#also Assad's acting >>>>>>

[suddenly-frankenstein]

«still... Amadeo had a skill.»

[userarmand]

You delivered it very well, Sam. (◔◡◔)

SDCC '24 ✕ IWTV Panel

[almondcroissantsandink]

mr. girlboss gaslight gatekeep himself

[natdeviantrat]

assad, eyes wide, visibly shocked, searching around the room for the culprit: devil's minion next season? who would say such a thing??

also assad: devil's minion 😍😍 the minion and the devil old man yaoiii do you know armand and daniel fuck nasty whoever told you he turned daniel only out of spite was lyingggg yes yes we haven't seen the turning scene *yet* right rolin? nudge nudge not yettttt

[noirve]

god, armand as a character is giving me serious brainrot. he's such a control freak because he desperately needs to derive meaning from something—anything. whether it's god, rituals, or coven life, he needs to give a purpose to his existence. this is why he upholds these stringent laws and regulations in both of his covens, which are ultimately destroyed by someone he loves who stands outside it all. and he kind of just allows that destruction, despite all of his power, because he is also... bored? it's like he's on autopilot, going through life in this meticulously constructed routine until he meets lestat and later louis, who both refuse to adhere to his carefully crafted structures and disrupt the status quo. this is attractive to armand because deep down, underneath his all masked emotions, he is very lonely and desperate for connection! which is just awfully human for such an ancient powerful being

imagine being this old and alone, how do you endure? armand tries to find value in these rigid structures because otherwise, his life feels empty. "he needs rules to give him purpose" but in the end, this doesn't fulfill him completely because, despite his feigned confidence and stoicism, he is insecure, needy, and traumatized. this is why he seeks out chaos despite having spent all this time trying to control everything and everyone around him. he lets it happen—for love, but also, i think, because unconsciously he desires that total loss of control, which allows him to actually feel something real. every few decades, he almost intentionally lets his entire world, the world he worked so hard to manipulate into his will, be ruined. yet, when he tells daniel he "let it happen," he is lying, too (at least about lestat) because he presents himself as more passive, composed, and reasonable than he really was when his way of life was threatened. he just tells himself that he wanted it that way all along so he remains the one in control. i need to see him crack

[loumandforyou]

can we talk about the difference in just how Armand looks at Daniel in SF vs in Dubai?

even in his more 'caring' in SF, even when he was telling him it's okay, even when his voice was soft, he was still looking at him with a hint of anger, with a layer of coldness.

and just look at how fondly he is looking at Daniel now, like he's the love of his life or something.

[chicago-geniza]

I know everyone and their mother has already said so 800 times before but Sam Reid was put on this bitch of an earth to play the vampire Lestat. Where did they find him. That casting is like. Sublime

[clearancecreedwatersurvival]

Actors need to be a little obsessed with the character they’re playing, it’s helpful in achieving the right vibe.

Unless the actor is Jensen Ackles in which case maybe they should tone it down a bit.

[pirateshelly]

While I very much do think Lestat is an extremely enjoyable/interesting/entertaining character (he's probably my least favorite in the show but that's entirely a me thing and it doesn't mean I dislike him he's just not a particular character type that tends to grab me!) I simply cannot imagine watching all of season 2 (which I personally enjoyed even more than season 1) and being like "this is really suffering from a lack of lestat". It just does not compute. My love for Louis and Claudia and Armand is simply so all encompassing that my brain just short circuits at the idea of watching them on screen and thinking "hmm this is fine I guess but what if lestat was here right now?"

And I am 100% looking forward to season 3 because I still do very much enjoy him as a character, and Louis and Armand and Daniel are still no doubt going to have solid roles even if it's a very Lestat focused season. But the thing that confuses and vexes me is when people (like a LOT of professional reviewers) act like he's THEE main draw and that the others simply aren't enough to hold the show up without him

[octo-pie]

In many ways, I am Daniel Molloy (attracted to Armand but cringe every time him and Louis act couple-y)

[pikslasrce]

im vibrating..... save me two ✌️ (2) mentally unstable homosexual vampires and one ☝️ (1) tired closeted old man save meee

[pocketsizedquasar-3]

a lot of the way some people talk about like. supporting the “axis of resistance” or whatever makes it very clear that they do not consider any of the people who live in any of those countries people, and only consider the countries in question as abstract political pawns either in support or opposition of a goal

[pynkhues]

maybe no point in speculating when we'll find out tomorrow, but I wonder if there's any chance Delainey or Assad will be at upfronts tomorrow. Jacob wasn't there last year either, but Sam, Assad, Delainey, and Eric all were. So does only Sam and Eric doing that SAG q&a mean that only they will be at upfronts, or is it just that they are SAG and have much longer careers in TV and film (especially Eric, obviously) than Delainey and Assad, but Delainey and Assad could still be at upfronts...it would just be fun to see all of them. I still have hope for Jacob too but that seems more unlikely.

I'd love it if they were, and I hope so! As much as I'm loving seeing Sam at these things, it'd be great to see more of the cast there too.

Re: the SAG in-convo - Delainey and Assad would be able to join SAG given they've both had principal roles in a union production, which IWTV clearly is. You also can become a member if you're a part of an affiliate union in another country (Sam would definitely be a member of the Actors Equity division of MEAA for instance), and I'd imagine at the very least Delainey and Assad (and Jacob, of course) were both already members of Equity in the UK, which would give them that affiliation too, at the very least?

Jacob's definitely a member of SAG though as he was nominated as a part of the Game of Thrones ensemble cast at the SAG Awards from 2014, and you have to be a paying and active member of SAG specifically to be nominated in those awards. I'd love it if that meant he was there for the in-convo with Eric and Sam (hell, in person is preferable, but I'd even accept him Zooming in, haha), but who knows at this stage.

Guess we'll find out soon enough!

[fanfictionobsessed99]

The IWTV actors speaking about how they prepared for the role:

Sam Reid: singing lessons, voice lessons, French lessons, I basically did a PhD in Lestat.

Jacob Anderson: I’m so naturally good with languages that a actual linguistics professor says I have the best NOLA accent they’ve ever heard. Also I helped AMC save money by randomly knowing how to tap dance well enough that they didn’t need a stunt double.

Bailey Bass: I am inspired by all the female rage of my ancestors.

Delainey Hayles: I am inspired by all the female range of my ancestors and also all their lesbianism.

Eric Bogosian: am I actually Daniel Molloy the vampire? Difficult to tell.

Luke Brandon Field: it’s not that hard, just be born the living clone of another actor in his youth, and then act like the horniest monsterfucking twink you’ve ever met.

Assad Zaman: I go into my dressing room, get possessed by Armand for the scene, and then go back to wearing suspenders.

[cosmic-day]

Right, fuck this. In the spirit of ‘be the change you want to see’, I think we should celebrate Assad Zaman, because fuck knows AMC won’t, so someone has to step up to the plate.

Here’s a Ten Things I Love About Assad’s Performance As Armand list:

The way his voice cracks ever so slightly on the word donated in the Louvre monologue. Also, the entire Louvre monologue.

The hand acting. Thanks to @platoapproved for this gif set which illustrates what I mean.

“Do you find me boring?” Like, obviously, all of 2x05, but that line reading, terrifying and obsessive and heartbreaking and childlike all at once.

The stillness. The way he can be completely still and nevertheless absolutely mesmerising.

Contrasted with gremlin mode in San Francisco when he is anything but still. This post from @hypermania is a great analysis of his physicality and acting choices in this scene.

The micro expressions. The sixteen layers of emotions including three I’ve never even heard of before in some of the reaction shots. The way the directors clearly understand this and hold the camera on his face so that we can watch Assad showing us Armand’s brain at work without a word being said.

His French accent.

The way he sits down on the couch next to Madeleine.

Just how fucking cool he looks on the motorbike in the hunting scene.

Sauntering back into the Dubai apartment in his cunty sunglasses and tragically misplaced confidence.

Feel free to add your own thoughts in notes or reblogs. Let’s appreciate the hell out of him.

[chicago-geniza]

Watching IWTV cast interviews because I can't sleep...AZC said he has an out-of-body experience watching 2x05 and doesn't recognize himself...RIP, too good at acting 🙏