According to Film Ratings, Universal Pictures’ forthcoming horror comedy Renfield has officially been given a R-rating from the MPAA for “bloody violence, some gore, language throughout and some drug use.” The film’s rating doesn’t come as a surprise, as this echoes producer Robert Kirkman’s previous statement about the newest Dracula adaptation where he described the story as “fun” and “extremely violent.”
The Nicholas Hoult-led film is scheduled to make its debut in theaters on April 14, 2023, pitting it against an independent crime comedy Mafia Mamma starring Toni Collette.
Renfield stars Nicholas Hoult (Mad Max: Fury Road), Golden Globe winner Awkwafina (The Farewell), Oscar winner Nicolas Cage (Mandy), Oscar nominee Shohreh Aghdashloo (The Expanse), Ben Schwartz (Parks and Recreation), Adrian Martinez (Focus), and Bess Rous (Ghostbusters).
It centers around Dracula’s titular henchman, “who has grown sick and tired of the centuries he has worked as the dark prince’s lackey,” reads the synopsis. “He finds a new lease on life when he falls in love for a feisty, perennially angry traffic cop.
Renfield is being directed and produced by Chris McKay (The Tomorrow War) from a story based on an original pitch from The Walking Dead’s Robert Kirkman and was written by Ryan Ridley (Rick and Morty). Producers are Skybound Entertainment’s Kirkman, David Alpert, Bryan Furst, and Sean Furst, with McKay’s partner Samantha Nisenboim set as an executive producer.
Renfield is part of Universal’s growing list of upcoming monster projects, including Elizabeth Banks’ Invisible Woman, Matt Stawki’s Monster Mash, Karyn Kusama’s Dracula, the Ryan Gosling-led Wolfman film, David Keopp’s long-gestated The Bride of Frankenstein reboot, Josh Cooley’s Little Monsters film, Blumhouse’s The Thing adaptation, the James Wan-produced Van Helsing movie, and more.
