Nosferatu (2024)

Nosferatu (2024)

The story begins with a glimpse into the life of Ellen Hutter, a lonely and sorrowful girl who has been burdened with sadness since childhood. Desperate for comfort, she calls out to anyone who might hear her, whether it be God, a guardian angel, or some other force. To her surprise, her call is answered. A terrifying voice responds, though the face behind it remains unseen, visible only to Ellen. This mysterious being tells her that she has pulled him out of the darkness and that now he can walk among humans. Whatever this being is, it is clear it is not human. Ellen, drawn in by the encounter, makes a pact with the powerful and evil demonic entity — Nosferatu. Once the ritual is complete, the demonic vampire has an intimate encounter with her before choking her by the throat, completing the possession. The next scene reveals that it was all just a dream. Ellen wakes in a cold sweat, still shaken by what she experienced.

The year is 1838, in a German town called Wisborg. Ellen is now married to a real estate agent named Thomas Hutter, who deeply loves her and does everything to care for her. He quickly notices her distress, hugs her passionately, and reassures her that there is nothing to be afraid of. However, he soon realizes he is running late and says his goodbye before heading out for work. Ellen, still unsettled by the nightmare, is left alone with her thoughts, unable to shake the feeling that something is deeply wrong.

At work, Thomas apologizes to his boss, Herr Knock, for arriving late. Knock congratulates him on his recent marriage and wastes no time getting to business. He informs Thomas that he wants him to finalize a deal with an eccentric and reclusive client — Count Orlock, from the Carpathian Mountains of Transylvania — who wishes to purchase the largest mansion in Wisborg. Aiming for financial security and hoping the deal will earn him a promotion, Thomas readily accepts.

Later that day, Thomas returns home and tells Ellen about the journey he must take. The moment she hears this, she becomes visibly upset and pleads with him not to go. She confesses that before their wedding, she had a horrific nightmare in which she married death itself, with only dead boys in attendance. Despite the horror of the dream, she found herself enjoying it, which unsettled her even more. She also warns him of a recurring dream she has had since childhood — of a terrifying figure who claimed her long before Thomas ever knew her. Thomas, though concerned, reassures her that these are only dreams and insists he must go for the sake of their future.

The next day, Thomas takes Ellen to stay with his wealthy friend Frederick Harding and his wife Anna while he is away. He comforts her once more, promising that she has nothing to fear. That night, Ellen's nightmare returns. Nosferatu consolidates the pact she made with him, strengthening his hold over her. The following morning, before Thomas departs, Ellen gives him her necklace. Unbeknownst to him, she had cut a strand of her hair the night before and placed it inside — unknowingly fulfilling one of Nosferatu's requirements.

After a long journey, Thomas arrives in Transylvania, where the townspeople welcome him warmly at first. Their cheerful demeanor soon turns strange, however, and they begin laughing in an eerie and unsettling manner. The town chief steps outside and scolds them for their behavior, but warns Thomas against associating with Count Orlock. Despite the warning, Thomas bribes the chief and convinces him to let him stay one night. That same night, an old woman presses a cross into his hand, insisting that he will need it. Later, Thomas witnesses the townspeople performing a disturbing ritual — they lead a naked woman on horseback to a graveyard, where they stab a corpse they claim belongs to a vampire. Terrified by what he has seen, Thomas goes to bed, half-convinced it was all a dream. The next morning, he realizes it was not, and continues his journey regardless.

As Thomas travels toward the castle, a mysterious horse-drawn carriage appears out of nowhere. Although no one is driving it, he gathers his courage and boards it. The carriage races toward Count Orlock's fortress with wolves running alongside it. Upon arrival, Thomas is received by the impatient and imposing Count, whose face is partially hidden in shadow but whose presence is immediately unsettling. Orlock remarks coldly on how late Thomas is and insists they dine together to finalize the purchase without delay. During the meal, he offers Thomas wine and dismisses the strange rumors Thomas has heard from the locals as mere superstition.

As Thomas eats, he accidentally cuts his thumb, causing it to bleed. Orlock, instantly drawn to the scent of blood, fixes his gaze on the wound and begins acting strangely. Thomas senses that something is terribly wrong, but his realization comes too late. Orlock reveals his true nature and attacks him.

Meanwhile, back in Wisborg, Ellen desperately tries to warn Anna about a looming danger, but Anna dismisses her concerns, convinced that Ellen is imagining things.

Back at the castle, Thomas, now unconscious, has a strange dream. In this state, Orlock forces him to sign a mysterious document written in an occult language belonging to the Count's forefathers. Thomas signs without understanding a word of it. Orlock then retrieves Thomas's locket and removes Ellen's hair from inside, using it to forge a deeper supernatural connection to her. Satisfied, he presents Thomas with a chest of gold coins as payment. When Thomas wakes and asks to leave, believing the deal is complete, Orlock coldly informs him that returning home is no longer an option.

As Thomas regains his senses, he notices strange bite marks on his chest and realizes Orlock has fed on him. Panic sets in. He searches the castle desperately, but every door leading outside is locked. Venturing deeper into the dark corridors, he eventually discovers a lower chamber where he finds Orlock sleeping inside a coffin. Seizing the opportunity, Thomas grabs an axe and attempts to strike the vampire down, but before he can deliver the fatal blow, Orlock awakens and stops him. Terrified, Thomas flees.

Orlock then takes Ellen's hair and begins chanting an incantation. As the ritual progresses, Ellen, far away in Wisborg, feels its effects and begins to weaken. Thomas finds himself compelled by Orlock's power to unlock a door he had previously secured — his body freezes, and he cannot resist. Orlock attacks him again, feeding on him ruthlessly and further asserting his dominance over him.

Back at Friederick's house, Ellen's condition deteriorates rapidly. She suffers from seizures and strange, trance-like episodes that leave her moaning and barely conscious. Concerned, Friederick calls Dr. Wilhelm to examine her. Wilhelm sedates her, but her condition only worsens. He warns Friederick gravely that the devil's presence is near, and eventually recommends transferring her to his mentor — Albin Eberhart von Franz, an ostracized scientist in Switzerland renowned for his expertise in the occult.

Meanwhile, Thomas manages to escape the castle by throwing himself from a window, plummeting into a river below. A nun later finds him unconscious on the riverbank and carries him to a nearby church, where she and the other nuns pray over him. Slowly, Thomas regains consciousness. Though they urge him to rest, he refuses. "I must return to Wisborg," he insists. "Ellen is in danger."

Dr. Wilhelm and Friederick travel to Switzerland, where Professor Albin welcomes them and listens carefully as Wilhelm describes Ellen's worsening condition. After examining her case, Albin immediately recognizes the cause — Ellen is under the spell of Nosferatu, a demonic, plague-bearing vampire. Determined to uncover the truth, Albin challenges the entity to reveal itself. Ellen becomes possessed, her body convulsing violently as Orlock speaks through her. Her screams fill the room. Albin turns to Friederick and declares that Ellen is cursed. Wilhelm remains skeptical, insisting she is merely delusional, while Friederick suspects her suffering is tied to Thomas's absence. Before leaving, Albin instructs Anna to watch over Ellen closely and to summon him if anything changes.

Thomas finally returns to Wisborg and tells Ellen that she was right — her nightmares were real. Shortly after, he collapses into unconsciousness. That same night, guards arrive at Friederick's home with grim news: a ghostly ship has wrecked upon Wisborg's shore. It is Orlock's vessel, the Demeter. During the voyage, Orlock had emerged from his coffin and killed the crew one by one, and by the time the ship reached port, no one on board was left alive. With it came a swarm of plague-infested rats, marking the beginning of an unholy pandemic. By morning, the streets of Wisborg have descended into chaos.

Orlock, now in Wisborg, reunites with his devoted servant Knock, who bows before his master. Orlock proclaims that the land shall know dread and despair. Knock, who had already descended into madness — catching rats and birds and devouring them alive, growing increasingly violent — grins with anticipation. The plague spreads rapidly through the city, claiming lives and gripping the streets with fear.

Ellen remains by Thomas's side as he lies gravely ill. Anna visits and apologizes for having dismissed Ellen's warnings. "I should have listened," she whispers. Meanwhile, Dr. Wilhelm and Albin examine the bodies recovered from Orlock's wrecked ship and make a horrifying discovery — the rats are not ordinary. They are demonic. There is no blood left in the bodies. Albin demands to find Knock at once, but Knock has already escaped. "This is no mere disease," Albin warns. "This is a curse."

That night, Orlock chants a dark incantation, calling forth a deeper darkness upon the land. Thomas, feverish and weak, thrashes in his sleep and jolts awake — Orlock has spoken to him in a vision. Downstairs, Anna feels the creeping sensation of being watched. When she turns, she is startled to find Ellen standing there, her eyes vacant, pleading softly, "Stay with me tonight."

In his study, Albin makes a chilling announcement to the townsfolk — Wisborg is facing Nosferatu, the undead plague bearer. Most dismiss his claims, preferring to blame the rats.

That night, Ellen is pulled into another nightmare. A shadow looms over her, and a voice — ancient and chilling — whispers, "You are not of humankind. I have been lying in the deepest darkness, and you, my dear, have awakened me." Orlock tries once more to deceive her, claiming that Thomas willingly signed divorce papers in exchange for gold. Ellen does not believe him. She sees through his lies. When she refuses to submit to his will, Orlock threatens to take Thomas's life.

Upon waking, Ellen is met with a horrifying sight — Orlock's plague-infested rats have already feasted on Anna. She screams in shock and grief. The epidemic has spread like wildfire, forcing the entire city into quarantine. Anna, barely clinging to life, begins exhibiting the symptoms of the plague. Friederick stays by her side, offering comfort in her final moments. Afterward, still struggling to accept that a demon is behind the chaos, he turns on Ellen and Thomas, suspecting them of being the source of the infection and demanding they leave his house at once. Furious, Ellen storms away.

Meanwhile, in Knock's abandoned office, Albin discovers an ancient insignia etched into the wall — one that has long foretold the coming of Nosferatu.

Ellen and Thomas return home, but their reunion is far from peaceful. Thomas begs Ellen desperately to leave the cursed city with him. Ellen tells him it is too late. She finally confesses the secret she has carried for years — long before she married Thomas, she had summoned the devil himself as a lonely, frightened child with psychic abilities, mistaking him for a guardian angel. She had prayed to him for comfort without realizing she was calling upon a demonic entity. They had been bound together ever since, their connection only severed in part by her marriage. She accuses Thomas of caring more about money than their safety and reminds him of the document he signed for Orlock. Their argument grows heated, but before Ellen can say more, she begins convulsing violently. Her body stiffens, and her voice turns unnatural — she has been possessed by Nosferatu. Thomas attempts to flee for help, but Ellen, now controlled by the entity, commands him to stay. With an eerie authority, she orders him to lie with her. Unable to resist the force compelling him, he obeys. When it is over, Ellen collapses, regaining consciousness as though waking from a terrible dream, confused and frightened.

That night, Orlock makes his presence known once more. In a ruthless display of power, he slaughters Friederick's children, leaving the man utterly broken. As he buries his family, grief consumes him, and he can no longer deny the truth — Nosferatu is real. Drowning in madness and despair, Friederick commits an unspeakable act, defiling his wife's corpse before succumbing to the plague himself. By the time the others arrive, he is already dead. His body and those of his family are set ablaze to stop the disease from spreading further.

Albin, seeing no other way forward, proposes a plan to finally end Orlock's reign. From his years of occult research, he has learned that Nosferatu can only be truly vanquished in one of two ways — either through the willing sacrifice of a pure-hearted woman or by being lured into the sunlight, which will destroy him. Either way, Ellen is the only one who can achieve this. She alone has the connection to draw him out.

Ellen, fully aware of her fate, agrees. She devises her plan carefully — she will invite Orlock to her, surrender herself to him willingly, and keep him bound to her long enough for dawn to break. Meanwhile, the others — Thomas, Albin, and Wilhelm — set out to locate Orlock's resting place and destroy it. They eventually find a coffin they believe to be his. Thomas opens it and plunges a blade downward, but as the blood seeps out, horror dawns upon them. Orlock is nowhere to be found. Lying inside, grinning with bloody teeth, is Knock. The entire expedition was a diversion. Thomas realizes it instantly and runs back to save Ellen. Albin, meanwhile, whispers ancient prayers before setting the crypt ablaze, ensuring no remnants of Orlock's unholy presence remain.

Back at the manor, Orlock arrives to claim his bride. Ellen is waiting for him, dressed in her wedding gown. With unwavering resolve, she accepts the dark vows he recites. As the ritual is completed, she surrenders fully, allowing him to feast upon her as they consummate their unholy union. But as the first pale light of dawn begins to seep through the windows, Orlock feels something is wrong. A strange weakness creeps through his body. His immortal flesh begins to wither and decay. He lets out a tormented scream as his existence unravels, collapsing into a lifeless husk in Ellen's arms, disintegrating into ash as the sunlight engulfs him.

Thomas arrives moments later, breathless, only to find Ellen fading. He kneels beside her and takes her hand. She looks at him with a serene expression, knowing what she has done. With her sacrifice, the plague ends. The darkness that consumed Wisborg is lifted. Ellen takes her last breath in Thomas's arms, having destroyed Nosferatu forever and freed the city from his curse.

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Cast Of Nosferatu (2024)

Lily-Rose Depp as Ellen Hutter

Nicholas Hoult as Thomas Hutter

Bill Skarsgård as Count Orlok

Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Friedrich Harding

Willem Dafoe as Prof. Albin Eberhart von Franz

Emma Corrin as Anna Harding

Ralph Ineson as Dr. Wilhelm Sievers

Simon McBurney as Knock

Adéla Hesová as Clara

Milena Konstantinova as Louise

Stacy Thunes as Head Nurse

Gregory Gudgeon as Hartmann

Robert Russell as First Clerk

Curtis Matthew as Second Clerk

Claudiu Trandafir as Innkeeper

Gherghina Bereghianu as Innkeeper's Mother-in-Law

Jordan Haj as Vampire Hunter

Katerina Bila as Virgin on Horseback

More Info

Director: Robert Eggers

Writers: Robert Eggers - Henrik Galeen - Bram Stoker

Genre: Fantasy - Horror - Mystery

Release Date: December, 2024

Countries of Origin: United States

Filming Locations: Romania - Czech Republic - Canada

Production Companies: Focus Features - Maiden Voyage Pictures - Studio 8 - Birch Hill Road Entertainment

Estimated Budget: $50,000,000

Runtime: 2 hours 12 minutes