Similar to George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead spawning countless new zombie creations, Bram Stoker's Dracula is fertile creative ground for storytellers to take the world's most famous vampire in exciting (and terrifying!) new directions. Age of Reptiles creator and the longtime storyboard artist and character designer behind films such as Apollo 13, The Incredibles, and Men in Black, Ricardo Delgado is bringing his unique take on the iconic bloodsucker to life in his new illustrated novel Dracula of Transylvania from Clover Press, and a Kickstarter campaign has officially been launched for the ambitious book!
Below, we have the official press release with more details, as well as a gallery of Delgado's bold and captivating artwork for his new novel. To learn more, visit the official Kickstarter page for Dracula of Transylvania!
"One of Hollywood's leading conceptual designers, Ricardo Delgado, is about to unleash his bold and bloody take on the Prince of Darkness, just in time for the 90th anniversary of the release of Universal Studios’ Dracula. Ricardo Delgado has been the storyboard artist and character designer for films including Apollo 13, Avatar: The Last Airbender, The Incredibles, Men in Black, and Wall-e, and his Age of Reptiles graphic novels are universally acclaimed for their stunning depiction of dinosaurs and prehistory. But Delgado’s latest creative endeavour may well be his most ambitious to date: a fresh and unsettling fully illustrated novel that reimagines Bram Stoker’s classic ghost story. Delgado’s novel DRACULA OF TRANSYLVANIA, featuring more than 20 lavish illustrations and an introduction by Donald F. Glut, is now on Kickstarter from Clover Press.
“DRACULA OF TRANSYLVANIA supports and builds upon Stoker’s classic, haunting original story, but this is most certainly not your parents' Dracula or your grandparents’ Dracula,” says Delgado. “This personification of the Nosferatu king is dark and powerful, a malevolent antagonist who suffers no fools, accepts no failure and crushes anyone in his path. This Dracula is not a romantic. He’s a complete horror. Just the way I always wanted him to be.”
In DRACULA OF TRANSYLVANIA, the year is 1899. Young Solicitor Jonathan Harker braves ghosts, demons, living skeletons, and armies of rats—all of which pale in comparison to his encounters with Dracula of Transylvania, the Son of Satan. The demonic, shapeshifting vampire imposes his wrath, malice and vengeance upon an England about to enter the Modern Era.
“Dracula is vileness incarnate, a pure thing of Hell,” says Delgado. “He’s spent the past thousand years putting sword to flesh and tearing at the tapestry of history as the son of Satan himself. Kings, Popes and armies fear Dracula. And so should you.”
DRACULA OF TRANSYLVANIA is footnoted throughout with historical facts from the ancient to the modern world that bring texture to the sprawling and haunting adventure. Murder among English tombstones! Daring chases through the infamous underground Paris Ossuaries! A spectacular gladiatorial battle within Rome's Colosseum during the Witching Hour! And finally, a fever-pitch chase through Europe to the most terrifying place on earth: Castle Dracula.
The DRACULA OF TRANSYLVANIA Kickstarter campaign will have multiple tiers and rewards available for backers, including signed leatherbound hardcover copies of the book, limited edition prints, original sketches, postcards, leather bookmarks, and an exclusive clamshell/bookplate.
Here’s what people are saying about DRACULA OF TRANSYLVANIA:
“Ricardo Delgado's reimagining of Dracula is strange and bold and brilliantly original. I love it and WOULD be stunned by it if it wasn't coming from Ricardo. But brilliant is pretty much what I've come to expect from him. Still... He may have surpassed his usual brilliance here.”
—Mike Mignola, creator of Hellboy
“Ricardo Delgado does for vampires what he has done for dinosaurs! His elegant and bloody take on Stoker's classic tale is refreshingly original and scary.”
—John Landis, Director of An American Werewolf in London and Thriller
“Dark and disturbing but so BEAUTIFUL. I am always mesmerized by his artwork, now after this, it’ll be hard to sleep. Thanks Ricardo!”
—Genndy Tartakovsky, creator of Primal and Samurai Jack
“Delgado’s work always impresses. And the illustrations for his Dracula novel are yet another example of his fantastic design sense and his absolutely horrifically fucked up imagination!”—Tim Miller, director of Deadpool and Terminator: Dark Fate
“Ricardo Delgado breathes new life into the prince of the undead like he has done with every genre he has worked in!”—Geof Darrow, creator of Shaolin Cowboy, conceptual designer for The Matrix films.
“If you thought Ricardo Delgado was a great dinosaur artist...well, you're right—he is! But with his Dracula book, Ricardo has outdone himself. He has dramatically risen to a new artistic plateau in a genre and territory previously unassociated with him. Dracula will long be remembered as a major marker in Delgado's impressive body of work as a graphic storytelling artist. Bravo, myfriend!”—William Strout, author of The New Dinosaurs
“Stunning artwork and unforgettable prose. Delgado’s book is a must-have for every Horror and vampire fan.”—Gary Rhodes, Ph.D, author of The Birth of the American Horror Film and writer/director of Lugosi: Hollywood’s Dracula
“Delgado takes us on a wild ride as he skillfully introduces the next generation of Vampire hunters in a style reminiscent of the original Dracula novel.”— Dacre Stoker, co author of Dracula the Undead and Dracul, and great grand nephew of Bram Stoker
DRACULA OF TRANSYLVANIA is epic gothic storytelling with the pulse-pounding pace of the modern thriller, a cross between THE EXORCIST and the LORD OF THE RINGS. It is a brilliant and dark reenvisioning of the classic original story with a fascinating new perspective on one of literature’s most feared characters.
The DRACULA OF TRANSYLVANIA campaign is live now through March 25, 2021. For updates, follow Ricardo Delgado on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook and follow Clover Press on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
To support the campaign, visit Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/cloverpress/ricardo-delgados-dracula-of-transylvania"
After spending more than 10 years as a consultant in the tech and entertainment industry, Jonathan James launched Daily Dead in 2010 to share his interest in horror and sci-fi. Since then, it has grown into an online magazine with a staff of writers that provide daily news, reviews, interviews, and special features.
As the Editor-in-Chief of Daily Dead, Jonathan is responsible for bringing the latest horror news to millions of readers from around the world. He is also consulted with as an expert on zombies in entertainment and pop culture, providing analyses of the zombie sub-genre to newspapers, radio stations, and convention attendees.
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