‘Bram Stoker’s Dracula’: The horror movie inadvertently inspired by Katharine Hepburn

Anthony Hopkins is one of the true British legends of the film industry, with years of prolific performances that have marked the silver screen, playing iconic characters such as Hannibal Lecter, Richard the Lionheart and Pope Benedict. After being scouted by Laurence Olivier and subsequently joining the National Theatre, the actor showed early flashes of brilliance through his role in King Lear, going on to reach global stardom with The Lion in Winter, starring alongside Katherine Hepburn.

However, Hopkins is perhaps best known for his horror performances, creating an unsettling quality through his stoic madness and unhinged interior world, something that was influenced by his work with one co-star early on his career.

While Francis Ford Coppola is best known for The Godfather and Apocalypse Now, the director also coined his own adaptation of the classic vampire tale Dracula, based on the novel by Bram Stoker. While there have now been many iterations of this genre, with films like Twilight and What We Do In The Shadows revitalising the gothic tale, Coppola also put his own stamp on the story in 1992. Starring Gary Oldman as Dracula alongside Winona Ryder, Keanu Reeves and Anthony Hopkins, it follows Count Dracula as he travels to London to meet Mina Harker, a young woman who appears as the reincarnation of his old love.

Hopkins plays Professor Abraham Van Helsing, an expert in vampirism who is tasked with putting an end to Dracula, with the actor sharing a piece of advice from Katherine Hepburn when taking on this role. The pair first worked together on The Lion in Winter, a family drama that follows King Henry II and his estranged queen as they attempt to choose an heir for the throne.

When describing his work with Hepburn, he said, “When I was in ‘The Lion in Winter,’ Katharine Hepburn once told me to do nothing in front of the camera, but I was younger then and I thought I had to tear up the furniture. I remembered this when I was shooting Francis Ford Coppola’s ‘Dracula’.”

Oldman is transformed in the role, with a dark and brooding aura that taints the film in a sinister mood, with Hopkins saying, “I had a scene with Gary Oldman, who was just tearing up the set, giving one of his big performances, And I didn’t feel any resentment about this very talented man so much younger than me. I said, you remind me of me 20 years ago. He sort of nodded, but I knew he was relishing every moment of what he was doing. And I thought, ‘I hope he finds a little peace in his life.’”

Sometimes, the best form of acting is to strip it down and keep it simplistic without becoming overly dramatic in your craft and letting the character truly sit with you. Hepburn is one of the most commanding performers of her time, and her advice to ‘do nothing’ for the camera shows a wisdom that reflects her time in the industry, highlighting that less is sometimes more and how unnerving it can be to challenge the audience by through stillness.

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