Hollywood’s most fangtastic Draculas
See where Adam Sandler’s animated portrayal ranks in Hollywood history
Vampires have a long history in Hollywood, but there’s only one that really counts: Dracula.
The bat man before Batman and the kind of dude who’d teach Edward Cullen of “Twilight” a thing or two about dangerous seduction, Dracula has been the most prominent bloodsucker in cinema since Bela Lugosi sauntered onscreen in 1931’s “Dracula.”
The latest incarnation of author Bram Stoker’s 19th-century literary villain – a Transylvanian nobleman who uses good manners and style to entice potential victims – is one who has been a huge hit with kids: Drac (voiced by Adam Sandler) returns as the grumpy hotelier looking for love on a muchneeded holiday cruise in the animated comedy “Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation” (in theaters Friday).
While not everybody makes the list – sorry, Luke Evans (“Dracula Untold”), Gerard Butler (“Dracula 2000”) and Leslie Nielsen (“Dracula: Dead and Loving It”) – the 10 most fangtastic Dracula portrayals offer some serious bite.
10. Richard Roxburgh, ‘Van Helsing’ (2004)
Filmmaking issues abound with this action-adventure, though Roxburgh’s over-the-top Dracula is one of the highlights: a clever warrior with megalomaniacal tendencies, a bunch of vampire brides and a scientific streak who was partly responsible for Frankenstein’s monster.
9. Duncan Regehr,
‘The Monster Squad’ (1987)
Before “The Avengers” and “It,” a group of kids banded together to battle a fearsome monster contingent formed by Dracula to snag a mystical amulet and take over the world. The Wolfman’s got “nards” (which the youngsters learn when they kick him below the furry belt), but the head vamp has a knack for one-liners and no patience for children who get in his way.
8. Adam Sandler, ‘Hotel Transylvania’ (2012)
Sure, Sandler’s Drac is pretty funny and a lot nicer than many of the other guys on this list, though he’d rather not leave his hotel unless he has to. He also has an overprotective streak when it comes to his daughter, Mavis. All would be well if he could just get a date!
7. George Hamilton, ‘Love at First Bite’ (1979)
Fish-out-of-water hilarity abounds – as does disco – in the romantic horror comedy as Dracula takes Manhattan, getting himself mixed up in a love triangle, having his coffin accidentally sent to a Harlem church, and showing off serious moves dancing to “I Love the Night Life.”
6. Lon Chaney Jr., ‘Son of Dracula’ (1943)
During Universal’s horror heyday, Chaney was best known as the Wolf Man yet had a shot at all the major roles: Mummy, Frankenstein’s monster and also the good Count. Chaney gave Dracula just enough immortal swagger in the flick, the first to actually show a vampire turning into a bat.
5. Frank Langella, ‘Dracula’ (1979)
In the ’70s retelling of the classic Stoker story, Langella’s vamp is a su- premely confident charmer who’s more smooth criminal than sinister supervillain (though he still has a deadly side). When this guy sneaks into a woman’s boudoir at night, she’s anything but scared.
4. Max Schreck, ‘Nosferatu’ (1922)
Thanks to legal trouble, the silentmovie predecessor to Lugosi’s classic was an unauthorized take on Stoker’s novel with changed names (the makers couldn’t even use the word “vampire”) and different plot points. Instead of being attractive in any way, Count Orlok is truly a freaky creature of the night, all frighteningly long fingers and goblinesque facial features.
3. Gary Oldman,
‘Bram Stoker’s Dracula’ (1992)
Director Francis Ford Coppola’s film – and a transformed Oldman – redefined Drac for a new generation. This version turns into a wolf when he’s hungry for new blood, and Oldman gives him some different looks through the ages, from his origins as a 15thcentury warrior to his disguise as a top-hatted Victorian-style gentleman to his true form as an aging, weirdly coiffed creature.
2. Christopher Lee, ‘Horror of Dracula’ (1958)
The move from black-and-white cinema to color helped – as did a whole lot of blood – but Lee had a long and legendary run as the Count, marked by his furious intensity and ridiculously sharp fangs. He was also the first movie Dracula who was truly unnerving in how he shifted from upper-crust lothario to ruthless killer.
1. Bela Lugosi, ‘Dracula’ (1931)
Everything that made the character – and vampires in general – cool began with Lugosi. The slicked-back hair, thick Eastern European accent and flair for capes set the groovy ghoul’s signature aesthetic for years to come. Yet it’s the actor’s stirring magnetism and calm demeanor that pull us all in when he speaks lines like: “Listen to them. Children of the night, what music they make” – an inviting facade that belies his true malevolent nature.