Get ready for more monsters with a spy thriller twist. AMC Networks has greenlit a third series in its Anne Rice Immortal Universe, and it’s heading inside a supernatural secret society.
Set inside The Talamasca, the organization that seeks to track and contain all the creatures of Rice’s universe, the series has the working title “Anne Rice’s The Talamasca” and is set to debut a six-episode first season in late 2025.
The name will be familiar to viewers of the first two Immortal Universe series, “Interview With the Vampire” and “The Mayfair Witches.” The seeds have already been laid for the expanding universe with cameos in both shows. Most recently, in Season 2 of “Interview With the Vampire,” which is currently airing, a mysterious member of the Talamasca popped up to provide interviewer Daniel Molloy (Eric Bogosian) with additional evidence for his research. Season 2 of “Mayfair Witches” is currently in production.
Season 1 of “The Talamasca” is scheduled to begin production this fall in Manchester, England. Oscar-nominated filmmaker John Lee Hancock (“The Blind Side,” “The Little Things”) and Mark Lafferty (“The Right Stuff,” “Halt and Catch Fire”) are writers, co-showrunners and executive producers of the new series. Hancock will also direct.
“This is a story we’ve been developing and wanting to tell from the earliest moments of this franchise, focused on a fascinating and compelling secret society that has already appeared in both of our existing Anne Rice series, The Talamasca,” said Dan McDermott, president of entertainment and AMC Studios for AMC Networks in the announcement. “As with all of these shows, we are thrilled to have such a high level of talent involved, represented here by John Lee Hancock and Mark Lafferty, and of course working closely with producer Mark Johnson as the creative head of our Anne Rice Immortal Universe.”
“This all started for me with a call from Mark Johnson, who asked if I’d ever heard of The Talamasca,” said Hancock, who has collaborated with Johnson on multiple projects including “The Blind Side.” “I was intrigued by the idea of an organization that, to me, had more than a passing resemblance to the CIA or MI6, which are necessary but not always necessarily transparent. An organization with its own secret. Thankfully, Dan McDermott liked the take and so did Mark Lafferty, who is so talented and accomplished in the world of television. Many thanks to everyone from Gran Via to Mark Lafferty, to our talented writers and everyone at AMC, who have been supporters, advocates and cheerleaders from day one. I couldn’t be more thrilled to be involved and look forward to presenting a third series in the Anne Rice Immortal Universe.”
Mark Lafferty said: “When John told me about a clandestine organization in the Immortal Universe with its own hidden agendas, I was immediately hooked. I’ve admired his writing and directing for so long, and to be working with him is a true honor and thrill. Many thanks to Dan McDermott and all the incredibly talented people at AMC for their tireless support and talent, and to Mark Johnson — there is no better producer to learn from and work beside than him.”
Mark Johnson said: “With the second season of ‘Interview with the Vampire’ currently receiving the best reviews of any show on television and with the production of ‘Mayfair Witches’ about to wrap in Ireland, promising an even more compelling and unnerving second season, the question is what do we now add to the Immortal Universe of Anne Rice? The answer is a completely different show from the first two, but a show that nevertheless belongs under the Anne Rice umbrella. The Talamasca marries the procedural spy thriller with the supernatural and expands the thrills and the pleasures of our franchise’s ambitions.”
