HBO Max Is Breathing New Life Into A Vampire Movie With A Wild Storyline

In the early 2010s, movies about supernatural beings were all the rage thanks to the success of "Twilight." Studios rushed to put their own spin on the genre, resulting in bizarre mashups like "Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters." Another of those oddities was the 2012 flop, "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter." While not a hit at the ticket counter or with critics, new viewers are realizing why fans find it such a fun ride, with the film currently ranking among HBO Max's Top 10 most-watched movies (via FlixPatrol).

Based on a novel of the same name, "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" introduces a very different version of the U.S. President than what the history books tell. This Lincoln (Benjamin Walker) didn't just end slavery: Before becoming President, he was trained as a killer of the undead. But after hunting the vampire's powerful leader, Adam (Rufus Sewell), Lincoln finds himself caught in an ancient struggle for supremacy.

Despite its flop status, "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" has some A+ talent behind the scenes, led by then-up-and-coming screenwriter and the source material's author, Seth Grahame-Smith (whose "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies started as fan-fiction). In addition, Tim Burton is among the film's producers, while "Wanted" helmer Timur Bekmambetov directs. Its stacked cast includes Dominic Cooper, Anthony Mackie, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, and Rufus Sewell. 

Part of the appeal of "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" is how bizarre the concept is at face value, but for producer Tim Burton, it wasn't just a fun idea; it was a perfect match — because it reminded him of the movies from his youth. "It took me back to the era of films I grew up in," Burton said in an interview with Rotten Tomatoes. "It was like a weird mashup of movies ... these weird kind of mixups of horror films."

Despite proudly comparing "Vampire Hunter" to these camp offerings, the "Beetlejuice" director actually believes that "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" may be more plausible than those classic B-movies. "The interesting thing about it is that it's not as far-fetched as it sounds," he continued. "The events, the idea of him becoming a vampire hunter, and all the deaths that he had in his family ... it makes a lot of sense and is actually more believable than the premise makes it."

As for how he felt about people calling "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" a mere trend-chaser coming off the heels of "Twilight," Burton also bristled and refused to acknowledge such claims. Speaking with Uproxx about both "Hunter" and his then-recent vampire centric directorial effort "Dark Shadows," he shared, "I've loved vampire movies since I was 5 years old. For me, it's not a trend."