Director F.W. Murnau (John Malkovich) is out to make the greatest silent Vampire movie ever, Nosferatu. Because he is bent on making authentic horror, he hires a real vampire named Max Screck (Willem Dafoe) to play the part of Count Orlak. Murnau promises Schreck the neck of the drug addict star, Greta Schroeder (Catherine McCormack), after filming ends. Murnau says to his crew that the reason that Schreck looks so bizarre is because he is a method actor. But they all wonder why he really looks that way, why Schreck only wants to shoot at night, and why each other are dying?