Awkwafina Dove Headfirst Into Renfield's Action & Gory Practical Effects
When Nicolas Cage was cast as Dracula (aka The Count, aka Nosferatu) in "Renfield," it felt like the universe was finally giving something back to genre fans. The planets had aligned, and one of the most unique actors of his generation was getting the chance to sink his teeth into one of the most iconic horror roles in cinema history. In his review of the film, /Film's Chris Evangelista says that Cage delivers but the movie "can't come close to matching the actor's wacko energy."
Director Chris McKay's action comedy horror hybrid puts the dark lord's faithful, bug-eating servant, Renfield (Nicholas Hoult), in the spotlight this time around to make a loose-fitting legacy sequel to Tod Browning's original 1931 masterpiece starring Bela Lugosi and Dwight Frye. The characters of Dracula and Renfield are embedded in our pop culture lexicon and they've both appeared in countless versions of Bram Stoker's classic tale over the last century. In "Renfield," a new addition to the story comes into the fold in the form of police officer Rebecca Quincy, played by Awkwafina.
The Golden Globe-nominated actress has already dabbled in high-stakes action inside the Marvel Cinematic Universe after appearing in "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings," but "Renfield" marks her first foray into the horror space. While most audiences this weekend will be heading to the theater to see Cage chew up the scenery, Awkwafina promises to make a mark as well, showcasing her ability to juggle multiple genres at once. "Renfield" should also surprise crowds with its level of R-rated gore and bloody violence, something that Awkwafina had never experienced before on set.
'Wow, that's a lot of blood'
When Awkwafina first signed on to "Renfield," she wasn't exactly expecting to have so much blood and viscera flying around, even though she acknowledged in a new interview with Collider that McKay "had a very gory intention with the movie" from the start. She continued:
"I didn't really know how much blood was gonna be involved, I think until we were shooting, and I was like, 'Wow, that's a lot of blood.' But I think, yeah, he definitely probably planned that all along to have a lot of blood."
"Renfield" sounds like it drains every ounce out of its hard R-rating thanks to some killer practical effects that wowed Awkwafina, who wasn't used to seeing so much carnage up close:
"I definitely have never been in kind of a horror movie. I've been in other action movies, but the cool thing about 'Renfield' is that we had an amazing special effects team. We had a lot of practical effects going off, a lot of things were rigged, like squibs and stuff like that. A lot of practical fire and things like that that I'd never worked with. And our stunt team was so great."
The violence in "Renfield" is played more for laughs than scares, but it's heartening for horror fans anytime there's confirmation that a huge amount of practical, tangible effects were used, especially when it comes to Dracula. On set, Awkwafina saw "bodies getting broken in half" and "arms being torn off," a ballet of splatter that she probably won't have to worry about witnessing again when she appears next in the live-action musical of Disney's "The Little Mermaid."