The journey into Anne Rice’s immortal universe continues as the cast and crew of AMC’s ‘Interview with the Vampire’ dropped teasers at the 2025 San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC) last weekend about the series’ upcoming third season, including an all-new title and additional cast members.
Now titled ‘The Vampire Lestat’ to pay homage to Rice’s gothic classic, the new season will reintroduce Lestat de Lioncourt, who is now a famous rock star with a long line of diehard fans more than ready to bare their necks for him.
While we have seen plenty of the charismatic vampire in the past seasons through the memories of his lover, Louis de Pointe du Lac, ‘The Vampire Lestat’ will be switching the point of view, allowing Lestat to tell his side of the story and take the audience to hundreds of years ago – a time when the vampire prince was no more than an ordinary human boy residing in a far away French town.
Who are the returning cast members?
The original cast members will be reprising their roles for this season.
Australian actor Sam Reid had to sharpen his music skills in preparation for his return as Lestat.
Fans were given a taste of “Rockstat” at last year’s SDCC when AMC dropped ‘Long Face’, a deeply erotic single featuring Reid’s vocals and written by series composer Daniel Hart.
According to GayTimes, Reid at this year’s SDCC video suite teased about Lestat possibly singing a song inspired by queer pop icon Chappell Roan, revealing that Hart “spent an entire week listening solely to [Roan], and I think there’s probably a song that feels quite like her.”
Returning to complete the show’s beloved toxic vampire lovers is Jacob Anderson as Louis, who – from the sneak peek shown at the SDCC panel on July 26 – seems to be thriving more than ever after last season’s revelations.
Some fans were concerned that the switch to Lestat’s POV would mean less Louis, but showrunner and executive producer Rolin Jones told Variety that “no one should worry at all” as there is “way more Louis in our show than there is in the book.”
The sneak peek also included a heated argument between Louis and Lestat, which appeared to look like divorce proceedings, with their respective lawyers present by their sides.
Of course, ‘Interview with the Vampire’ will not be complete without the interviewer.
Eric Bogosian will once again test another immortal being’s patience as Daniel Molloy, who is no longer an illness-ridden human, but a rebellious newly-turned vampire basking in the fame brought by the book he published after his interview with Louis.
British actor Assad Zaman will reprise the character of Armand, Molloy’s maker.
While the centuries-old vampire may not be present in the new teaser, Bogosian confirmed to Screen Rant that “Armand and Daniel will be face to face,” and he and Zaman have already shot some of the “pretty intense” scenes.
Last but definitely not least, Delainey Hayles, who portrayed Claudia in season two, will be gracing our screens once more.
But the question of how she will be haunting the narrative is unclear for now, as the show’s SDCC panel teased that Hayles might play a different character.
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Who are the new characters?
Joining Lestat are some hotly anticipated characters played by a new set of actors.
Jennifer Ehle – known for her role as Elizabeth Bennet in the 1995 BBC1 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice – will play the character of Gabriella, Lestat’s mother, with whom he has a questionable relationship.
Actor and playwright Damien Atkins will transform into Magnus, the vampire responsible for turning Lestat into a blood-sucking creature of the night.
Former ‘Twilight’ actor Christopher Heyerdahl will be rejoining the land of immortals as Marius de Romanus, Armand’s maker and a crucial character in Lestat’s story.
Canadian actress Ella Ballentine will portray Baby Jenks, who, in the book, was turned into a vampire by Fang Gang leader, Killer, when she was only 14 years old.
‘The Vampire Lestat’ is slated for release sometime in 2026.
It is an adaptation of the second book of the same name in Rice’s ‘The Vampire Chronicles’ series, with the show’s previous two seasons being based on the first instalment, ‘Interview with the Vampire’.
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