Niles & Francavilla on Dracula Meets the Wolfman

It’s icon versus icon.

This Wednesday, Image Comics and Frazetta Comics bring to life two horror icons in one action packed story, Frank Frazetta's Dracula Meets the Wolfman comes to us this August and promises to bring a true horror classic! Writer Steve Niles (30 Days of Night, Batman: Gotham After Midnight) and artist Francesco Francavilla (Zorro, Sorrow) spoke with us to give us the scoop.

But first off, click over here and check out Newsarama's exclusive preview of Dracula Meets the Wolfman.

Newsarama: Steve, you're standing alongside three icons with this story: Dracula, the Wolfman and Frank Frazetta. That's got to be a little nerve racking at the same time very exciting, but this is your gig, horror, monsters and all things creepy, you got to be like a kid in a candy store. Give us a little insight on how you approached this project?

Steve Niles: My approach to the project was tapping into what I used to think about these paintings when I was a kid. I was one of those teens who grew up in ‘70s with Frazetta all over my walls, so I sent a lot of time thinking about them and what stories they held. When Jay and Nat approached me about Dracula meets the Wolfman it was a matter of picking which story to tell. I decided to go super-traditional, something that harkens back to the old black and white films with romance at the heart, lots of action and of course, the showdown between the legends.

NRAMA: Francesco, same question, but the art, seems you went more with a classic EC style which seems like a perfect fit. Give us a little insight on your process with Dracula Meets the Wolfman.

Francesco Francavilla: Let me start by saying that working on anything that is even remotely linked to Frazetta is a dream come true. I have been a huge fan of his since forever. If we add to this the fact that I have been drawing two icons of the horror kingdom and with such a talented writer like Steve Niles, well you can definitely tell that is a dream project. I feel really blessed to be working on this and really appreciate that Jay & Nat invited me on board the Frazetta team.

The art style was a no-brainer for me, since I already tend to have a more "old-school" feel to my artwork, so when it comes to a gothic horror tale, I had to go with that old EC comics vibe. Since this is a more natural style for me, it didn't really involve a whole lot of research. The whole process starts with roughing out each page of Steve's script. Once that's approved, I generally go straight for the inks and start cranking out the pages. I really prefer this process for comics work if at all possible, because I feel like this lets me keep the energy and life in the artwork without it getting too stiff and overworked. Hopefully, people will enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed drawing it.

NRAMA: Steve, rumor has it you're in the process of another Frazetta inspired book in the works, spill the beans what'cha got?

SN: Steve: Weeeell, yes. I can't lie. I'm doing Night Stalker (announced at SDCC this year), but truth be told, I'd do all of them if they let me. That's how ingrained these images are on my brain. That's how powerful Frazetta is. At this point I'll let you know I'll be teaming up with Josh Medors (Frank Frazetta's Swamp Demon, Runes of Ragnan - on Night Stalker) and it will have a monster in it!