A terrifying chapter from Bram Stoker’s Dracula novel comes to life in the first trailer for The Last Voyage of the Demeter. Vampires of various forms have staked their claim throughout horror movie history, but the greatest bloodsucker of all remains Dracula, the immortal character created by Stoker in his 1897 novel and first made famous in films by Bela Lugosi. Dracula indeed is currently thrilling audiences again thanks to Nicolas Cage’s over-the-top portrayal in the horror-comedy Renfield (which purports to be a direct sequel to Lugosi’s movie).

Renfield may offer up a decidedly comedic take on Dracula, but a much more chillingly traditional version of the character is promised by the new trailer for The Last Voyage of the Demeter from Universal.

Based on a single chapter from Stoker’s novel, the film tells of a ship's voyage from Carpathia to London, where strange events begin to befall the crew. Directed by André Øvredal (Trollhunter), the film stars Corey Hawkins (In the Heights), Aisling Franciosi (Game of Thrones), Liam Cunningham (Game of Thrones) and David Dastmalchian (Dune).

What The Trailer Tells Us About The Last Voyage Of The Demeter

Dastmalchian himself has offered up a preview of the horrors to be seen in The Last Voyage of the Demeter, praising the film’s director Øvredal for his vision. “His knowledge of the book and his passion for the characters is so beautiful, and he’s got this really intense and unique vision and a way of telling stories that is so outside of the box,” Dastmalchian told Collider earlier this year.

The new trailer gives just a taste of Øvredal’s vision of Dracula, setting up the seaborne story and offering a glimpse of its main cast members, including Dastmalchian as the first mate and Cunningham as the captain. There’s also a look at Franciosi as the stowaway who chillingly name-drops Dracula himself. Overall, the clip promises claustrophobic horror, with a slow and gruesome build-up. Visually things look very atmospheric and appropriately dark.

Though The Last Voyage of the Demeter is obviously set on Earth, the clip has definite echoes of science-fiction movies like Alien, where the crew of a vessel is forced to defend itself against a horrifying threat. It will indeed be interesting to see how this new take on Dracula fills out a chapter from Stoker’s Dracula book that tends to be skipped over in movie adaptations, but from the trailer, The Last Voyage of the Demeter seems to lean into survival horror. The movie releases on August 11, 2023.

Source: Universal Pictures