How Vampires impacted 2010s Preteen and Teen media

OPINION | ARTS | PŪRĀKAU / MYTHOLOGY

Written by Caitlin Gill (she/her) | @caitlin.gill.2 | Contributing Writer

If, like me, you were a preteen or teen in the 2010s, you’ve probably heard of at least one vampire-themed book, movie or TV show. Whether it’s Twilight, The Vampire Diaries, Hotel Transylvania, or perhaps something else entirely, if you haven’t watched it or read it, you’ve at least seen people talking about it. 

In 1819, the world was introduced to the concept of vampire media, with its origin often attributed to John Polidori’s short story, "The Vampyre." With the introduction of the elegant and charming aristocrat Lord Ruthven, who preyed on unsuspecting individuals in high society, the sophisticated vampire trope was born. His ability to seduce the innocent was a major change from previous vampires, whose main aspects were purely physical horror. 1897 is also noted as an important year for early vampire media, with the publication of Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Dracula was the first vampire book to ever gain such iconic notoriety, serving as the foundational text for subsequent adaptations such as Nosferatu (also believed by some to be copyright infringement) and the book Interview with the Vampire, both in the 20th century. 

This now brings us to the modern age and the height of vampire media: the 2000s. Unlike their predecessors, these vampires were written as teens and young adults who were trendy and fun – nothing like the sophisticated trope of yesteryear. With the success of the book series The Vampire Diaries by LJ Smith, and television network, The CW, having greenlit its TV show adaptation in 2009, the lives of vampires, werewolves and witches quickly had youth on the edge of their seats. When I was 12 and 13, I couldn’t go more than a week without people talking about who they preferred out of the show's two male leads, Damon and Stefan. One girl I knew insisted she looked like the actress who played the female lead, Nina Dobrev. During that time, I, too, binge-watched The Vampire Diaries, imagining I was one of the edgy, cool characters, unlike the real me, who constantly wore pink and was part of the drama club. 

In a similar vein, the 2000s-written (main) Twilight (2005-2008) book series spawned several movies, becoming a hit phenomenon with girls everywhere. The success of the books' live-action counterparts meant that even in the mid-2010s, people were talking about Twilight and The Vampire Diaries – almost over ten years after their initial releases. Admittedly, I didn’t watch Twilight during its initial release, as I insisted I was too cool for it, being a Vampire Diaries supremacist and all. Despite that, last year I decided to watch the Twilight movies for the first time, and they were seriously a fun watch! I think a key reason why I didn’t watch it was because I thought it was too cheesy, which, I mean, it is…but that’s a part of the fun. Alongside the surge of popularity with vampire media, the 2010s also made online-based fandoms mainstream, connecting people of mutual interests and being the source of several memes, such as “This is the skin of a killer” and “Bella, where have you been, loca?”. Even to this day, there are still Twilight TikTok memes in active circulation, as well as many brands having released collaborations with the franchise over recent years. With its 20th anniversary this year, who knows what merchandise die-hard fans are in store for?

In an IJELS journal article titled, Popularity of Vampire Fiction among Teenage Masses, it states, “Teenage is a period of growing minds and hearts … during this age, they grow some kind of unknown fascination for the fantasy world. In the modern day, they are obsessed with vampires. Edward Cullen, is that dreamy guy whom every girl desires, despite the fact that he is also the harbinger of death.” Basu also comments that, as life and living is a teen's only wish, “Most of the girls want to be bitten once by Edward after reading the novel to attain an immortal and young life.”

Despite this analysis and it being true for some fans, I never cared that much about the guys in vampire media. Yeah, they’re attractive, but I greatly preferred the girls, with their major main character syndrome and fun outfits. I would be lying if I said I didn’t wear Vampire Diaries’ Elena-inspired outfit, featuring a wired top paired with a black leather jacket and skinny jeans. In this new era, women in vampire media weren’t only fashionable, but badass heroines too. No longer restricted to damsels in distress or seductresses (but instead with actual personalities), characters like Sarah from My Babysitter's A Vampire (2011) and Mavis from Hotel Transylvania (2012) were created with knowing how to kick serious butt in mind. In Monster High (2010-2017), vampire character Draculaura rocks both girly pink and dark, gothic outfits. Breaking norms and challenging traditional vampire stereotypes in such fashion – I’d say she definitely inspired some of my style growing up. 

The release of both My Babysitter's A Vampire and Hotel Transylvania left preteen me in a complete state of awe. These movies weren’t brooding dramas; instead, fun comedies with a dark edge. In My Babysitter’s A Vampire, Ethan, who, upon starting high school, meets his preteen sister's babysitter (and recently turned vampire), Sarah. To ease his suspicions and find out what’s really going on with the babysitter, Ethan pairs up with his friends Benny and Rory – with wacky shenanigans to commence. This movie, like several others in its time, has a certain slapstick humour of undeniable likability. Think Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010), but with vampires in it. This new spin on the vampire genre created a more entertaining side to vampires, fit for both younger and older audiences. 

Both Hotel Transylvania and My Babysitter's A Vampire parody Twilight to some extent, with the former showing a short clip of an animated version of Twilight on a television screen, with Dracula expressing in disbelief, “This is how we’re represented nowadays?”. In My Babysitter's A Vampire, the Twilight movies are called “Dusk”, with funny Easter eggs of Dusk inserted throughout, and the location of the film’s climax at a screening of Dusk III Unbitten. 

Aside from girls crushing on Edward from Twilight, I think one of the key reasons why vampire culture was so prevalent in preteen and teen media is that it’s both fun and a form of escapism. Consuming vampire media, whether book or film, helps us feel cooler and edgier, and aside from myself, I’ve met several others who can say vampire media introduced them to certain music and fashion subcultures. Despite the personality and portrayal of vampires changing over time, they have always been prevalent in people's hearts. And with Twilight recently announcing that the whole saga will come back to cinemas soon, that begs the question: will the love for vampires ever truly die or stay immortal?