Count Alucard is a fictional character created by American filmmakers Robert and Curt Siodmak for their 1943 horror film Son of Dracula. Like his father Count Dracula, Alucard is a vampire, a mythological creature that lives by sucking the life force from living creatures. Alucard was first performed by Lon Chaney Jr. in Son of Dracula and has since been featured in other movies, comics, television shows, video games and other forms of media. The name "Alucard" is "Dracula" spelled backwards.