Mayfair Witches Showrunners Say Lasher Was the Biggest Challenge of the AMC Anne Rice Adaptation (Exclusive)
Anne Rice's Mayfair Witches debuts Sunday night on AMC and AMC+ and while bringing to life iconic author Anne Rice's beloved novel The Witching Hour and larger The Lives of the Mayfair Witches trilogy to life for television is no small feat, according to the showrunners, there was one aspect that was particularly challenging: Lasher. A central character to the Mayfair story, Lasher is a non-human entity that has been entangled with the witches for centuries so bringing him to screen in just the right way was critically important. Speaking with ComicBook.com, Michelle Ashford, Esta Spalding, and Mark Johnson explained how making that specific character work was the biggest challenge they faced — and how Jack Huston was perfect casting.
"Lasher was huge," Ashford said. "First of all, you're dealing with a non-human. And I had asked, 'Have we ever written a non-human before?' I don't think we have. And then, of course, not only in the writing of it, but then you have to bring it into reality and filming. And that is very… It's funny about a non-human, when it's in your imagination, you can make it whatever you want. In a film, it has to become real in some form."
"But it has to be scary and seductive, and it disappears, but it can't be silly," Spalding said. "But I have to say, Mark, you should talk to this too, because I feel like at the very beginning when we were sending you drafts of the pilot, you'd often start by saying, 'Let's talk about Lasher. What are we saying?'"
Johnson said that for him, the impulse was that less was more with Lasher and that Ashford and Spalding put it together perfectly.
"I think that Esta and Michelle worked out the perfect balance. We see enough of Lasher and are confused and dazzled and any number of things by Lasher the way he is," Johnson said. "So, I think he scared me because I wasn't quite sure how to render him. And the two of you really came up with a solution."
That solution was Huston. Spalding said that they got lucky with the actor being able to do everything needed to bring Lasher to life.
"Then we got Jack Huston, and it was like, 'He can do all of this,'" she said. "So that was very lucky."
What is Anne Rice's Mayfair Witches about?
The series is based on Anne Rice's trilogy of novels, Lives of The Mayfair Witches. The series synopsis is as follows: "Based on Anne Rice's Lives of the Mayfair Witches, Mayfair Witches is an exploration of female power and the mortal implications of our decisions. Mayfair Witches focuses on an intuitive young neurosurgeon (Alexandra Daddario) who discovers that she is the unlikely heir to a family of witches. As she grapples with her newfound powers, she must contend with a sinister presence that has haunted her family for generations."
Who stars in Anne Rice's Mayfair Witches?
The series stars Alexandra Daddario as Rowan Fielding, Harry Hamlin as Cortland Mayfair, Jack Huston as Lasher, Tongayi Chirisa as Ciprien Grieve, Annabeth Gish as Diedre, Beth Grant as Carlotta, Erica Gimpel as Ellie, and Jen Richards as Jojo.
Anne Rice's Mayfair Witches debuts Sunday, January 8th on AMC and AMC+.