SFX have conducted their annual poll of everyone’s favourite vampires, and released the results on their website to coincide with the publication of their Vampires special edition magazine. You’ll be pleased to know that FIVE True Blood characters made the list!
2. Eric Northman – “Eric the Viking. Once a phrase that immediately meant “flop comedy from the Monty Python guy.” Now it means, “Top Nordic vampire hottie.” Bill was supposed to be the alpha vampire on True Blood, but – although far from unpopular – he was eclipsed by his blond nightclub owner boss in the popularity stakes (if “stakes” isn’t too sensitive a word to use). As in so many other cases (Spike and Damon, for instance) he benefited from the fact that he didn’t have to be the nice guy. Far from it – he’s an utter git, chaining Lafayette to a slave wheel, and tricking Sookie into drinking his blood. Not to mention all the killing. But it’s more than that. Eric is just so inherently cool. So cool it doesn’t matter if he does a bit of killing while getting his hair dyed; or if he cries when his maker dies; or if he wears a shell suit. He remains untouchable cool. Hell, he’s survived centuries with the name Eric. That’s how cool he is.”
5. Pam DeBeaufort – “True Blood has come up with many memorable vamps, but none quite as reliably foul-mouthed as Pam. Her dialogue (which we can’t reproduce here for taste reasons) is often the highlight of an episode. Devoted to her maker, Eric, she’s also a bit of a badass… and kinda hot. And unlike Eric or Bill, she’s never going to be won over by Sookie’s charms. She may not be one of the show’s main players, but she’s definitely one of the most fun. And we loved her anti-Sookie rant in the season four finale.”
9. Bill Compton – “After seeing death up close even before he became a vampire in the American Civil War, there’s no wonder True Blood’s Bill Compton rarely cracks a smile. Played with seductive relish by Essex-born Stephen Moyer, he’s the Bon Temps vamp who it’s possible to believe we’ve only scratched the surface of.”
11. Jessica Hamby – “Jessica, a vampire so-so easy to love, because of her combination of naivety and sexual/vampiric awakening. She’s the suppressed teenager who’s suddenly discovered alcohol and is rebelling, but taken to ludicrous extremes. Savage and fragile, sensitive but headstrong, she a mass of adorable contradictions, whose fangs pop out at the most embarrassing moments. Stuck as an eternal teenager, doomed to losing her virginity each time she makes love thanks to a self-repairing hymen, she is one of True Blood’s greatest creations.”
21. Russell Edgington - “There were a lot of things to grumble about in True Blood’s third season, but King Russell wasn’t one of them. The oldest and strongest vampire in the world, he’s also one of the funniest. A charming psychopath with a hatred for humans, he was responsible for the single best scene in all of True Blood, when he ripped out a news anchor’s heart, live on air, and declared war on humanity. That he was then squandered for the rest of the season was a shame, but no matter. The end of season four is pretty clear… Russell is coming back. Sookie and co had better watch out…”
Dylan McDermott and Denis O'Hare in American Horror Story
Assignment X posted an interview with Denis O’Hare mostly focused on American Horror Story (loving that show!) but they did ask him a few questions that are True Blood related. They seem to forget that Russell is no longer encased in concrete, but hey, it’s a swell interview nevertheless…
ASSIGNMENT X: When we last saw you as Russell, you were completely burned, and now in AMERICAN HORROR STORY, when we first see you, you’re half-burned. Is there a through-line here?
DENIS O’HARE: [Larry is] a very different guy than Russell, a very human guy, which I love. I love the fact that in the pilot, you see all these aspects of the character in one scene. My character goes from being a monster to a pathetic, suffering human being, which I think is fantastic. I thought the acting across the board was fantastic. I thought the girl who plays the daughter is unbelievable, Taissa Farmiga, the guy who plays Tate [Evan Peters] is unbelievable. Frannie Conroy – to have her in a show – and Jessica Lange, I mean, come on! [Dylan McDermott] is fantastic. Lovely guy. We got to be together a lot of time off set, and we got to know each other really well.
AX: Between Larry Harvey and Russell Edgington, you’ve played two regular characters with serious burn makeups in under two years. Are those makeups as miserable to put on and uncomfortable to wear as they look?
O’HARE: The one for TRUE BLOOD was definitely hard to wear, that was tough to wear. This one is actually not that hard to wear, and [the makeup artists] do such a beautiful job of it that I’m thrilled to be in it. And I love doing it.
AX: Do you have to try to make sure you’re articulating and enunciating through the makeup?
O’HARE: It can be an obstacle, and that’s not fun, but this one actually is not an obstacle. This one actually enhances the acting and it enhances the character. It gives you a kind of strange power.
AX: Speaking of the TRUE BLOOD makeup, were you happy with the way Russell’s story ended so far, with him buried deep in a pit of concrete?
O’HARE: You know what I’m happy about? I’m happy about such a fantastic season last season, and happy that this season [turned] out to be such a great season, and that they keep talking about Russell. They keep saying, “We’re in a post-Russell Edgington world,” and they keep talking about, “When Russell Edgington pulled his spine out …” See, he’s not dead. If somebody invokes you, you’re not dead. He’s been invoked again and again and again. I love that.
AX: Well, we’ve seen a bit hole in the pit of concrete now, and TRUE BLOOD series creator Alan Ball has said, “Russell isn’t dead.” Can you elaborate on that at all?
O’HARE: I think Alan Ball is a brilliant man, and I think he’s a really smart man, so if Alan Ball says he’s not dead, then I bet he’s not dead.
There’s a really super interview over at Collider with Denis O’Hare about his new TV series, “American Horror Story” on FX. Denis also chats about his character, Russell Edgington, returning in season 5 of True Blood…
As much as you must have been asked, over the last season, whether or not Russell Edgington would return on True Blood, was exciting to finally have that door opened for this coming season?
O’HARE: Hell, yes! I had been hearing rumors and things, but until I actually heard that there was a script, in which they went to the parking lot and found a hole in the ground and chains, I wasn’t sure. I’ve been in contact with people from True Blood, and I’m friends with a lot of them, and Joe Manganiello, who plays Alcide, actually told me first. He was like, “Dude, there’s this scene where I go to the parking lot and you’re not there anymore,” and I went, “Yes!” I’m really thrilled. I love that family. Alan Ball is such a spectacular person to be around and to work for. I’m really excited to get to go back and join them, and I love the character. I can’t wait to pick up where he left off.
Have you thought about how he could be now, with the time that’s passed?
O’HARE: He could change. His experience has, maybe, redefined him and shaped him differently.
Are you surprised with how much everyone truly loved the character?
O’HARE: I was. I didn’t expect it, and I was a little shocked, but ultimately, I’m really pleased. It’s a very nice thing to have happen. I was really thrilled.
Adina Porter and Jim Parrack talk about the most shocking moment for them during True Blood’s Season 4, Denis O’hare discusses his return to the series and the finale’s bloodbath and Janina Gavankar explains what she wants to see happen next season on True Blood with the shifters.
Is Tara dead? "How can she be NOT dead?" asks creator Alan Ball
Writer Raelle Tucker and Executive producer Alan Ball talk to TV Guide about True Blood’s Season 4 finale and some hints about what will be happening in Bon Temps in Season 5.
Will Tara (Rutina Wesley) Survive? “I can’t say whether she will be back in her present form, but we’ll continue to tell Tara’s story,” says Tucker.
Are Bill (Stephen Moyer) and Eric (Alexander Skarsgård) marked men after killing Nan and her guards? “They’ve been fighting witches all season, and now they will have to fight the power elite of their own kind,” says Ball. Adds Tucker: “For once in their lives they need to rely on and trust each other. They team up to face a common enemy.”
Is Russell Edgington (Denis O’Hare) really back? Yes confirms Ball–and with “an interesting new alliance,” teases Tucker.
Will Werewolf Alcide (Joe Manganiello) finally win Sookie’s (Anna Paquin) heart? “They have a deep friendship and chemistry that we’ll continue to explore,” Tucker says. “But Sookie will be trying to stand on her own two feet next season.”
Will ghosts from Terry’s (Todd Lowe) past threaten his wife, Arlene (Carrie Preston)? “The ghosts will come back, and he and Arlene are going to be challenged by that,” Tucker confirms. “Terry’s PTSD comes from a particular incident we’ll learn more about. Scott Foley’s Patrick Devins has a huge part to play.”
What kind of vampire will former fang-hater Steve Newlin (Michael McMillian) be? “He will do what he believes is the righteous thing that God wants him to do, although it will be altered by his new condition,” Tucker says.
Any exciting new characters coming up? “There are a couple of new roles that will be very sexy,” says Ball. One in particular is “a strong, mysterious female at the center of one of our main stories,” Tucker says. “She’s fierce, one of the strongest women we will have seen on the show, a force to be reckoned with.”
Source: TV Guide Magazine, issue dated September 26-October 2, 2011
Nelsan Ellis talked to Access Hollywood about the demise of his boyfriend in the season 4 finale:
“I wasn’t surprised, because I heard [creator] Alan [Ball] say a couple of times that, you know, happy times in relationships don’t last, but I was shocked that they killed him and I was shocked that they had me kill him,” Nelsan told Access Hollywood. “I was like, ‘Why would you?’… And then I found out Kevin requested [it]. He was like, ‘I want Nelsan to kill me.’ And I was like, ‘Why did you request that, dude?’”
“It was painful because we’ve become good friends. That’s my dude. He’s one of the best people that I’ve come to know — and his wife… I just love his family… and his energy,” Nelsan said. “I’m not gonna have that any more, so it was painful and we have such a good rapport, the best rapport I’ve ever had with another actor.”
Nelsan said he expects that Lafayette and Jesus will be reunited in season 5:
“He definitely will be coming back. Next season, as Lafayette learns how to use his power, then we certainly will see Jesus,” Nelsan said.
What about the return of Russell Edgington?
“I would love Denis O’Hare to come back,” Nelsan said. “And he should could come back to be my boyfriend.”
“The king of Louisiana and the new medium of Bon Temps? I think that would be a good combination, certainly a powerful combination,” he added.
Denis O’Hare reveals what it was like recording the audiobook Willpower by Roy Baumeister & John Teirney in this video by Simon & Schuster. The King also talks a bit about being a vampire and how rough and disciplined they have to be.
9. Bill Compton – “After seeing death up close even before he became a vampire in the American Civil War, there’s no wonder True Blood’s Bill Compton rarely cracks a smile. Played with seductive relish by Essex-born Stephen Moyer, he’s the Bon Temps vamp who it’s possible to believe we’ve only scratched the surface of.”
11. Jessica Hamby – “Jessica, a vampire so-so easy to love, because of her combination of naivety and sexual/vampiric awakening. She’s the suppressed teenager who’s suddenly discovered alcohol and is rebelling, but taken to ludicrous extremes. Savage and fragile, sensitive but headstrong, she a mass of adorable contradictions, whose fangs pop out at the most embarrassing moments. Stuck as an eternal teenager, doomed to losing her virginity each time she makes love thanks to a self-repairing hymen, she is one of True Blood’s greatest creations.”
21. Russell Edgington - “There were a lot of things to grumble about in True Blood’s third season, but King Russell wasn’t one of them. The oldest and strongest vampire in the world, he’s also one of the funniest. A charming psychopath with a hatred for humans, he was responsible for the single best scene in all of True Blood, when he ripped out a news anchor’s heart, live on air, and declared war on humanity. That he was then squandered for the rest of the season was a shame, but no matter. The end of season four is pretty clear… Russell is coming back. Sookie and co had better watch out…”
There’s a really super interview over at Collider with Denis O’Hare about his new TV series, “American Horror Story” on FX. Denis also chats about his character, Russell Edgington, returning in season 5 of True Blood…
Nelsan Ellis talked to 
Denis O’Hare reveals what it was like recording the audiobook Willpower by Roy Baumeister & John Teirney in this video by Simon & Schuster. The King also talks a bit about being a vampire and how rough and disciplined they have to be. 
