# Night Teeth
**Night Teeth** is a 2021 American vampire thriller film directed by [Adam Randall](https://www.edgepedia.org/adam-randall-director) and written by Brent Dillon, released on Netflix on October 20, 2021. It stars Jorge Lendeborg Jr. as Benny, a college student who moonlights as a chauffeur for one night and discovers that his two passengers, played by [Debby Ryan](https://www.edgepedia.org/debby-ryan) and [Lucy Fry](https://www.edgepedia.org/lucy-fry), are vampires.[1](https://media.netflix.com/en/only-on-netflix/81043660) • [2](https://assets.ctfassets.net/4cd45et68cgf/6a4nvTXmsS5AwsgFGK9bD3/9b9a9624934e09ad9e6989e3d60fa283/2021_NETFLIX_FILM_SLATE.pdf)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | Netflix, October 20, 2021, at 7:00 AM GMT[1](https://media.netflix.com/en/only-on-netflix/81043660) |
| Director / writer | Adam Randall; screenplay by Brent Dillon[2](https://assets.ctfassets.net/4cd45et68cgf/6a4nvTXmsS5AwsgFGK9bD3/9b9a9624934e09ad9e6989e3d60fa283/2021_NETFLIX_FILM_SLATE.pdf) |
| Main cast | Jorge Lendeborg Jr., Debby Ryan, Lucy Fry, Raúl Castillo, Alfie Allen[2](https://assets.ctfassets.net/4cd45et68cgf/6a4nvTXmsS5AwsgFGK9bD3/9b9a9624934e09ad9e6989e3d60fa283/2021_NETFLIX_FILM_SLATE.pdf) |
| Runtime | 1 hour 47 minutes (107–108 minutes)[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/night_teeth) • [4](https://www.classification.gov.au/titles/night-teeth) |
| Critical scores | 38% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer (50 reviews); Metascore 42 on Metacritic from 10 reviews[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/night_teeth) • [5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/night-teeth/) |
| Netflix viewership | No. 1 English-language film in its first week with 31.9 million hours viewed; 17.0 million hours the following week[6](https://flixpatrol.com/hours/netflix/2021-042/world/movies-in-english-2003/by-hours/) • [7](https://flixpatrol.com/hours/netflix/2021-043/world/movies-in-english-2024/) |
| Filming | New Orleans and Los Angeles; principal photography began February 2020 and was halted for six months[8](https://online.bright-publishing.com/view/587293492/29/) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
Benny (Jorge Lendeborg Jr.) is a college student and aspiring musician who takes over his older half-brother Jay's chauffeur shift for one night to earn extra cash.[1](https://media.netflix.com/en/only-on-netflix/81043660) • [9](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/night-teeth-sexy-vampires-crime-movie-thrills/) His passengers, Blaire (Debby Ryan) and Zoe (Lucy Fry), turn out to be vampires working for Victor ([Alfie Allen](https://www.edgepedia.org/alfie-allen)), a rogue vampire who breaks a generational truce between vampires and humans in a power play to take over Los Angeles's Boyle Heights section.[9](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/night-teeth-sexy-vampires-crime-movie-thrills/) • [10](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2021/oct/20/night-teeth-review-stylish-netflix-vampire-horror-needs-more-bite)
In the film's setting, vampires and humans have lived under a truce for generations, maintained largely by the residents of Boyle Heights, a neighborhood vampires may not enter without permission.[10](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2021/oct/20/night-teeth-review-stylish-netflix-vampire-horror-needs-more-bite) • [11](https://lamplightreview.com/night-teeth-movie-review-netflix/) Jay (Raúl Castillo) is a third-generation human protector who hunts vampires that step out of line.[9](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/night-teeth-sexy-vampires-crime-movie-thrills/) • [12](https://midwestfilmjournal.com/2021/10/18/night-teeth/amp/) Victor's plan sends Blaire and Zoe across the city to eliminate the vampire leadership in a series of coordinated attacks before sunrise, with Benny unknowingly driving them between targets.[9](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/night-teeth-sexy-vampires-crime-movie-thrills/) • [10](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2021/oct/20/night-teeth-review-stylish-netflix-vampire-horror-needs-more-bite) [Megan Fox](https://www.edgepedia.org/megan-fox) and [Sydney Sweeney](https://www.edgepedia.org/sydney-sweeney) appear in a single scene as Grace and Eva, two of Los Angeles's vampire leaders.[13](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/night-teeth-movie-review-2021)
## Production
**Shooting and interruption.** [Principal photography](https://www.edgepedia.org/principal-photography) began in February 2020 and was halted for six months because of the Covid-19 pandemic; when production resumed, the team shot an alternate opening scene.[8](https://online.bright-publishing.com/view/587293492/29/) • [14](https://www.themoviewaffler.com/2020/09/i-see-you-director-adam-randall-interview.html) The film was shot in New Orleans and Los Angeles.[8](https://online.bright-publishing.com/view/587293492/29/)
**Virtual production and HDR.** Much of the film was shot on a sound stage in Los Angeles using LED technology, with 14 LED screens in total, alongside location shooting.[8](https://online.bright-publishing.com/view/587293492/29/) Cinematographer Eben Bolter, who had worked with Randall on the 2016 thriller *Level Up*, monitored high dynamic range (HDR) imagery on set with a Flanders Scientific HDR monitor supplied by Netflix.[15](https://britishcinematographer.co.uk/eben-bolter-bsc-night-teeth/) • [8](https://online.bright-publishing.com/view/587293492/29/) Because sunlight is lethal to the film's vampires, the production treated light itself as a dramatic tool; Bolter described the sun as "weaponised" in the film and pushed the HDR highlights close to 100 percent in those scenes.[8](https://online.bright-publishing.com/view/587293492/29/) Bolter's research included how Los Angeles had been photographed in films such as *Drive* (2011) and the use of color in *Thief* (1981) and the series *Euphoria*.[15](https://britishcinematographer.co.uk/eben-bolter-bsc-night-teeth/)
**Script detail.** Although the film is unmistakably a vampire story, the word "vampire" does not appear at any point in the dialogue.[8](https://online.bright-publishing.com/view/587293492/29/) Ian Hultquist composed the score.[16](https://www.moviefone.com/movie/night-teeth/lI70V6Ms7GtcI4jZ6cNee1/credits/) The film was produced by Unique Features and 42, with Vincent Gatewood, Ben Pugh, and Charlie Morrison among the producers.[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/night_teeth) • [2](https://assets.ctfassets.net/4cd45et68cgf/6a4nvTXmsS5AwsgFGK9bD3/9b9a9624934e09ad9e6989e3d60fa283/2021_NETFLIX_FILM_SLATE.pdf)
## Reception
Critics rated the film below the positive threshold. Its Rotten Tomatoes critics consensus reads: "Night Teeth has a solid cast and some interesting ideas, but they're all lost in a listlessly told, generally predictable vampire story."[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/night_teeth) The Metacritic Metascore of 42, based on 10 reviews, fell in the site's "Mixed or Average" band, with 3 positive, 5 mixed, and 2 negative reviews; the user score was 6.3.[5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/night-teeth/)
Reviewers repeatedly compared the structure to [Michael Mann](https://www.edgepedia.org/michael-mann)'s *Collateral*, another one-night Los Angeles chauffeur story.[10](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2021/oct/20/night-teeth-review-stylish-netflix-vampire-horror-needs-more-bite) • [17](https://www.nme.com/reviews/night-teeth-review-collateral-meets-blade-in-messy-vampire-thriller-3077206) Common criticisms targeted the script and thin world-building: The Guardian called it "just as forgettable" as its title, IndieWire scored it 33 and called it incoherent, and Variety's Owen Gleiberman wrote that the dark-side-of-the-L.A.-club-scene premise had potential but the movie turned out to be "a cut-and-paste thriller without any night-world bloom to it."[18](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/night-teeth/critic-reviews/) RogerEbert.com noted that Fox and Sweeney, the film's two biggest stars, appear for roughly five minutes of screen time.[13](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/night-teeth-movie-review-2021) More favorable reviews credited the lead performances and the social-structure details of the vampire world; [The A.V. Club](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-a-v-club) scored it 75, writing that first-time screenwriter Brent Dillon's script "excels at the little details of social structure, human and vampire."[18](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/night-teeth/critic-reviews/)
## Viewership
Night Teeth debuted at No. 1 on Netflix's weekly global Top 10 for English-language films for the week of October 18 to 24, 2021, with 31.9 million hours viewed, ahead of *Venom* at 7.9 million.[6](https://flixpatrol.com/hours/netflix/2021-042/world/movies-in-english-2003/by-hours/) It fell to No. 3 the following week with 17.0 million hours, behind *Army of Thieves* and *Hypnotic*.[7](https://flixpatrol.com/hours/netflix/2021-043/world/movies-in-english-2024/) It was No. 1 in 46 countries in the week ending October 24, 2021, and by the week ending November 7, 2021, its run on Netflix's Top 10 lists was over after three weeks.[19](https://shiftshifttrend.com/2026/10/04/40-netflix-hits-were-no-1-in-10-countries-and-gone-from-every-top-10-within-3-weeks/)
## Ratings
The film carries a TV-14 rating on Netflix.[5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/night-teeth/) The British Board of Film Classification classified it for injury detail, violence, and drug misuse, with a running time of 108 minutes.[20](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/night-teeth-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0xmdawmjmy) In Australia it was rated MA 15+ for strong blood and gore and fantasy themes.[4](https://www.classification.gov.au/titles/night-teeth) Common Sense Media recommended it for ages 16 and up, citing strong language, violence, and drug use.[21](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/night-teeth)
## References
1. [Night Teeth, Netflix Media Center](https://media.netflix.com/en/only-on-netflix/81043660)
2. [Netflix 2021 Film Slate (PDF)](https://assets.ctfassets.net/4cd45et68cgf/6a4nvTXmsS5AwsgFGK9bD3/9b9a9624934e09ad9e6989e3d60fa283/2021_NETFLIX_FILM_SLATE.pdf)
3. [Night Teeth, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/night_teeth)
4. [Night Teeth, Australian Classification](https://www.classification.gov.au/titles/night-teeth)
5. [Night Teeth Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/night-teeth/)
6. [Netflix Hours Viewed, Week 42 2021 (Movies – English), FlixPatrol](https://flixpatrol.com/hours/netflix/2021-042/world/movies-in-english-2003/by-hours/)
7. [Netflix Hours Viewed, Week 43 2021 (Movies – English), FlixPatrol](https://flixpatrol.com/hours/netflix/2021-043/world/movies-in-english-2024/)
8. [Definition, December 2021, page 29](https://online.bright-publishing.com/view/587293492/29/)
9. [Night Teeth: Sexy Vampires Feast on Crime Movie Thrills, Den of Geek](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/night-teeth-sexy-vampires-crime-movie-thrills/)
10. [Night Teeth review, The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2021/oct/20/night-teeth-review-stylish-netflix-vampire-horror-needs-more-bite)
11. [Night Teeth Review, Lamplight Review](https://lamplightreview.com/night-teeth-movie-review-netflix/)
12. [Night Teeth, Midwest Film Journal](https://midwestfilmjournal.com/2021/10/18/night-teeth/amp/)
13. [Night Teeth movie review, RogerEbert.com](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/night-teeth-movie-review-2021)
14. [Interview: I See You Director Adam Randall, The Movie Waffler](https://www.themoviewaffler.com/2020/09/i-see-you-director-adam-randall-interview.html)
15. [Eben Bolter BSC / Night Teeth, British Cinematographer](https://britishcinematographer.co.uk/eben-bolter-bsc-night-teeth/)
16. [Night Teeth Cast & Crew, Moviefone](https://www.moviefone.com/movie/night-teeth/lI70V6Ms7GtcI4jZ6cNee1/credits/)
17. [Night Teeth review, NME](https://www.nme.com/reviews/night-teeth-review-collateral-meets-blade-in-messy-vampire-thriller-3077206)
18. [Night Teeth critic reviews - Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/night-teeth/critic-reviews/)
19. [40 Netflix Hits Were No. 1 in 10+ Countries and Gone From Every Top 10 Within 3 Weeks, Shift Shift Trend](https://shiftshifttrend.com/2026/10/04/40-netflix-hits-were-no-1-in-10-countries-and-gone-from-every-top-10-within-3-weeks/)
20. [Night Teeth, BBFC](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/night-teeth-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0xmdawmjmy)
21. [Night Teeth Parents' Guide, Common Sense Media](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/night-teeth)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Horror films (individual works) › Vampire and werewolf films*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license