‘Interview with the Vampire’ Director Reveals Violent Deleted Scene He Regretted Cutting

In honour of the ‘Interview with the Vampire’ 30th anniversary, director Neil Jordan has revealed some behind-the-scenes details and spoken candidly about the 1994 production. Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt appeared in the movie, which is now considered a cult classic and is based on Anne Rice’s first book in the Vampire Chronicles series. Jordan recently talked about some of the difficulties he encountered during the lengthy process of transferring the book to the big screen, such as the tough choice to exclude a particularly graphic sequence.

Jordan disclosed in an interview with Variety that the film’s initial cut was about 20 minutes longer and featured a scene in which Louis, played by Brad Pitt, confesses to a priest. The priest, appalled by Louis’s confession, was shown in the scene withdrawing to the altar while Louis drained his blood beneath a massive crucifix modelled after Dali. 

Image Courtesy: People

Although Jordan acknowledged that he was sad to have to delete this sequence, he pointed out that the movie was eventually shortened to make the pacing better. Despite his uncertainty about the level of demand, he indicated interest in releasing a director’s cut of the movie.

Jordan also discussed the difficulties of translating Rice’s book, pointing out that the “picaresque narrative” failed to create the intensity that comes with conventional storytelling. He also noted how additional changes were made since a preview audience thought the film was too long.

Although a sequel was planned, Jordan revealed that those ideas were shelved because Tom Cruise had no interest in playing Lestat again. Cruise did not make a comeback for the 2002 movie ‘Queen of the Damned’, which was the next entry in the Vampire Chronicles series. AMC revived the Vampire Chronicles for a third season, reimagining the series for a new generation.

–Farheen Ali