Interview with the Vampire star Sam Reid and producer Mark Johnson were at Deadline’s Contenders TV to discuss Season 2 of their AMC series, wrapped up Anne Rice’s original novel. They confirmed that Season 3 will tackle her second Vampire Chronicle, The Vampire Lestat, and that means Lestat (Reid) fronting a rock band.
“The second book opens in this very extreme confronting different way,” Reid said. “We’re honoring that. The rock-star vampire is such a bizarre concept, and it’s something that we’re attempting and hopefully do it OK.”
The show’s composer, Daniel Hart, is writing the rock songs for Reid.
“The music has always been done by Daniel Hart, and Daniel Hart is really just bringing some extraordinary work to the new season,” Reid said. “This show rests so heavily on his music. It’s so visceral, the way the music can come in and ride a wave for the audience. He’s really having the time of his life writing these songs.”
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Rollin Jones created the TV adaptation of Rice’s books. He is leading the writers room for Season 3, and Johnson is preparing to film it this year.
“The writers are busy working away, meaning Rollin has no time to himself right now,” Johnson said. “We are going to be shooting in Toronto, of all places, later in the year, not too far away. So much of this season all rests on this man’s shoulders.”
Reid said the subsequent Lestat books inform his performance in every season. He referred to an acting-school exercise that internalizes material for performances. Even though he hasn’t filmed the future books yet, he might be playing a passage Rice wrote later.
“They taught you how to create a moment that exists in the character’s mind the audience doesn’t necessarily see,” Reid said. “You would learn the whole passage of the book and think it. They would film it, and you’d see it. I look at a scene Rollin has adapted, look at Anne Rice’s original material and play them both at the same time. You have the backstory of what was originally there in the material in the mind of the character and Rollin’s adaptation presented foremost.”
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Just one of Rice’s books tells an epic story through past and present. Since vampires live forever, Louis (Jacob Anderson) tells the interviewer (Eric Bogosian) about his historic vampire life with Lestat. Johnson did realize that Jones’ original vision was a bit too ambitious. He’d hoped to wrap up the first book in one season but realized it would take two.
“The second episode takes place exclusively in Europe, mostly in Paris, and we just realized we were biting off more than we could possibly chew,” Johnson said.
Season 1 filmed in New Orleans and Prague. It was important to Johnson to be fiscally responsible with the show’s ambition.
“I think we need really for all of us, all the executive producers, all of us to be as inventive and resourceful as possible,” Johnson said. “That’s why we went to Prague. We didn’t go to Paris. Prague doubled for it. We all understood that. There are other networks that would’ve spent a lot more money on this. AMC, I could not be more grateful for their support and understanding of what we needed.”
Check back Monday for the panel video.
The post ‘Interview With The Vampire’ Star Sam Reid & Producer Mark Johnson On How Season 3 Tackles “Rock Star Vampire” Lestat – Contenders TV appeared first on Deadline.
