Dracula Rises From The Zone

Dracula is the latest NZ premiere to be announced for Sky’s new sci-fi/fantasy channel, The Zone.

It’s one of two exclusives the channel announced today, the other being Star-Crossed.

But arguably even better is the news The Zone, which launches in November, will screen from the beginning the brilliant British series, Misfits, which languished for an audience on Four.

Dracula is from the producers of Downton Abbey and stars Jonathan Rhys Meyers (The Tudors) as the vampire in Victorian London, where he poses as an American entrepreneur who wants to brighten the night with electricity.

He also plans to take revenge on those who cursed him with immortality centuries earlier — until he becomes infatuated with a woman who appears to be a reincarnation of his wife.

The series earned mixed reviews, from the dreadful (“worst Dracula ever” — TV Guide), to the middling (“nothing about the show is as much fun as it should be” — New York Times), to the rapturous (“sumptuous, sexy and, yes, bloody fun” — Los Angeles Times).

However, it was axed after one season of 10 episodes. According to Deadline Hollywood, “It lost steam after the solid debut, and there had been some issues with star Jonathan Rhys Meyers, who received good reviews, during the shoot.”

Star-Crossed concerns an alien and human who fall in love — but don’t dismiss it as “a fluffy teen sci-fi romance,” the AV Club warned.

“So far the show acquits itself well, sticking the landing with its romantic moments and politically minded scenes in equal measure.”

However, Variety said this mashup of Roswell, Romeo & Juliet and District 9 is “informed by the premise that if girls like the bad boys, they’ll really like the vampiric, furry or extraterrestrial ones”.