Anne Rice (novels) & Rolin Jones (creator)

CAST

Sam Reid
Jacob Anderson
Eric Bogosian
Assad Zaman
Jennifer Ehle

Review

The Season 3 premiere of Interview with the Vampire is probably the most disorienting episode the series has delivered so far. I mean that in both a good and challenging way.

After two seasons of gothic romance, tragedy, and beautifully crafted period drama, the show pivots into something that feels like a drug-fueled grunge mockumentary centered on Lestat’s rise as a rock star. It’s loud, messy, chaotic, and honestly takes a minute to adjust to.

This is the kind of episode that demands a rewatch. There were details in the opening sequence and throughout the episode that completely flew over my head the first time around. Little visual cues, the Halloween costumes, even Lestat’s stutter returning when someone appears, all of it feels layered beneath the surface. Watching it felt a bit like what I’d imagine an LSD trip is like: fascinating, overwhelming, and occasionally difficult to process in real time.

That messiness won’t work for everyone. Some viewers will probably love how experimental and ambitious the episode is, while others may wonder whether certain choices were intentional or simply chaotic. Personally, I found myself somewhere in the middle. I wasn’t always sure what the show was doing, but I was never bored, plus this isn’t Mayfair Witches; Rolin Jones has earned my patience. I’m letting him cook.

It’s also worth mentioning that I’m currently about halfway through Anne Rice‘s The Vampire Lestat, so I’m at the point in the book where the storyline of the character who shows up at the end of the premiere is only starting to reveal itself. Because of that, some of the episode’s biggest moments feel less like answers and more like intriguing questions.

More than anything, this premiere feels like the beginning of a completely different show with the soul of the one we’ve been watching for two seasons. Whether that transformation ultimately works remains to be seen, but it’s certainly one hell of a way to start the season.

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