8 Characters Who Need To Appear in Universal’s Dark Universe (And Who Should Play Them)

1) Dracula – Mads Mikkelsen

The Character: Er, do we really need to explain who Dracula is? Pale guy in a cape. Likes include drinking blood, turning into a bat and speaking in a thick Eastern European accent. Dislikes include sunlight, stakes and garlic.

Bela Lugosi originated the role back in 1931 (though he only played the part once more, in 1948’s Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein). In 2014, Universal attempted to reboot the character in origins movie Dracula Untold, starring Luke Evans. It was originally intended to be the first movie in Dark Universe but the tepid critical response means it’s been swept under the carpet since release.

The Actor: Perhaps the lesson here, then, is that people have had enough of the young, sexy, sympathetic vampire which we’ve seen a lot of in recent years (Twilight, True Blood, The Vampire Diaries, etc.). Perhaps a new version could be aged up slightly and restored to his former sinister glory. If this is the direction that the studio wants to go in, we’d recommend Mads Mikkelsen. The guy is a natural villain actor thanks to his intense, charismatic performances, as seen in the likes of Casino Royale and Hannibal.