Friday’s spectacular “Dracula,” from France’s Luc Besson with Caleb Landry Jones as the world’s best known, best loved vampire, actually took seed several years ago.

Besson has crafted a totally different, uniquely romantic vision from Bram Stoker’s 19th century source novel “Dracula.”

Besson begins in the 15th century kingdom of Wallachia where Jones’ Prince Vladimir, unable to prevent the brutal murder of his beloved Elisabeta (Zoë Bleu), curses God, becomes Dracula and vows revenge.

Jump 400 years to the late 19th century. Dracula has continued during all these centuries to seek his beloved. He believes he finds her reincarnated in Mina (also Bleu) while a priest (Germany’s two-time Oscar winner Cristoph Waltz) hunts Dracula, determined to kill him.

When did Jones first hear about playing Dracula?

“Just before we started shooting ‘Dogman.’ I remember Luc bringing up just the idea of, ‘Is there a part that you’ve wanted to play? Is there anything that’s interesting you’d want to have?’ Really, how can you have an answer for that! Then he said, ‘Dracula. That would be good.’

“Maybe a few weeks or a month goes by: ‘Dracula! You would be good.’ We finished ‘Dogman,’ and some months later, there’s a script for Dracula. I couldn’t believe it!”

This is far from the classic Dracula of Bela Lugosi, the British Drac of Christopher Lee or Gary Oldman’s murderous Dracula.

“No, it’s Luc Besson, and myself. And everyone else that participated,” Jones, 36, said in a Zoom interview with Bleu, 31. “That’s one of the most beautiful things about working with Luc — going into his world and joining forces with his imagination.

“You give yourself to that for the duration of the film, because his imagination is very particular to himself, and he is very free in that space.

“And Zoë’s a very creative person. I’m a very creative person. So it’s just like fuel to the fire. All you want to do is help make that vision work, be made real. Because he sees it. And if he sees it, you know it’s there.”

Jones eagerly salutes the many artists who made Besson’s “Dracula” live, from the multiple makers of prosthetics to the elaborate armor and century-spanning costumes.

He offers a shout out to their energy, talent, excitement. “It’s their vision as well, meant to try and get Luc’s vision which is very clear, very crisp, but also very collaborative.

“This is what is so beautiful about making something like this. It’s Luc never taking his eye off the ball and working with fellow actors who are also never taking their eye off the ball. All of us committed to the same story.”

“Dracula” opens Friday

Caleb Landry Jones and Zoe Bleu in a scene from “Dracula.” (Photo courtesy Vertical)