The Anne Rice Immortal Universe took center stage at the ATX TV Festival this weekend, offering fans an in-depth look at what’s next for both Interview with the Vampire, Mayfair Witches, and the upcoming Talamasca: The Secret Order series.
With key creatives on stage — including Interview with the Vampire showrunner Rolin Jones, Talamasca showrunners John Lee Hancock and Mark Lafferty, executive producer Mark Johnson, and AMC Networks’ President of Entertainment Dan McDermott — the panel explored how the universe continues to evolve, what’s next for Lestat, and how the writers’ strike impacted key moments.
For the upcoming Interview with the Vampire season, which will focus on the second Anne Rice book The Vampire Lestat, we’ll find Lestat a little more than mid-way through a 50-stop concert tour (around stop 33, to be exact). This tour isn’t just Lestat leaning into his musical side though — it’s his pointed response to Louis’ book with Daniel Malloy, Interview with the Vampire. Jones described it as “a strong reaction,” and teased fans that he already has 16 songs composed by Daniel Hart on his phone for the upcoming episodes. “I know a lot more than you guys,” he teased. “Daniel Hart was in a band that opened for Bowie. The music is what I’m most confident in,” he said.
Jones also addressed how the WGA strike affected the emotional climax of season two, especially the final scene between Louis and Lestat. Due to the strike, Jones described that he didn’t feel the writing for the final moment was where they wanted it to be, particularly in relation to Louis’ level of contrition. He met with Jacob Anderson and Sam Reid to rework the material, but with limited time, they only had two takes to let the actors get it right. He described the actors as being “pissed”, but explained that what they didn’t understand was that the entirety of the series served as the backbone to the context of the scene, and that they nailed the scene in the second take (in the first, they cut the cameras too early, Jones explained).
He also acknowledged the high expectations heading into The Vampire Lestat season, admitting that as series prepares to start filming in just two weeks, “I’m not sleeping.” The pressure of crafting a season that delivers both spectacle and emotional depth is clearly weighing on him — especially with longtime fans waiting for some major lore payoffs. Jones reconfirmed that several iconic characters from The Vampire Chronicles will be making their long-awaited debuts, including Akasha, Gabrielle, and Marius, signaling a deeper dive into Lestat’s past and the larger mythology of Rice’s universe.
The panel also offered fans their first glimpse into The Talamasca: The Secret Order, including early character reveals and casting. The upcoming series will follow the secret agency that monitors the vampires and witches of Anne Rice’s universe — which will have more of a spy thriller feel to it.
Hancock and Lafferty hinted at deeper lore, sharing that Elizabeth McGovern’s character breaks type for the actress, and that one of the new characters, Jasper, is a Bolivian-born vampire who has quietly lived in Austin, Texas for a century. Jason Schwartzman also joins the series as Burton, who provides the group with a penthouse safe haven.
Attendees were treated to a short preview of the upcoming series — which Jones adorably watched sitting criss-cross on the floor — ahead of its October release date.
