Like most Nosferatu stories, Orlok is represented in Eggers’ film as more of a horror than a hunk; he also represents a sort of forbidden desire for Ellen. “To have the attraction to this figure… I think he was probably a beautiful man at some point, but now he’s covered in maggots,” the director said. “That’s interesting to me.”

Watch Isaac, soon to be seen in his own monster movie, Guillermo del Toro's "Frankenstein," interview the cast of Robert Eggers' "Nosferatu" following a recent screening.