguin | Joker
Dracula Untold: Mehmed II | Master Vampire
The Invitation: Walter Deville | Brides of Dracula (Lucy and Viktoria) | Mr. Field
Renfield: R.M. Renfield | Dracula | Teddy Lobo | Bellafrancesca Lobo
The Last Voyage of the Demeter: Dracula
Nosferatu (2023): Count Orlok
Abigail: Abigail Lazar | Frank | Kristof Lazar | Lambert | Sammy/Jessica
Nosferatu (2024): Count Orlok | Herr Knock

TV
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Dracula | The Three Sisters
Penny Dreadful: Dracula
Dracula (2013 series): Count Dracula | R.M. Renfield | Lucy Westenra
Van Helsing: Dracula | Abaddon | B'ah | Sam | Brides of Dracula (Bathory, Michaela, Willem) | The Sisterhood
Dracula (2020 series): Dracula | Elena | Lord Ruthven | Frank Renfield

Video Games
Nosferatu (1994): Nosferatu | Frankenstein's monsters | Zombies | Gargoyles | Ghosts | Robots | Werewolf | Apemen | Ghoul | Mud Elemental | Rock Golem

See Also
The Wolf Man Villains | Frankenstein Villains | Castlevania Villains