Robert Eggers' new gothic horror film Nosferatus is a masterclass in dread and fear, but it has an unusual connection to a classic Nickelodeon children's show. The American filmmaker's fourth feature film is a remake of the iconic German silent film Nosferatu: a symphony of horrorwhich is in itself a reinterpretation of Bram Stoker's book Dracula. It generated critical and audience praise along with a box office return well above initial projections, and there was even some talk of major award nominations for the horror film.
Interestingly, Robert Eggers has already made a special note Nosferatusconnection to another Nickelodeon show. The director highlighted the fact that younger viewers may have learned about the original Nosferatus of a quick scene in SpongeBob SquarePantsthe long-running animated show that featured the appearance of Max Schreck's Count Orlok as in the final scene of a Halloween episode (although he was labeled "Nosferatu" in the episode). However, this isn't the only classic Nickelodeon show to feature Count Orlok prominently in an episode; in fact, he is the centerpiece of an episode of another show.
An episode of Are You Afraid of the Dark? Features a theater haunted by the original Count Orlok
A version of Orlok leaves the cinema screen to terrorize the theater
The memorable episode of Nickelodeon's beloved children's horror anthology series Are you afraid of the dark? titled “The Tale of the Midnight Madness” involves the employees of a struggling movie theater fighting to save it from bankruptcy. They find salvation in the form of an eccentric filmmaker who promises them that their horror film will fill the cinema. His prediction comes true when the theater is soon packed with patrons lining up to see his film, which is actually Nosferatu: a symphony of horror.
The episode takes a turn when the theater employees realize that their theater is suddenly plagued by a vampire. It turns out that Count Orlok can magically emerge from the movie screen to drain the blood from his victims. Orlok is played by famed actor Christopher Heyerdahl, and he does an admirable job of playing the pale, cruel monster with straightforward mannerisms taken from Schreck's original portrayal. It's one of the scariest episodes of the children's show that is the definition of a cult classic.
Nosferatu isn't the only classic horror film Are You Afraid of the Dark? Borrowed from
There are several echoes of silent horror films in the anthology program
“The Tale of the Midnight Madness” is far from the only episode of Are you afraid of the dark? who delved into classic horror films for inspiration. The anthology covers many of the classic horror themes such as ghosts, witches, aliens and monsters, and echoes of horror films from across the 20th century are present in every season. However, some of the best are based on films from the 1920s and 1930s, as well as Nosferatu: a symphony of horror.
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Are you afraid of the dark? - Main details |
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October 31, 1990 |
1992-1996 (104 episodes) |
1999-2000 (26 episodes) |
2019-2022 (13 episodes) |
In fact, one of the first episodes of the series, “The Tale of the Phantom Cab,” is heavily based on the 1921 Swedish silent film. The ghost carriage. “The Tale of the Last Dance” is a retelling of the classic story The Phantom of the Operabut is based directly on the 1925 film version. Another vampire-related episode, “The Tale of the Nightly Neighbors,” takes important cues from Universal Studios' iconic interpretation of Dracula 1931. None of the references, however, are as direct as the Nosferatus shout out to “The Tale of the Midnight Madness.”