Posted in: AMC, TV | Tagged: anne rice, interview with the vampire, mayfair witches, The Talamasca

Mark Johnson Offers "Anne Rice Universe" Updates; Signs New AMC Deal

EP Mark Johnson on expanding the number of series in "Anne Rice's Immortal Universe," crossovers, why he's never considered a spinoff series for Interview with the Vampire's Louis or Lestat, and more.

Fans of AMC's "Anne Rice's Immortal Universe" were treated to some good news on Friday, with franchise executive producer Mark Johnson renewing his first-look deal with AMC Studios. With third seasons of Interview with the Vampire and Mayfair Witches on the way, and the newest series, The Talamasca: The Secret Order, set to hit this fall, Johnson sat down with Deadline Hollywood for an exclusive interview. While the current focus is on the three series currently in play, Johnson shared what the future might hold for Anne Rice fans. In addition, Johnson made some interesting points regarding how they approach possible crossovers and the hesitation to give popular characters their own spinoffs.

Regarding the total number of series he believes "Anne Rice's Immortal Universe" could have in play, Johnson could see that number top out at five. "At some point, it becomes a little ridiculous, but I have a very small but incredibly gifted team, and we can keep tabs, certainly on the three we have now. I know that we could add a fourth and maybe go a little crazy with a fifth," he shared. With that in mind, Johnson teased how things look on that front. "We have a couple of other things in different stages of development, two based on specific books, and the third one, like 'Talamasca,' based on [a] series of events that happen in a couple of the books, on characters who can cross over into original stories," he added.

Johnson on Crossovers & Respecting Anne Rice's Rules: "I know, there is a temptation. When you kill a character, you say, Oh, come on, you can bring him back next season, because it's the supernatural. No, we can't play by those rules. And one of the things you learn early on is that there are rules within Anne Rice's work, and you have to obey them because you deviate at the expense of alienating an audience," Johnson explained.

"But there's so many other things we can do. For instance, The Talamasca is an organization that keeps tabs on — and in theory doesn't interfere with — the supernatural beings in our world. Of course, that would do with witches and with vampires, so you can see how we can connect all three. And we do. There are big surprises already in couple of the seasons, but in the coming season of both 'Interview' and you'll see in 'Talamasca' that there are some connections to these other franchises."

Why Johnson Hasn't Thought About a Lestat or Louis Spinoff: "No, I haven't thought about characters that are broken out. This is not a criticism of 'Walking Dead,' but in a strange way, if a character is available to put into another world or his or her own show, then that means you haven't successfully integrated them into their own franchise. The vampires Lestat and Louie are unique to 'Interview with a Vampire,' and I don't know how you would break them out of that world and that history. I certainly haven't thought about, oh, this character is so successful, let's give her or let's give him their own show."

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