AMC’s “Interview With the Vampire” series is transforming once again: The series was renewed for a fourth season, titled “Anne Rice’s Queen of the Damned.”
And that’s not the only shakeup: Hannah Moscovitch will take over as showrunner for “Queen of the Damned,” while series creator Rolin Jones, who was showrunner for Seasons 1-3, will remain as executive producer alongside Moscovitch and Mark Johnson.
The title change is less of a surprise, except for the fact that it’s uncommon for an acclaimed show to rebrand so many times during its run, and follows suit with Anne Rice’s beloved Vampire Chronicles. In the books, as it seems it will in the show, “Queen of the Damned” follows “The Vampire Lestat” as a direct continuation, and depicts the return of the extraordinarily powerful first vampire, Akasha. Sheila Atim plays the role in the series, and made her first appearance in Episode 5 of “The Vampire Lestat.”
The much-anticipated renewal comes hot on the heels of “The Vampire Lestat’s” Sunday finale, which left the audience on quite a cliffhanger and glimpsed the destruction of Akasha’s reign.
“In ‘The Vampire Lestat,’ Mark, Rolin, Hannah and this extraordinary cast delivered an unforgettable season filled with propulsive storytelling that captivated the passionate and engaged fans of this franchise,” said Dan McDermott, Chief Content Officer of AMC Global Media and President of AMC Studios.
“We can’t wait to continue the journey with ‘Queen of the Damned,’ one of the most iconic stories in Anne Rice’s mythology,” McDermott said, “and watch our established and beloved characters confront Akasha with their world, and ours, very much hanging in the balance.”
During TheWrap’s “The Vampire Lestat” finale interview with Jones, he presaged the shift about to come: “If you didn’t like this season or you cuddled up to it and you loved it desperately, get ready,” Jones said. “We’re going to do it again. It’s going to flip.”
AMC also released a brief teaser for the next season, which you can check out below to get a sense of the apocalyptic vibe headed our way.
Moskovitch was a writer on the first two seasons of “Interview with the Vampire” and an executive producer on “The Vampire Lestat,” for which she specifically wrote the characters of Akasha and Gabriella. Outside of the Anne Rice-verse, she received the 2021 Governor General’s Award for English-language drama for her acclaimed play “Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Class.”
The new season was announced during the San Diego Comic-Con panel for “The Vampire Lestat,” which featured Johnson and Moscovitch alongside cast members Jacob Anderson, Assad Zaman, Eric Bogosian and Sheila Atim.
“The Vampire Lestat” stars Sam Reid, Anderson, Zaman, Bogosian, Atim, Delainey Hayles and Jennifer Ehle, and is executive produced by Johnson, Jones and Moscovitch, along with Christopher Rice and the late Anne Rice.
