AMC is turning Anne Rice's literary classic into another series with Mayfair Witches, which premieres January 8. The new show is based on the prolific author's Lives of the Mayfair Witches trilogy, which tells the story of a matriarchal family of witches whose powers and fortunes are tied to a mysterious entity known as "Lasher." As the books went on and Rice's fictional universe expanded, characters from Mayfair Witches intertwined with her Interview with the Vampire novels, making both prime options for AMC's Immortal Universe.
The first onscreen adaptation of Mayfair Witches stars The White Lotus' Alexandra Daddario as Rowan, a brilliant neurosurgeon who finds herself plagued with fearsome powers before learning she's part of a legacy of witches. Helping guide her in this quest is an equally mysterious man named Ciprien, who works for an institution known as the Talamasca, while Beth Grant and Harry Hamlin costar as members of her ancient and powerful witch family. Mayfair Witches was developed by Esta Spalding and Michelle Ashford, who previously helmed Masters of Sex.
Screen Rant spoke to the stars of Mayfair Witches about their understanding of Anne Rice's source material, the show's connection to Interview With the Vampire, and how they sought to bring her vision of New Orleans to life onscreen.
Alexandra Daddario, Tongayi Chirisa, and Harry Hamlin on Mayfair Witches
Screen Rant: Alexandra, I know you did a deep dive into Anne Rice when preparing for Mayfair Witches. What stood out to you most about Rowan as a character and as part of that legacy?
Alexandra Daddario: I think Anne Rice's material is so complex that you just go, "Oh my gosh, how did she come up with that?" But it's really a metaphor for things that are quite grounded and relatable. I found that, in this fantasy world where Rowan has all of this stuff thrown at her and is dealing with grief and finding out that she has a new family and powers she can't control, it's all really a metaphor for growing up and finding out who you are for.
Learning what it is to be a woman in the world and learning about Anne Rice, I can see where she crafted this character. I would be curious to ask her a lot of questions but, from what I found in her interviews, I felt I understood the character better from understanding her.
Tongayi, Ciprien is a new character to the mythology, but he seems to be taking on characteristics of Michael and Aaron. What was your way into him and to the lore of the Talamasca?
Tongayi Chirisa: The two characters did have a similar storyline, if you read the books. The ability to bring those two together helped him embody the element of trying to discover what is actually going on with the Mayfair family. He brings in that element of being very close and intimate with Rowan, which shows what the repercussions of being intertwined with a Mayfair woman might be.
With Ciprien coming in as a Talamasca agent, it was really interesting to see how that will unfold and to bring out who Lasher really is through his experiences and interactions with Rowan.
Harry, Cortland is so interesting because he comes across as so affable and yet so impossible to trust. How do you play that duality and what does he represent to you?
Harry Hamlin: Cortland, to me, is a lush. He's the life of the party, but I think he's terrified all the time of losing whatever control he has. After all, he's the patriarch of the family, but he's the patriarch of a family of women who have power. He's surrounded by people who could do horrible things to him if they wanted to. And then there's this other guy that is a cipher, and who knows what Lasher can do in the long run? If I make the wrong move, or say one thing that he doesn't like, I could be eliminated.
I think he's a guy who, because he's terrified all the time, is trying to squeeze the most out of life and have the most fun you can possibly have. That's why he's the life of the party.
Anne Rice is synonymous with New Orleans, so what was it like for you to help bring her vision of it to life?
Tongayi Chirisa: It was quite the experience. It was really hot and humid, but it was beautiful. I think New Orleans in and of itself is a character, and it's just so rich with history. Anne Rice lived there for her entire life, and she incorporated so much of her personal DNA into her stories, so we had to capture that. Just being a part of that world and seeing the infrastructure was mind-blowing, and it sets you in the space to be one with these rich stories that she has. It was just really beautiful to be part of.
Even though we don't get to spend much time with Rowan and her adoptive mother Ellie together, the dynamic is really beautiful to witness. What was it like working with Erica Gimple to build that complicated dynamic?
Alexandra Daddario: She's amazing. It was actually really incredible experience. She is Buddhist, and we filmed some takes that didn't end up in the episode which really dove deep into her embrace of death. Ellie does not fear death at all, and I think that probably came from her religion. We dove into her loss, and Ellie was okay with that, while I think that Rowan is doing everything she can to fight against it; to delay the inevitable and the pain that it causes.
That relationship was so important to build offscreen as well as onscreen, because the loss defines Rowan. I do think that there's something to the inevitability of this loss that she's been preparing for, but it's a very deep relationship. When she's gone, who's going to protect Rowan? What's going to happen? We built a lot of that offscreen, and I really credit Erica and her character-building and who she is as a person with helping make that feel as important as it should have felt.
The first episode of Interview With the Vampire had a shoutout to the Mayfair sisters' house. As the Mayfair Witches series goes on, do you expect to intersect with the Immortal Universe, as it were?
Alexandra Daddario: Season 1 is on its own. I think that connection is the intention of the network and the creators of this world, but it's one step at a time. This show really stands on its own, while also being vaguely in the same world in order to be potentially combined in the future. But I think that's also that's how the books were written; they were really standalone and then intersect later on.
About Anne Rice's Mayfair Witches
The series will focus on an intuitive young neurosurgeon who discovers that she is the unlikely heir to a family of witches. As she grapples with her newfound powers, she must contend with a sinister presence that has haunted her family for generations.
Mayfair Witches premieres on January 8 on AMC at 9pm ET/PT and will air simultaneously on BBC AMERICA, IFC, SundanceTV and WEtv, and AMC+.