There’s no discussing vampire TV shows without bringing up the series that defined a generation.
Hardcore fans of Stoker’s novel are likely to balk at Moffat’s alterations to the source material, but I think there’s a good time to be had here if you just go along for the weird ride.ĥ. Years later, the British screenwriter would partner with frequent collaborator Mark Gatiss to once again try his hand at reviving a classic monster for contemporary audiences in the form of Netflix’s controversial Dracula, a schlocky miniseries that’s way more entertaining than it has any right to be.įeaturing a career-defining performance by Claes Bang as the titular vampire and more comic-booky twists than you can shake a well-sharpened stake at, this over-the-top homage to the glory days of Hammer Horror certainly isn’t for everyone, but I’ll be damned if it isn’t one hell of a fun ride. Known for his work on BBC’s Sherlock and Doctor Who, showrunner Steven Moffat originally made a name for himself with 2007’s criminally underseen Jeckyll, a modernized adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s gothic novella. That means no Supernatural or Preacher despite both programs exhibiting interesting takes on the bloodthirsty undead.Īnd with that out of the way, don’t forget to comment below with your own favorite vampire TV shows if you think we missed a good one.
And with so much vampiric media out there, we decided to come up with this list of six must-watch vampire shows to quench your thirst for televised bloodshed.Īs usual, this list is purely based on personal opinion, but we’ll be avoiding TV shows that feature vampires but don’t necessarily deal with vampirism as a main theme. While some of the reasoning behind the popularity of vampires on the small screen is practical (after all, all you need is a decent pair of fangs to convincingly portray a vampire, as opposed to the expensive make-up required to bring a werewolf or zombie to life), an even simpler explanation is that the tragic and romantic qualities of the immortal Nosferatu make them uniquely suited for weekly dramas. That’s why it’s no surprise that popular culture has been borrowing from vampiric folklore for years, especially when it comes to television. From ancient Romanian storytellers sharing cautionary tales about the shapeshifting Strigoi to modern-day LARPers putting on plastic fangs and hanging out in goth bars, it’s clear that our fascination with undead bloodsuckers is far more than a simple fad. Nearly every culture has come up with some variation of the vampire myth.