There’s one more bonus reference that vampire movie lovers may have picked up on in the “Renfield” trailer, although this one isn’t directly connected to Tod Browning’s “Dracula.” It’s actually a reference to one of Tod Browning’s other classic vampire movies, in this case, the infamously lost silent film classic, “London After Midnight.”
“London After Midnight” starred Lon Chaney Sr., the “Man of a Thousand Faces” who used innovative makeup techniques to transform himself in his various horrifying pictures, as two separate roles. He plays a detective investigating a mysterious murder, and he also plays — under heavy, grotesque makeup — a vampire with sharklike teeth and a top hat, whose visage has ignited the imaginations of horror fans for nearly a century, even though it seems like they’ll never get to see the actual film.
Tod Browning remade “London After Midnight” in 1935 as “Mark of the Vampire,” reuniting him once again with Lugosi. But Lon Chaney Sr.’s distinctive monster design didn’t make the transition. The makers of “Renfield” seem keen on keeping the shark-mouthed vampire design alive, however. Nicolas Cage’s interpretation of Dracula appears — visually, at least — to have more in common with the “London After Midnight” vampire design than the original Universal Horror classic, with spiky teeth and a dapper top hat!