section_path: Production/Casting
section_name: Casting
paragraph_text: Casting
  
  In August 2017, actress Anya Taylor-Joy was cast, reteaming with Eggers after The Witch (2015); she was still attached to the project in 2020, though her specific role had not been announced. Harry Styles had been cast to star opposite Taylor-Joy, but dropped out of the project in 2021 citing scheduling concerns.
  
  Eggers initially considered several talents to play the role of Count Orlok, including Daniel Day-Lewis and Mads Mikkelsen. Finally, on September 30, 2022, it was announced that Swedish actor Bill Skarsgård would star in the role of Count Orlok, whom Eggers had also had in mind for the film adaptation years earlier. However, before he was offered the role of the film's titular vampire, Skarsgård had originally auditioned for and been offered the role of Thomas Hutter. After many failed attempts to make the film, Skarsgård's portrayal of Pennywise in It (2017) and It Chapter Two (2019) attracted popularity, aiding the recasting decision. The addition of actress Lily-Rose Depp, replacing Anya Taylor-Joy, was also announced on September 30, 2022. Nicholas Hoult was in talks to join the cast after several negotiations to play Thomas Hutter on October 7, 2022.
  
  Willem Dafoe joined the cast in January 2023, re-teaming with Eggers after The Lighthouse and The Northman (2022); Dafoe had not only previously portrayed Max Schreck /Count Orlok in Shadow of the Vampire (2000), but had been slated to play the role again for Eggers. Emma Corrin would join the cast the following month. Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Simon McBurney and Ralph Ineson were announced as joining cast at the start of production in late February 2023. Romanian TikTok personality Bunica Gherghina was cast as the elderly lady at the Transylvanian inn. Additionally, the film features around 5,000 trained rats.
  
  In August 2017, actress Anya Taylor-Joy was cast, reteaming with Eggers after The Witch (2015); she was still attached to the project in 2020, though her specific role had not been announced. Harry Styles had been cast to star opposite Taylor-Joy, but dropped out of the project in 2021 citing scheduling concerns.
  
  Eggers initially considered several talents to play the role of Count Orlok, including Daniel Day-Lewis and Mads Mikkelsen. Finally, on September 30, 2022, it was announced that Swedish actor Bill Skarsgård would star in the role of Count Orlok, whom Eggers had also had in mind for the film adaptation years earlier. However, before he was offered the role of the film's titular vampire, Skarsgård had originally auditioned for and been offered the role of Thomas Hutter. After many failed attempts to make the film, Skarsgård's portrayal of Pennywise in It (2017) and It Chapter Two (2019) attracted popularity, aiding the recasting decision. The addition of actress Lily-Rose Depp, replacing Anya Taylor-Joy, was also announced on September 30, 2022. Nicholas Hoult was in talks to join the cast after several negotiations to play Thomas Hutter on October 7, 2022.
  
  Willem Dafoe joined the cast in January 2023, re-teaming with Eggers after The Lighthouse and The Northman (2022); Dafoe had not only previously portrayed Max Schreck /Count Orlok in Shadow of the Vampire (2000), but had been slated to play the role again for Eggers. Emma Corrin would join the cast the following month. Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Simon McBurney and Ralph Ineson were announced as joining cast at the start of production in late February 2023. Romanian TikTok personality Bunica Gherghina was cast as the elderly lady at the Transylvanian inn. Additionally, the film features around 5,000 trained rats.