Lily Rose-Depp has had a huge renaissance after the flop of her HBO series The Idol – according to critics who have watched the horror vampire film, Nosferatu.
The actress, 25, who is the daughter of Hollywood heavyweight Johnny Depp, 61, and French actress Vanessa Paradis, 51, starred in The Idol last year alongside The Weeknd, but it ended after just five episodes following substantial backlash over its disturbing content.
However, her performance in the reboot of the classic 1922 movie Nosferatu has been hailed by critics and received a 93% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Early reviewers have declared Lily-Rose has broken away from the nepo-baby mould and is ‘outstanding’ as Ellen Hutter, a young woman suffering from seizures when possessed by vampire Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård) in the Robert Eggers chilling remake.
Some critics have even claimed Lily-Rose could earn Oscar recognition for the film, which premiered in Berlin on Monday night and is set for release on January 3.
The Telegraph’s Tim Robey awarded Nosferatu three stars out of five and wrote Lily is the ‘one to watch’.
Lily Rose-Depp has had a huge renaissance after the flop of her HBO series The Idol – according to critics who have watched the horror vampire film, Nosferatu
The actress, 25, starred in The Idol last year alongside The Weeknd (pictured), but it ended with just five episodes following substantial backlash over its disturbing content
‘Lily opens the film screaming, thrusts herself bodily into striking fits of eroticised demon-possession, and gives the best performance,’ he wrote.
‘Gory and gorgeous, this extravagantly sexual spin on Dracula, following in the brisker footsteps of FW Murnau in 1922 (who was sued over his unofficial adaptation) and Werner Herzog in 1979, picks a pace to match its supremely glacial style. Rather than pouncing, it lurks, with an undeniably imposing way of making an entrance.’
Yahoo’s Jonathan Sim chimed: ‘2024 has had no shortage of masterful horror movie performances. From Nell Tiger Free in The First Omen to Naomi Scott in Smile 2, female actors have been crushing it.
‘We can add another name to the list of incredible performances: Lily-Rose Depp. Anya Taylor-Joy was initially cast as Ellen before being replaced by Depp.
‘Taylor-Joy is such a phenomenal actress that losing her can be disappointing. But somehow, Depp brings something powerful, sensual, and unexpected. It’s her best performance yet.’
‘The film belongs to Lily-Rose Depp, whose performance is a revelation,’ declared The Hollywood Reporter’s David Rooney.
‘Her scenes with Bill Skarsgard are electric. Depp gives Ellen’s delirium a tragic gravity, deepening once she acknowledges the mystical forces within her that sparked the vampire’s obsession.
‘She can switch in an instant from weak and vulnerable to demonic, and the stylized physicality of her seizures is breathtaking.’
Lily Rose-has followed in her father’s horror footsteps with a chilling new role in Nosferatu
Lily is the daughter of Hollywood heavyweight Johnny Depp , 61, and French actress Vanessa Paradis , 51. They announced their separation in 2012 (pictured 2004)
HBO series The Idol – which was co-helmed by Euphoria writer Sam Levinson, The Weeknd (Abel Tesfaye) and Reza Fahim – came under heavy criticism over its explicit content
The Independent awarded it five out of five stars and critic Clarisse Loughrey wrote: ‘Lily does magnificent work in embodying the sense of existing out of place, not only in the violent contortions and grimaces of supernatural possession, but in the way Ellen’s gaze seems to look out beyond her conversation partner and into some undefinable abyss.
‘Nosferatu not only revitalises a classic monster, it reminds us why they matter at all.’
Empire added: ‘Despite its familiar story beats, Eggers’ retelling suffocates like a coffin, right up to its chilling final shot. Lily-Rose Depp is full-bloodedly committed, and Bill Skarsgård’s fiend gorges with terrible fury.’
A synopsis for Nosferatu reveals it is a ‘Gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman and the terrifying vampire infatuated with her, causing untold horror in its wake.’
Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Emma Corrin and Willem Dafoe also make up the cast.
It comes after Lily’s stint in HBO series The Idol – which was co-helmed by Euphoria writer Sam Levinson, The Weeknd (Abel Tesfaye) and Reza Fahim.
It came under heavy criticism and was even described as ‘torture porn’, with a lot of the controversy focusing on its explicit content.
The Idol was originally ordered for a six episode run in 2021, before Sam took over.
At the time Abel, 33, addressed the backlash and insisted the sex scenes in the show weren’t meant to be ‘overtly sexy.’
Asked in particular about a particularly graphic scene in episode two, he told GQ magazine: ‘No. There’s nothing sexy about it. When we use Basic Instinct as a reference, we’re using Verhoeven.’
‘Verhoeven is the king of ’90s satire thriller—yes, there’s moments of sexy in his films but there are other moments that are very cheesy and hilarious,’ he explained.
The Save Your Tears hitmaker added: ‘However you’re feeling watching that scene, whether it’s discomfort, or you feel gross, or you feel embarrassed for the characters.
‘It’s all those emotions adding up to: This guy is in way over his head, this situation is one where he is not supposed to be here,’ he concluded.
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