Bill Skarsgård’s dramatic transformation into Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu has been the longest-kept secret! Upon the film’s theatrical release on December 25, the actor’s transformation into a ferocious vampire was finally revealed.
Although Skarsgård’s character Count Orlok is in the film from the beginning, his deeper character is revealed much later in the plot. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, The Crow actor talked about his heavy-prosthetic dependent look. He said, “I didn’t feel like the character until I had everything in place. So, full makeup and full costume.”
He recalled sitting in a chair surrounded by candles during his first camera test, when he felt one with his character. “We had rehearsed many times before, but this was the first time I felt like the cameras were on and I could start being myself,” he said.
Apart from the physical changes, the actor also had to go down a few octaves to deepen his voice. Skarsgård recalled that because of his distinctive physicality, body language, and voice, he felt the character was fake and “contrived”.
Therefore, he was “afraid” of whether Orlok would be believable as a character. He said, “Either it will come alive, or it won’t. I can’t force it. It needs to be there.” Therefore, the actor was relieved when Eggers approved of his portrayal.
The look includes a skeletal face with raised cheekbones as if flesh is clinging to the bones and a moustache. Despite being described as a vampire, the director wanted Orlok to resemble an undead wizard.
Eggers said, “I knew what I wanted Orlok to look like.” Speaking about the prosthetic makeup effects designer, he said, “When David created the sculpt, he took great care not to make Bill’s face too big, but still give him the look I wanted.”
As for Skarsgård, he was worried about performing through prosthetics because he could look like “the f—ing Grinch or the f—ing Goblin” with the entire look. However, when all the pieces were in place, it started to make sense.
