Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Nosferatu (2024)

While not all of differences between 2024’s Nosferatu and 1922’s original Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror, and even more differences between the new movie and Bram Stoker’s original novel Dracula. Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror changed the ending of Dracula and 2024’s Nosferatu alters the story’s conclusion once again, giving Lily-Rose Depp’s Ellen a more active role to play in the title character’s eventual defeat. This is one of the movie's many notable divergences.

However, on the level of characterization, Nosferatu makes many more alterations to both texts. Nosferatu’s Van Helping counterpart is still a quirky doctor, but the novel’s Dr John Seward is replaced by Ralph Ineson’s older Dr. Wilhelm Sievers. Arthur Holmwood is no longer a suitor of the unmarried Lucy Westenra, but rather the loyal husband of Emma Corrin’s Anna Harding. Speaking of Westenra, the ing character and famous victim of Dracula is now a married mother rather than a single woman, and she no longer becomes a vampire after her death in Nosferatu’s revised retelling of Stoker’s famous vampire story.

Nosferatu's Herr Knock Is A Combination Of Renfield & Jonathan Harker's Boss

Herr Knock Blends Dracula’s Renfield With Jonathan Harker’s Boss Mr. Hawkins

While not all of these changes work, one of the best changes Nosferatu makes to Dracula’s story is in the role of the protagonist’s boss. Thomas Hutter’s employer, Herr Knock, is both the Renfield figure to Count Orlok’s Dracula equivalent and a replacement for Jonathan Harker’s boss from the novel, Mr Hawkins. Mr. Hawkins plays a smaller role in Stoker’s original novel, which doesn’t work as well since he is depicted as a reasonably well-meaning figure who accidentally sends Harker to his doom for the sake of a pay cheque. Making Herr Knock more like Renfield explains his motivations for helping Orlok.

Herr Knock’s new villainy makes Nosferatu’s plot scarier, as Jonathan’s boss playing a role in Orlok’s plan adds an element of conspiracy to proceedings. In contrast, Stoker’s Renfield is an asylum inmate who can’t do much to practically assist Dracula. It is also a little strange that it takes Dr. John Seward so much time to connect Renfield to Dracula, whereas Knock actively hides their relationship in Nosferatu. Like Nosferatu’s new appearance as Count Orlok, this change ups the story’s fear factor while also adding a layer of clever social commentary. By buying Orlok land, Knock invites the villain to infect the city.

Herr Knock's Changes Help Make Nosferatu Scarier

Dracula’s Right-Hand Man Never Made Sense In The Novel

Herr Knock’s role in Orlok’s scheme makes him a middleman who greases the wheels for the monster’s takeover. As powerful as Orlok is, he would be unable to wreak havoc on the city’s health without practical help from a willing human servant. Herr Knock fulfilling this role makes everyone’s fate feel more inevitable, and it is a far scarier prospect than Hawkins presumably simply taking on Dracula as a client before the story of the original novel begins. While not all of Nosferatu’s changes work, this one is an inspired alternation that effectively streamlines and updates the familiar story.