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Any time a big-budget action movie heads to theaters, immediately people start wondering about sequels, spin-offs, and other continuations that grow to become a cinematic universe. More than a decade of Marvel Studios movies have trained many viewers to see bigger films through those glasses. That’s why it’s so refreshing to see a movie like Renfield, which is full of the action, comedy, and ridiculous gore the trailers have been promising, without having to also worry about missing a post-credits scene or a nod to a potential future movie. It’s entirely self-contained about Count Dracula’s (Nicolas Cage) familiar, Renfield (Nicholas Hoult), which is exactly how writer Robert Kirkman wanted the story to be told.
Speaking to GameSpot, Kirkman readily admitted that he loves the Marvel Cinematic Universe and other large film franchises. Still, he adds, “It [has] kind of done to death now where [at] the end of the movie, they kind of give you a preview of the movie you wish you would have been watching the whole time.”
And he’s not wrong. As exciting as every new Marvel or DC movie is, in the back of your mind, you’re wondering what’s going to happen at the end to set up the next several films, rather than just taking the time to bask in what you’re watching.
“It was cool to be able to do a movie that was self-contained,” he said, comparing Renfield to another movie that wasn’t intended to launch a franchise…until it did.
“The hope here is that it ends up being like, you know, Star Wars: A New Hope,” Kirkman said. “You know, that was a self-contained movie that had a beginning, middle, and an end. When that movie ended, you felt like you had gotten a complete package. But there was a world that was introduced that had a bunch of different cool stuff in it. And, you know, you could go literally anywhere with it.”
He views Renfield in a similar light, noting, “There’s a bunch of threads and characters and cool aspects to it that we could definitely continue the story with.” But it doesn’t have to and that’s an important distinction to make.
“[It’s] not necessarily needed and we certainly didn’t detract from the movie in any way to set that up,” he said. And that mission is well-accomplished. It’s refreshing to watch a movie without having to think about the next five or six steps a studio is going to make. Instead, if you’re in the mood for a wacky and violent time at the movies, you can grab a bucket of popcorn and sink your teeth into it.
Renfield is in theaters Friday.
