Gerard gets his fangs at the ready

Dracula 2001 is a modern-day interpretation of the myth, repackaging the story for a young audience.

I play Count Dracula, who has been interred for 100 years until thieves steal his coffin from a London vault. He is unleashed in New Orleans where he returns to his old habits, pursued by Van Helsing (Christopher Plummer) and his assistant (Jonny Lee Miller).

I was sceptical at first, but there's an amazing allure to Dracula for everybody, isn't there? I was fascinated by the character, but when I was younger I could never have imagined myself becoming an actor and playing him. This guy is the ultimate dude. He can do whatever he wants, have whoever he wants - and be the ultimate nasty bastard without any consequences. That's appealing to lots of guys - especially me!

Everything about this Dracula reeks of coolness. He's a monster but he's also exceptionally sexy - and there's an almost erotic feel every time he's around. We've made him more seductive, more powerful and more sinister than he's been before. And he's very, very cool.

What's scary is that he seems unstoppable. He's irrepressible and constantly moving like a predator. That's what I loved about this script when I read it - it doesn't let up on the action, the drama, the fear and the chase once it gets going.

The film has the hallmarks of Wes Craven, who was the executive producer. It's tongue-in-cheek - Dracula looks for his victims in a Virgin record store - but it's also scary and exciting and tense. And it looks great. It also tries to have a bit of depth, revealing what's driving him and where he's coming from - underneath that cool exterior he's really screwed-up and sad.