Like most Nosferatu stories, Orlok is represented in Eggers’ film as more of a horror than a hunk; he also represents a sort of forbidden desire for Ellen. “To have the attraction to this figure… I think he was probably a beautiful man at some point, but now he’s covered in maggots,” the director said. “That’s interesting to me.”

Skarsgård was worried he couldn't perform through the prosthetics, but recalls the moment it all came together.

Bill Skarsgård's iteration of Count Orlok in Robert Eggers' Nosferatu looks different in a few ways from the original Count.

Bill Skarsgård's Count Orlok is inspired by another iconic movie monster played by the actor, but with a big difference.