Van Helsing at San Diego Comic-Con: Tricia Helfer Discusses Her Twist on an Iconic Role [Video]

Vanessa Van Helsing’s got some new faces to contend with when Van Helsing returns for Season 4. Among them is Dracula herself!

Yes, you read that right. Van Helsing’s Dracula will be a woman Season 4 begins, and she will be played by the inimitable Tricia Helfer.

The Battlestar Galactica and Lucifer star sat down with reporters at San Diego Comic-Con about what it means to take on the iconic role and the kind of twists to anticipate for her Dracula.

When asked about how she initially reacted to taking on the role, Helfer admitted she had some pause about what’s to be expected of Dracula.

“When I first got the offer, and I hadn’t read anything yet, and I was like ‘okay, it’s gonna be like a walk in a mini-dress and kind of all sexy and whatever.’ So I had a little pause, to begin with. But then I read it, and I went, ‘oh. Okay.’ I’m going to be able to make this mine and make it different,” Helfer said.

“So [the producers] were already on that page where it wasn’t about ‘let’s see how different we can make it.’ Being female was already different enough, right? Let’s just make it our own version of it. With Van Helsing, they’ve made it all their own version of everything.”

Helfer went on to explain that the hair and makeup played a role in shaping this version of Dracula, adding a bit of quirkiness and creature-like aspects to her.

“Talking with the hair and makeup team, it was just about making the character evil, obviously. But also all-powerful, all-consuming, and confident, and a little bit more—I wanted to see the enjoyment that she was having,” Helfer continued.

“I wanted to make her a bit quirkier than we might be expecting. You know, hair and makeup already look so dark and scary really. I wanted to bring an enjoyment to the character. So, I hope there’s a bit of a quirkiness and a little bit of a creature aspect.”

Though the latest Van Helsing addition couldn’t say much about what Dracula’s journey would look like, she was able to tease a bit about where we’ll find the latest villain at the start of the new season and it seems like she’ll be itching for some freedom.

“She’s been locked away for a very long time. She’s just relishing that fact that she’s been released, so to speak, and she could get back to getting back in control.”

Helfer confirmed that Vanessa will be a bit of a challenge for Dracula and that “[Dracula’s] journey is yet to be seen.”

No date has been set for the new season of Van Helsing on Syfy quite yet, but catch up, rewatch, or encourage friends to binge seasons 1 and 2 on Netflix!

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