The first images of Nicolas Cage's Dracula are here – and he's a swaggering, modern-day vamp

The first look at Nicolas Cage's Count Dracula is here – and it's even more iconic than we expected.

Cage is set to play the notorious vampire in Renfield, an upcoming dark fantasy horror comedy directed by Chris McKay. The film is the first in Universal's new 'Dark Universe,' a modern-day reboot of the 'Classic Monsters' franchise. This puts Cage in the same ranks as horror legends Christopher Lee and Bela Lugosi, who were among the first to play the Count and have remained world renown for their portrayals. 

The behind-the-scenes photos come less than a day after Cage told GQ that he plans to emulate otherworldly rockstar David Bowie's Thin White Duke persona for the role. The actor is donning a red velvet suit, slicked-back black hair, long pointy fingernails, and a gold medallion – the latter being a potential nod to Lugosi's signature necklace.

The film stars Nicholas Hoult as Renfield, a servant to Count Dracula who decides there's more to life after falling in love with a traffic officer named Rebecca Quincy (played by Awkwafina). Renfield first appeared in Bram Stoker's original Dracula novel, and made his first on-screen appearance in 1931's Dracula as a real estate agent who becomes overpowered by the Count following a work trip to Transylvania.

The modern-day retelling of Bram Stoker's classic tale is directed by The Lego Movie and forthcoming Nightwing director Chris McKay, with a script written by Rick and Morty and Community writer Ryan Ridley – which was based on an original story by comic book writer Robert Kirkman, best known as the co-creator of The Walking Dead. Ben Schwartz, Adrian Martinez, and Shohreh Aghdashloo will also star. 

Renfield will hit theaters April 14, 2023. In the meantime, check out our guide to upcoming movies in 2022.