These ‘Nosferatu’ Tattoos are a Symphony of Horror

Nosferatu is the 1922 unauthorised cinematic adaptation of Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula. Over a century since Nosferatu’s illegal release, it’s returning to the big screen once more thanks to writer-director, Robert Eggers, and a cast including Willem Dafoe, Lily-Rose Depp, Nicholas Hoult, and Bill Skarsgård (Pennywise from IT).

Prior to writing the script, there were attempts made to obtain permission to use the story, however Bram’s wife, Florence refused. The writers made what they thought to be sufficient changes to names, characters, and the story, and filming went ahead as planned.

Upon the release of Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens (translated as Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror) Stoker’s estate took the production company to court on the grounds of copyright infringement. They were successful, and in addition to the production company going bankrupt, they were forced to destroy whatever copies they had of the film.

Some copies managed to survive as they had been distributed around the world. It is only for that twist of fate that Nosferatu had the opportunity to become the cult classic it is considered.

The main deviations from the novel include the title of the film, with Nosferatu selected as it was an archaic term for a vampire. Count Dracula’s name was changed to Count Orlok, other characters were also renamed, and some were omitted altogether.

Count Orlok is depicted as a bald, pointy buck-toothed vampire, much different in appearance to Dracula and the fangs on other vampires we’ve seen over the years. Furthermore, unlike Stoker’s Dracula, Count Orlok dies if exposed to sunlight, and his victims die once bitten – they don’t become vampires.

You can be inspired by these tattoos, but it’s best to be inspired by the film itself and allow your chosen tattoo artist to create a custom tattoo just for you.