Before Nicolas Cage Was Dracula He Was All Out Bananas In 'Vampire’s Kiss'

People, it is happening. After teasing us for what felt like ages with the news about the upcoming horror-comedy movie Renfield, we have photos. Specifically, we have photos of Nicolas Cage on set as Dracula. Praise Vlad. 

Of course, many of us feel it’s about time the unique and wonderful Cage be cast in this role he was so clearly born to play. After all, the actor has been flexing his Dracula muscles since back in 1988 when he channeled Nosferatu, German expressionism, and whatever the hell makes his eyes bulge like that to give us Peter Loew — a Patrick Bateman-type character who chases skirts like he chases drugs and who gets bitten by a woman before convincing himself that he is now a vampire. As men do.

You might recognize his character from the internet.

Even though it was critically panned, the $2 million budget movie eventually became a cult classic, its bizarre behind-the-scenes tales preceding much of what actually happens in the movie. There’s one story, for instance, about how Cage ate an actual live cockroach when the filmmakers insisted he really didn’t have to do it:

There’s the anecdote about how the film score had to be recorded in Budapest because the orchestra was cheaper over there, but then Cage hummed Stravinsky’s “Petrushka,” and the director had to fork out $10,000 to pay for the copyright.

There’s the one about Cage needing hot yogurt poured all over his toes to turn him on for his love scene with actress Jennifer Beals. Yes, the crew of this bonkers movie had to fluff Nicolas Cage with hot yogurt. Filmmaking is rad.

And then there was the bat. The producers had brought in a mechanical bat all the way from the UK … only for Cage to reject it because he wanted the real thing. So much so that he admitted in the film’s commentary to throwing a big ol’ man tantrum about it. Someone went to Central Park and tried to catch a bat. Someone else suggested they could get bats shipped in (probably illegally) from Mexico because at this point, it seemed everyone was trying to outdo everyone else on the level of zany this film shoot had already become. 

Naturally, it was Cage’s favorite movie he’s ever made.

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Top Image: Hemdale Film Corporation