Sam Reid of AMC’s ‘Interview with the Vampire’ Believes Louis and Lestat’s Romance Allows Them to ‘Become Better Monsters’
Australian actor Sam Reid has a lot to carry as beloved vampire figure Lestat di Lioncourt on AMC’s TV series adaptation of Anne Rice’s “Interview with the Vampire.” Sure, there’s accurately portraying the complex romance shared between his character and Jacob Anderson’s Louis de Pointe du Lac, but Reid is also tasked with conveying how his character is seen by his lover following their split. In season 2, these hallucinations of Lestat haunt Louis as he tries to build a new relationship with Armand (Assad Zaman), an ancient vampire who hid for years under the guise of Louis’ servant.
Discussing the season in a recent interview with Collider, Reid addressed the difficulty of embracing vampiric life and how its complexities have added to the relationships portrayed.
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When asked what the hardest part of shooting Season 2 was, Reid said, “Dream Lestat — the dream ghost version that we had. I wasn’t totally sold on his presence. [Laughs] I was worried he was going to be annoying. But as we slowly worked through it, I ended up having a real soft spot for that version of Lestat and that kind of sweet, dopey, innocent, naive character. I really enjoyed him in the end.”
Despite learning to love these elements of his character, Reid still admits that being an immortal blood-sucker isn’t a walk in the park.
“Gosh, being a vampire is hard,” he said to Collider. “Picking somebody who you feel is gonna be able to stand the test of time and be a good vampire, especially someone who you believe is gonna be capable of killing every single day and not disappearing or lighting themselves on fire — Lestat saw that in Louis in the beginning. Louis is a fighter, and he saw so much potential. He’s also desperately in love with [Louis], with his humanity and his struggle.”
However, eventually, Lestat comes to find out that Louis never wanted to be the fighter he’s been forced to be throughout his existence, which allows him to finally embrace the darkness inside.
“It took them the better part of a century for Louis to discover his true vampiric self and for Lestat to realize there’s more humanity in him than he realized,” said Reid. “I think that’s why they’re a good match. I think they’re kind of soul mates for that reason, because they can learn so much from each other and become better monsters.”
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