Universal recently announced the casting of Nicholas Hoult in Renfield, an upcoming spin-off of Dracula, which may have some wondering if the Dark Universe has been revived. The ill-fated series saw Universal Studios try to relaunch its classic monster movies as a Marvel-style cinematic universe, with several big-name stars involved. Renfield shows Universal's continued interest in their monsters, but what's been revealed about the movie so far suggests it will follow the studio's new direction of using the monsters in stand-alone, creator-driven reboots.

Renfield is based on a minor character in the original Dracula novel penned by Bram Stoker and is the eponymous vampire's servant. The character has shifted in the many adaptations and has been played by everyone from legendary German actor Klaus Kinski to gravel-voiced singer Tom Waits in 1992's Bram Stoker's Dracula. Stoker's Renfield is an inmate at a Victorian asylum, obsessed with eating animals whole, who is eventually revealed to be a victim of Dracula's vampirism. The character reflected Stoker's interest in the then-emerging science of psychology and was based on a real case.

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Dracula was one of the characters incorporated into Universal's original line of black-and-white monster movies that were released from the 1930s to 1950s, and Bela Lugosi's performance as the vampire became iconic. The movies were created as cheap "B movies" but became highly popular, with dozens of movies released. The monsters sometimes met too, as in Frankenstein Meets The Wolf Man, leading some to describe the Universal monsters as the first cinematic universe. The monsters have been reinvented multiple times over the following decades, from prestige projects like Bram Stoker's Dracula to action flicks like the Brandon Fraser-starring The Mummy. Because many of the characters are taken from public domain texts like Stoker's original novel or Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, there has also been a host of non-Universal adaptations. The Dark Universe was another attempt to translate these classic characters into a modern series but it was canceled after just one movie. Since then, Universal has focused on using the monsters in smaller, creator-driven projects, which Renfield seems closer to than a Dark Universe continuation.

Why the Dark Universe Was Canceled

Sofia Boutella using her mummy powers in The Mummy

In May 2017, Universal announced that its upcoming reboot of The Mummy would be the first in an interconnected Dark Universe based on the classic Universal monsters. The announcement included a now-notorious photo of A-list stars projected to appear in Dark Universe movies, including Tom Cruise as the protagonist of The Mummy, Johnny Depp as the Invisible Man, and Russell Crowe as Dr. Jekyll. The second film in the series was set to be Bride of Frankenstein, scheduled for Valentine's Day 2019, but it never went into production.

The 2017 remake of The Mummy received largely negative reviews and, while it made $410 million worldwide, failed to cover its budget (which was estimated to be $195 million) and promotional costs. There were also reportedly production issues during the shooting, with multiple directors leaving the project and Tom Cruise insisting on creative changes. This box office disappointment led to all plans for the Dark Universe being shelved.

Many were skeptical of the Dark Universe project from the beginning, seeing it as a blatant attempt to copy the success of other shared cinematic universes with a group of characters that modern audiences weren't well versed in. Universal's strategy of marketing the universe through established stars also stood in contrast to franchises like Marvel or Star Wars which cast many fairly obscure actors as the heroes. The Dark Universe was entirely dependent on The Mummy being a huge hit, and when that didn't happen, the whole plan fell apart.

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Universal's New Strategy for the Monsters

The Invisible Man

Since the demise of the Dark Universe, the studio has focused on developing smaller-budget horror projects for their monsters, operating through Blumhouse, which has a history of acclaimed horror. The first of these was Leigh Whannell's remake of The Invisible Man, which received praise for its treatment of themes of domestic abuse. Despite being released just weeks before US theatres began to close because of COVID-19, the 2020 Invisible Man made $142 million off a budget of just $7 million - a much smaller sum than a Johnny Depp-led action epic would have cost.

Similar monster-based projects are planned for Blumhouse in the years to come. Jennifer's Body director Karyn Kusama and recent Best Director winner Chloe Zhao will both helm their own versions of Dracula, the former for Blumhouse and the latter for Universal. Whannell is reported to be returning to the Universal monsters for a Wolfman, with Ryan Gosling attached as a star. These smaller, creator-led movies seem to be the future of the franchise, at least in the short term.

While every studio envied the profits and cultural domination of Disney's interconnected Marvel and Star Wars universe, their attempts to replicate this style have been mixed at best, with the Dark Universe standing as one of the most notable failures. Making smaller-budget horror movies, using the influential Blumhouse model, allows Universal to make a profit even if not every movie is a big hit. It also allows the studio to capitalize on the trend of so-called "elevated" horror with its classic characters.

Renfield Movie Explained

Warm Bodies Nicholas Hoult 2013

The upcoming Renfield movie is described as a horror-comedy movie in which Renfield tries to sever his co-dependent relationship with Dracula, in the vein of What We Do In The Shadows. The movie was based on a pitch by Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman and has The Tomorrow War director Chris McKay and Rick and Morty writer Ryan Ridley attached. The casting of Hoult suggests that Renfield will be presented as a more sympathetic and likable character, in contrast to the 59-year-old lunatic depicted in Stoker's novel.

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Renfield is stated to take place in the present day, which means it is more likely to tie into Kusama's modern-set Dracula film than Zhao's approach, which has been described as a sci-fi Western. However, the comedic tone and more casual approach to Dracula, means it's likely the movie will be a stand-alone project like the 2020 Invisible Man. Certainly, the film sounds very different from the big-budget action spectacles that executives imagined the Dark Universe to be.

Rather than marking a re-start of the Dark Universe, the Renfield movie demonstrates just how much Universal's plans for their classic monsters have changed since the ill-fated cinematic universe. There may be connections between Renfield and one or both of the upcoming Dracula movies such as shared casting, but it seems more likely that the projects will be entirely independent of each other. The horror-comedy version of Renfield will succeed or fail on its own merits.

NEXT: Every Failed Attempt At The Dark Universe