With Christopher Lee’s passing I wanted to have said that he managed to grab the iconic portrayal of Count Vlad from Bela Lugosi.
Then I began to wonder who all had attempted that role.
Help me build a list so we can see who is the SDMB favorite – by way of a poll! 
Gary Oldman
Max Schreck, although technically he was Count Orlok.
Surely we don’t need all of these guys!:
[Dracula (Character)
from Dracula (1931)
The content of this page was created by users. It has not been screened or verified by IMDb staff.](http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0002561/?ref_=fn_ch_ch_1)
Can you believe there have been over 500? :eek:
Frank Langella comes to my mind, too.
As Dracula, I still think Bela Lugosi is the best. That’s not nostalgia or tradition speaking – of all the Draculas, he was the only one that convinced me that he really was an ancient slavonic nobleman.
Christopher Lee turned in the most faithful performance, but in Jess Franco’s Count Dracula, not the 1957 Hammer film.
The choice for overall best production is given, by many discriminating critics, to the BBC version starring Louis Jourdan, who I think I’d give second place after Bela (much as I loved Langella).
Not in the running:
John Carradine (twice)
Jack Palance
Richard Roxburgh (from Van Helsing)
Marc Warren (who? He played a definitely offbeat Dracula in a Granada 2006 version, which had David Suchet – Hercule Poirot! – as van Helsing)
Sad to hear about Christopher Lee’s passing. I didn’t know about it until this thread.
Bela Lugosi and Christopher Lee are the only ones that have made any imprint on me.
Honorable Mention - Leslie Nielsen
Also not in the running;
Dominic Purcell - Blade Trinity
Gerard Butler - Dracula 2000
Whoa whoa whoa. That Palance version is very good. Richard Matheson wrote it, Dan Curtis directed.
I know that Matheson wrote (and introduced, for the first time, the idea of Dracula going after a woman because she was the reincarnation of his Lost Love, and idea that would be re-used in Coppola’s version. I think Matheson lifted it from Balderston’s script for The Mummy) it. It’s still not great. Much as I love Palance, this version just doesn’t do it for me.
I think a large part of it is that “Castle Dracula” looks like they shot it in Dan Curtis’ neighbor’s home. Palance has the coziest Dracula’s Castle of any version I’ve seen. I couldn’t imagine it having bats or wolves or spiders or armadillos in it.
But not as cozy as Count Yorga’s pad.
I’d like to get the count (sic) up to 20 at least before posting a poll.
Here’s the list so far (I hope I got them all)…
Christopher Lee
Bela Lugosi
Gary Oldman
Max Schreck
Frank Langella
Jess Franco
Louis Jourdan
John Carradine
Jack Palance
Richard Roxburgh
Marc Warren
Leslie Nielsen
Dominic Purcell
Gerard Butler
Keep in mind that the voters will determine the worthiness of the portrayal(s) so self-censorship at this stage is not required.
Just something to whittle down the 500+ linked to above (Post #3) to a reasonable poll size.
Jess Franco was a director, not an actor (well, he does have 99 acting credits on IMDB, but it’s mostly voice overs or uncredited extra work). He directed Christopher Lee as the Count in 1970’s Count Dracula, aka El Conde Dracula, but he never played Dracula himself.
Which reminds me, what about Klaus Kinski in the remake of Nosferatu? Despite the Max Schreck inspired makeup, that character was definitely named Dracula.
Jonathan Rhys Meyers played Dracula in the NBC TV series of that title last season. It was bad, but he did a creditable job.
Should include David Peel for “Brides of Dracula” just to be inclusive in a George Lazenbyish way, if you know what I mean.
Also Michael Nouri for the Dracula part of the TV show ‘Cliffhangers’.
I’m certain Lee would have won even before he died…but I’d like to see Oldman get second place.
Thanks for the fix and the new names.
George Hamilton. “Creatures of the night… shut up!”
Would Jonathan Frid (1924–2012) get more than a joke vote or two? 