An incredible 4-season show on Netflix not only boasts a star-studded cast but also comes off as the perfect mishmash of some of Dragon Ball Z and Blade‘s best elements. It has been a while since the last Blade movie hit the theaters, and, even though a new Blade movie was in the talks for quite some time, its future remains unknown.

Despite this, Blade remains one of the most talked-about Marvel projects because of how brilliantly the movies from the early 2000s captured everything from hoards of dangerous night creatures to sleek, leather-clad vampire hunters. It seems unlikely that the new Blade movie will see the light of day in the near future, but Netflix’s Castlevania seems to scratch the same itch with its gothic atmosphere and vampire lore.

As Castlevania progresses, its large-scale battles and off-the-rails power-scaling also remind one of shōnen anime like Dragon Ball Z. With so much going in its favor, Castlevania easily ranks among the best modern animated shows. What makes it even better than many other shows of its kind is its stellar voice cast.

Castlevania’s Cast Is Worthy Of A Blockbuster Movie

Castlevania‘s cast is led by Richard Armitage, who also played Thorin Oakenshield in The Hobbit film trilogy. Armitage brilliantly captures Trevor Belmont’s cynicism and growing pessimism with his voice acting forte. Alejandra Reynoso, of the Winx Club fame, serves as the voice behind Sypha Belnades, capturing her compassion with a level of warmth and charisma that makes the character instantly likable.

Meanwhile, James Callis, who is best known for his roles in Battlestar Galactica, Slow Horses, and the Bridget Jones movies, brilliantly voices the dhampir son of Dracula​​​​​​​, Alucard. Graham McTavish, who has myriad fantasy franchises, like House of the Dragon, Outlander, and Spartacus, under his belt, voices the main villain, Vlad Dracula Țepeș.

The show’s roster is jampacked with several other big names and recognizable figures like Jaime Murray, Theo James, Yasmine Al Massri​​​​​​​, Emily Swallow, Jessica Brown Findlay, Lance Riddick, and Bill Nighy, among others. Castlevania‘s incredible lore, stylistic animation, and gripping action scenes alone are enough to keep one hooked throughout its runtime.

The fact that it holds no punches when it comes to gore and violence makes its darker elements even more immersive and hard-hitting. However, it is the show’s talented roster that allows it to elevate itself above most video game-inspired animated shows and movies.

In its four-season runtime, Netflix’s Castlevania leaves almost no dull moments and keeps delivering everything from brutally choreographed​​​​​​​ supernatural battles to emotionally-charged character drama.

How Castlevania Became One Of Netflix’s Best Action Franchises

Powerhouse Animation, which is the studio behind Castlevania, gave the show a very distinct visual identity where it seems to have anime-esque fluidity during action sequences but also adopts Western dark fantasy aesthetics​​​​​​​. Set pieces, like the gripping showdown of the central trio, Trevor, Sypha, and Alucard, fighting through Dracula’s castle in Season 2, have visceral gore and magical fluidity that can only be found in a rare few supernatural shows.

Even in terms of character development, Castlevania rarely draws a one-dimensional picture of its main players. Even a character like Dracula in the show is portrayed as a deeply tragic, grief-stricken figure who only goes against humanity after feeling deeply betrayed and broken.

Instead of stretching its runtime with unnecessary story developments, the Castlevania franchise also cleverly expanded its run with Castlevania: Nocturne on Netflix.​​​​​​​ This allowed the franchise to evolve its story by shifting the timeline to the French Revolution and focusing on Richter Belmont.

In a lot of ways, Castlevania also seemingly paved the way for Netflix to develop other high-tier adaptations like Arcane, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, and Devil May Cry, which also now rank among the best action series on the streaming service.