Dark Shadows
About the Film
In 1760s Maine, Barnabas Collins — heir to the wealthy Collins fishing dynasty — spurns the love of the servant Angelique, who happens to be a witch. In revenge she kills his parents and his beloved Josette, curses him to become a vampire, and turns the townsfolk against him so that he is chained inside a coffin and buried alive.
Two centuries later, in 1972, Barnabas is accidentally unearthed and returns to a crumbling Collinwood manor and a dysfunctional band of descendants. Determined to restore the family’s name and fortune, he grapples with the baffling modern world while falling for the new governess Victoria, who is the image of his lost Josette. But Angelique is still very much alive and powerful in town — and she is not about to let Barnabas find happiness a second time.
Plot synopsis by johnny-depp.org.
Johnny Depp
Johnny Depp plays Barnabas Collins, an eighteenth-century gentleman-turned-vampire with courtly manners, pale Nosferatu features and an old-world formality that collides hilariously with 1972. Depp drew on Jonathan Frid’s performance from the original soap opera and on Max Schreck’s silent-film vampire, playing Barnabas with a stiff elegance that mines much of the film’s comedy from his culture shock — while keeping the character’s romantic melancholy intact. Depp, a lifelong fan of the TV series, also produced the film.
Cast & Crew
Cast
Barnabas CollinsJohnny Depp
Elizabeth Collins StoddardMichelle Pfeiffer
Angelique BouchardEva Green
Dr. Julia HoffmanHelena Bonham Carter
Willie LoomisJackie Earle Haley
Roger CollinsJonny Lee Miller
Carolyn StoddardChloë Grace Moretz
Victoria Winters / JosetteBella Heathcote
David CollinsGulliver McGrath
Crew
DirectorTim Burton
ScreenplaySeth Grahame-Smith
StoryJohn August & Seth Grahame-Smith
Based on the series byDan Curtis
MusicDanny Elfman
CinematographyBruno Delbonnel
ProducersRichard D. Zanuck, Graham King, Johnny Depp, Christi Dembrowski, David Kennedy
StudioWarner Bros. Pictures
“Reveal yourself, tiny songstress! Show yourself, or I shall tear you apart!”
— Barnabas Collins, Dark Shadows
Filming Locations
- Pinewood Studios, Buckinghamshire, England
- Various locations across England (production was based entirely in the UK)
More about this film
Trivia
- Johnny Depp, a devoted fan of the original 1966–71 soap opera as a boy, championed the project and served as a producer.
- Dark Shadows marked Christopher Lee’s 200th film credit and his fifth collaboration with Tim Burton.
- Jonathan Frid, who played Barnabas in the original series, made a cameo shortly before his death in 2012.
- It was the eighth film pairing of Tim Burton and Johnny Depp.
Awards
- 2012 Kids’ Choice Award — Favorite Movie Actor (Johnny Depp) Won
- 2013 Saturn Award — Best Younger Actor (Chloë Grace Moretz), nominated
- 2013 Empire Award — Best Horror, nominated
