Max Schreck, Nosferatu
Technically, F.W. Murnau’s 1922 silent film follows the saga of “Count Orlok,” but even though the main character’s name and certain other details have been changed, Bram Stoker’s story shines through on the screen… so much so that the author’s heirs ended up suing over the similarities. Orkok/Dracula is played to memorably creepy effect by Max Schreck—so creepy, in fact, the 2000 film Shadow of the Vampire posited that Schreck (portrayed by Willem Dafoe) was an actual vampire, a conceit that proved surprisingly easy to believe.
