As The Vampire Lestat is only seven episodes, the series has a very limited window to lay out all the “failures” perpetrated by its titular diva (Sam Reid). Despite that time crunch, The Vampire Lestat has been taking its sweet time where it matters. Lestat’s backstory has unfolded at a patient, if erratic, clip — and ditto for the little details that eventually pitch the world into a vampiric catastrophe. After last week’s episode, however, the series seemed to finally acclimate to the mania going on in Lestat’s head. In Episode 5, we finally get to the juiciest part of his past as a vampire: his brush with Akasha (Sheila Atim), Queen of the Damned and mother of all vampires.
“I’m finally going to talk about the Queen,” Lestat’s narration teases early in this week’s episode. The story that unfolds doesn’t disappoint, either. It’s been over 20 years since Akasha took on a new life outside of Anne Rice’s Immortal novels: Aaliyah starred as the OG vampire in Queen of the Damned, a mostly bad movie that nonetheless made Akasha an icon. But it’s not hyperbole to say that Atim sinks her teeth into the role with raw, committed finesse, delivering a new version of Akasha we can’t wait to see more of.
