AMC has announced that Australian actor Sam Reid has been tapped for one of the leading roles in the upcoming series adaptation of Anne Rice’s classic gothic horror novel Interview With the Vampire. This marks Reid’s first major TV project after appearing in shows such as The Newsreader, The Hunting, and The Astronaut Wives Club.
He is set to portray the role of vampire Lestat de Lioncourt, a character famously portrayed by Tom Cruise in the 1994 film adaptation. Lestat is known as the one who turned the novel’s narrator Louis de Pointe du Lac into a vampire and eventually becomes a mentor to Louis.
Evil is a point of view. We are immortal.
Introducing Sam Reid as Lestat de Lioncourt in Interview with The Vampire, based on Anne Rice’s best-selling novel. Coming 2022 to AMC+. pic.twitter.com/ds2nnMkVoU— AMC+ (@AMCPlus) August 13, 2021
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The Interview With the Vampire is an eight-episode series that will be written and executive produced by Emmy nominee Rolin Jones, who has also been set as the showrunner. It will be executive produced by Oscar winner Mark Johnson, Anne Rice, and Christopher Rice. The project will be part of both Jones and Johnson’s overall deals with AMC Studios.
The story begins in the present day where centuries-old vampire Louis de Pointe du Lac narrates his life to a reporter, starting with when Lestat de Lioncourt turned him into a vampire before going into their life together.
Following the company’s acquisition to the rights of Anne Rice’s book series The Vampire Chronicles and The Lives of the Mayfair Witches, Johnson will reportedly lead AMC’s plans to develop Rice’s collection for television and streaming. AMC’s acquisition deal of the best-selling author’s works encompasses 18 titles between each book series.
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Interview With the Vampire is the first title in the collection to be developed and greenlit to series. It is expected to debut in 2022 on AMC and AMC+.
The novel was first adapted into film in 1994 which was directed by Neil Jordan from a screenplay adapted by Anne Rice. It starred Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Kirsten Dunst, Christian Slater, and Antonio Banderas.