'Interview With The Vampire's' Bailey Bass on Playing Claudia

In this era of reboots and remakes, it's no surprise that Interview With the Vampire has landed a small-screen adaptation—and just in time for Halloween. Based on author Anne Rice's popular 1976 novel of the same name, AMC's 10-episode series premiered on October 2 to rave reviews from critics.

Swapping 1700s Louisiana for 1900s New Orleans, this latest adaption is a "modern interpretation" of the vampire love story. With Games of Thrones starJacob Anderson as Louis and Australian actor Sam Reid as Lestat, actress Bailey Bass completes the lineup as baby vamp Claudia—the teenage terror who can never grow up.

Newsweek spoke to Bass to find out more about her take on the iconic character, as well as puberty, filming in New Orleans at night, and creating something that's "not been seen on TV before."

Becoming Claudia

The 1994 film version of Interview With the Vampire, starring Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise and Kirsten Dunst as the iconic vampire trio, was a surprise box office hit and earned $233,664,608 worldwide. Dunst's portrayal of Claudia launched the then-12-year-old actress' career, netting her a Saturn Award. This gives newcomer Bass some big shoes to fill, but the 18-year-old has already proven that she is more than capable of doing so.

Making her debut in Episode 3, critics who viewed the show in advance are already praising Bass for her "feral" yet funny performance. Like Dunst before her, Bass' Claudia has been credited with elevating the show and scene stealing from the moment she appears on the screen.

Bass worked with an acting coach and researched religiously to develop her take on the character.

"I read the book, I annotated it, and I put Post-it after Post-it. I would create Google spreadsheets over and over again," Bass told Newsweek.

"Claudia's essence carries through [the writing]. She's powerful and she's loud."

In the novel, Claudia is five years old. The 1994 film adaptation aged her up to 10, while Claudia is 14 in the new TV series—right in the middle of those awkward teenage years.

"I remember puberty very vividly. I think more girls do," said Bass.

"It's a very weird time. I had moments where I'd just start crying and mom would say, 'What's wrong?' And I'd be, 'I don't know.' All these hormones, it's a lot.

"Claudia is stuck with these hormones all of her life because she's stuck at that age."

The change in age also allowed the cast and writers to explore avenues that wouldn't have been possible with a child actress.

"We're able to dive into contexts that legally couldn't be put on screen with a 10-year-old girl," said Bass.

"The audience gets to see into her eyes how heartbreaking it is to never really reach that final stage. She's always going to have trauma.

"The characters are so complex. I was challenged every single day on set and I've grown so much."

Clothing Claudia

Bass said working with costume designer Carol Cutshall was one of the highlights of the role.

"Carol was so collaborative," she said. "I got to pick inside her brain and see what she thought while she was reading the script.

"It's not just my Claudia. I am the actor, I'm saying the lines and living in her shoes. But the costumer, hair and make-up, they're also seeing Claudia."

As Claudia is four years Bass's junior, her wardrobe was utilized to hide her curves and make her appear younger.

"All of the costumes, the hips, the seam is a little bit lower than it naturally would be, so I can really feel like a little girl," she said.

"That carries on throughout the entire show, even when she's 30, because her body would not have changed at all."

'Not Been Seen on TV Before'

The New Orleans of the film and novel is not the same city we see in the TV show. Much of the series takes place in Storyville, one of the most famous red-light districts in early 20th-century America.

"Storyville is not something that's talked about a lot in New Orleans history," Bass said.

"The 1700s has already been done, so to be able to go forward and add this new flavor, it's something that's fresh and not been seen on TV before."

Bass said her favorite place to film was the square due to the big church.

"We film at night, so the church was closed, but I always love being around big churches. It always puts a big smile on my face.

"It's a recurring theme, there's a bench in that square that we continue to come back to. Not only is it special to the show, but it's something New Orleanians will connect to."

'Everything Is at the Front of This Show'

Along with a change of setting, Interview With the Vampire comes with a more diverse cast and refuses to gloss over the queer aspects the film adaption was criticized for excluding.

"We don't shy away from any of these themes," said Bass.

"I play Creole and so does Jacob. The show is very diverse, just like New Orleans.

"I never felt more accepted as a Black woman in my life, as I'm mixed, than I have in New Orleans.

"To have that diversity in the show, as well as not shying away from Louis and Lestat's relationship, is going to make a lot of people feel seen."

Anne Rice's Interview With the Vampire airs Sundays on AMC and AMC+.