Nosferatu's Count Orlok Was Almost Played By These 3 Actors Before Bill Skarsgård

Daniel Day-Lewis as Count Dracula? In another world, director Robert Eggers' "Nosferatu" could've given us just that.

"Nosferatu" evokes images of silent movie actor Max Shreck in a bald cap and pointed ears as he played the vampire Count Orlok. But in Eggers' new "Nosferatu," Orlok actor Bill Skarsgård looks nothing like that — or himself, even.

Similar to Skarsgård's performance as Pennywise in "IT," he totally submits himself over to the character, disappearing behind make-up and (in "Nosferatu") an echo effect on his voice. I agree wholeheartedly with /Film's Chris Evangelista that when you watch Skarsgård's Orlok, you don't feel as if you're seeing a performance, but a true evil walking on screen. In that way, it's the most fully inhabited villain performance I can recall since Heath Ledger's Joker in "The Dark Knight."

Now, this can all sound like a backhanded compliment, treating Skarsgård as a mere stand-in while the make-up and sound design do the work. But I think it's a sign of humility and skillful restraint, seeing a most actors will want their own face onscreen whereas Skarsgård buries his. Orlok's movements, body language, and intonations are all Skarsgård's too; the make-up is only so convincing because he slips into it so easily.

Originally, Skarsgård was cast as the film's heroic male lead, Thomas Hutter, who wound up being played instead by Nicholas Hoult. I think it worked out; they're both extremely handsome men, but Hoult has more boyish innocence (even if he's about to play Lex Luthor in James Gunn's "Superman"). Skarsgård, with his sharp features and big eyes, is more sinister.

If Skarsgård had played Hutter, though, who would've been Orlok? Reportedly, Eggers' wishlist included Day-Lewis, Mads Mikkelsen, and Willem Dafoe (who instead played the renamed Van Helsing, Professor Albin Eberhart Von Franz).

Skarsgård mentioned these three alternative Orlok castings in an interview with Swedish website MovieZine. In fact, knowing that Eggers chose him made the casting all the more flattering, Skarsgård admitted:

"When he came to me with the role a few years later, it was a shock at first, but then I was very flattered. Ha can get whoever the hell he wants for this old man. Giants and big names. The natural choice is to go much older for the role."

Were these castings realistic, though, or just Eggers making a wishlist? Day-Lewis definitely seems pie-in-the-sky, given that he's semi-retired from acting right now and has always been extremely selective about his roles. He's only coming out of hiatus to appear in his son Ronan's upcoming movie, "Anemone." Maybe a horror movie could've been an appealing new challenge for him, and he's shown a willingness to make himself up onscreen (see Day-Lewis' performance as Abraham Lincoln in Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln"). Still, it seems like a bit of a reach.

Not so much Dafoe though, granted that Eggers did get him in the movie. But the thing is, Dafoe has already played Nosferatu in 2000's "Shadow of the Vampire." He could've pulled off Orlok masterfully, but it wouldn't have been anything new. Similarly, Mikkelsen has basically already played Dracula with his turn as Hannibal Lecter on "Hannibal."

"Nosferatu" would've still worked with any of these three other actors playing Orlok, but Eggers still made a good call casting Skarsgård — and the movie is definitely better with Dafoe portraying Prof. Van Franz instead of the villain.

"Nosferatu" is playing in theaters.