Author Ian Holt wrote a sequel to Bram Stoker’s Dracula (Dracula the Un-Dead) alongside Stoker’s great-grand nephew,  Dacre Stoker. Holt also serves as writer and producer for the supernatural thriller film, Episode 50. We  caught up with this vampire expert just in time for Halloween.

Q: Why are vampires portrayed as sexy monsters?

A: That was just a happy accident. As written, Bram’s character of Count Dracula was old, he smelled like the grave, he had hair on his palms and the facial features of a rodent. Bram’s Count Dracula was not at all sexy.

It was not until Bela Lugosi was cast that the play and the book became the mega-success we all know it as today. Bela came to England from Hungary where had just completed a hugely successful run as Romeo in Shakespeare’s Romeo And Juliet. His good looks made him a national sex symbol and his erotically charged performance as Romeo had women swooning in the aisles.

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