Director Robert Eggers’Nosferatupresented a classical take on the vampire subgenre. This reimagining of director F.W. Murnau’s original film and Bram Stoker’sDraculagoes against several vampire tropes, particularly withOrlok drinking blood from characters' chests inNosferaturather than their necks. However, one notable trait aboutBill Skarsgård’s Orlok inNosferatuis that he isn’t shown turning people into vampires after sucking their blood.
Since this ability isn’t explicitly shown inNosferatu, one may question if Orlok could actually create more vampires. This power could’ve allowed him to transform Thomas into a vampire and possibly an undead servant in his quest for Ellen. Since Orlok seemed to exert a dark influence over Thomas after biting him, it seems possible for the former to make him a vampire and use this power on othercharacters inNosferatu, including Ellen.
Thomas Is Nearly Corrupted By Orlok
Thomas Almost Succumbed To Orlok’s Power After He Sucked His Blood
While Thomas stays with thepowerful Count Orlok inNosferatu, the vampire repeatedly feeds on his blood. This leaves Thomas weak and ill,forcing a local monastery to purify his infected body with prayers and holy water. Had they not exorcised Orlok’s dark magic from Thomas’s body, chances are that he would’ve died and become a vampire as well.
While most modern vampire stories have required vampires to have a human taste their blood to transform them, this has not always been the case. For instance, 1979’sNosferatu the Vampyrehad the titular monster repeatedly sucking the blood of Jonathan Harker, making him sick and turning him into a vampire by the film’s end.
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Though Thomas regains consciousness after escaping Orlok’s castle inNosferatu,he is shown to have much of Orlok’s influence lingering in his weakened body. Orlok clearly had no intention of turning Thomas into a vampire, as he chose to let his dogs feed on the latter’s corpse. The Count likely did so to verify Thomas couldn’t stand in the way of claiming Ellen. However, Orlok showed he still had control over Thomas’s still-recovering body, as shown when he made him kick Ellen out of his bedroom after returning to Wisborg.
Orlok May Have Created Another Vampire In The Film
Another Vampire Is Found Near Orlok’s Castle In Nosferatu
Orlok isn’t the only vampire who appeared inNosferatu. Early in the film, when Thomas stays at a Romani village during his travels,he sees the villagers killing a vampire sleeping in a nearby graveyard. Given the Romani’s knowledge of Count Orlok and their proximity to his castle, it is implied that the man whose undead corpse they exhumed had been turned into a vampire by Orlok.
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It is also implied that the people Orlok infected with the plague in Wisborg could have become vampires as well. For instance, after Friedrich dies from the plague and Orlok kills Anna and their children,Prof. Von Franz burns their corpses, claiming that the flames will"sanctify"their"infected bodies.“This statement implies that Orlok’s dark magic persisted in them, which would have eventually transformed them into bloodsucking vampires like him.
Did Orlok Want To Turn Ellen Into A Vampire?
Orlok Wanted To Be Ellen, But It’s Unclear If He Wanted A Vampire Bride
Since Orlok seems to have the power to turn humans into vampires, the question remains whether he intended to turn Ellen into a vampire as well.He spends the film obsessively pursuing Ellen and reforging the pact they made years agoso she would become his wife again. In the film’s first scene, he even asks her if she will become his “ever-eternally,” implying that he wants her to be his even beyond death, hoping that she will be his immortal vampire bride.
Ellen’s Mystical Powers & Psychic Connection To Orlok In Nosferatu Explained
Lily-Rose Depp’s character in Nosferatu, Ellen Hutter, is an intriguing figure due to her psychic abilities and her mystical bond with Count Orlok.
However, when Ellen and Orlok finally embrace each other at theend ofNosferatu, the vampire spends the night siphoning the blood from Ellen’s body. She is then shown to have died from her extreme loss of blood,with the film cutting to black without Ellen turning into a vampire. However, it’s unclear if Orlok would have helped her survive had he not been killed by the rising sun. Throughout the film, he’s more focused on making Ellen his bride and feeding on Ellen’s blood.
Orlok also seemed more interested in hunting for Ellen, getting what he couldn’t have by feeding on her blood rather than making her another vampire.
All in all,Nosferatusuggests that Count Orlok can turn people he bit into vampires. It’s just that he chooses not to during the film. He didn’t want Thomas to stand in the way of his plan to reunite with Ellen. Orlok also seemed more interested in hunting for Ellen, getting what he couldn’t have by feeding on her blood, rather than making her another vampire. Whether Orlok can or can’t make more vampires, his main goal was to claim Ellen rather than unleashing an army of the undead.
Nosferatu
Cast
Nosferatu is a remake of the 1922 silent film of the same name from director F. W. Murnau. Robert Eggers is crafting his own version of the story for the reboot as writer and director, with Bill Skarsgård stepping into the shoes of Count Orlok. Nosferatu tells the tale of a young woman who falls victim to a vampire utterly infatuated with her.
