In the latest episode of AMC's "The Vampire Lestat," titled "New York," viewers delved into the origins of Lestat's power through flashbacks, particularly his encounter with Akasha, the first vampire. Actor Sam Reid, who plays Lestat, described the experience of reading Akasha's monologue for the first time as an event where "time stood still" and left him feeling "sick."
Akasha's Awakening
Season 3, Episode 5, reveals how Marius de Romanus (Christopher Heyerdahl) initially tasked Lestat with guarding the dormant Akasha (Sheila Atim) and Enkil, the original vampires. When Marius departs, Lestat accidentally awakens Akasha with a drop of his blood. Akasha then summons Lestat and bites him, leading to a scene where Lestat is levitating and Akasha delivers a lengthy, poetic monologue.
"That monologue that she has, written by Hannah [Moscovitch], is just, like, astonishing," Reid told DECIDER. "It was just kind of like time stood still. I felt sick after I read It. Yeah. It’s amazing the first time."
Reid also highlighted his long-standing friendship with Sheila Atim, praising her performance. "She is so incredible… It was lovely to get to work with her and for everyone else to see how astonishing she is."
On-Set Stunts
The episode also featured Lestat on wires, a stunt Reid found enjoyable despite the physical toll. "I do like a ten foot free-fall drop in that scene," Reid said. "So that is me actually free-falling on the wire, which I did multiple times." He joked that the production team might have intentionally scheduled these demanding scenes for the end of filming to allow any resulting injuries to be taken on holiday rather than to subsequent work.
The Lore of Akasha
Akasha, known as the "Queen of the Damned" in Anne Rice's novels, is the very first vampire. Born over 6,000 years ago in ancient Iraq, she married Enkil. Together, they opposed their culture's practice of cannibalism, making them unpopular. Akasha's fascination with mysticism led her to seek knowledge from twins possessing occult understanding, initiating a conflict that culminated with the twins invoking the spirit Amel to curse Akasha. Following this, Akasha and Enkil were attacked by nobles who supported cannibalism. As Akasha died, Amel merged with her spirit, transforming her into the first vampire and bestowing the same gift upon Enkil.
Over time, Akasha and Enkil became targets for other vampires seeking their power. They were eventually encased in stone, becoming "Those Who Must Be Kept," a state in which Lestat discovers them in the early 20th century. In Anne Rice's books, Akasha is awakened in modern times by Lestat's music, a plot point that may or may not be explored in the AMC series.