Yet he became a ’Lestat’ and won.

A story of vampires, blood and darkness. With two Hollywood superstars Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. After its release in 1994, 'Interview with the Vampire' not only drew the audience into the world of vampires, but also various behind-the-scenes events of the movie have become a topic of discussion. Three decades later, director Neil Jordan has reopened the door to that memory on the occasion of the new 4K release.

The most talked about event was the casting of Tom Cruise. The author himself initially objected to the decision to cast Cruise as Lestat the Lionheart in the film based on the novel by Anne Rice. Rice did not find Cruise's appearance and image to match the tall, blond and mysterious vampire in her imagination. Her list of favorites included actors such as Rutger Hauer, Julian Sands, Daniel Day-Lewis, John Malkovich and Tom Hanks.

According to Jordan, the whole production process was "very difficult." "It was not comfortable as a director and an actor when the whole world was saying, 'You're wrong,'" he said. But Cruise took the criticism as a challenge. According to Jordan, "he liked the challenge of proving them wrong."

Ultimately, however, Rice changed her mind after seeing Cruise's performance. She even apologized to various publications after praising his performance. However, Brad Pitt faced other problems on the set of the film. He had to shoot for about six months at night in New Orleans, Paris and New York to play the role of Louis. This included heavy makeup, face vein designs, special contact lenses and difficult shooting such as hanging upside down for blood scenes.

Jordan admitted, "It's all my fault." According to him, both the character's depression and the long night shooting put a strain on Pitt.

After the success of the film, Jordan also wrote the screenplay for a sequel called 'The Vampire Lestat'. However, the project did not move forward due to Cruise's disinterest in the sequel and his unwillingness to return to the role of Lestat. So even after three decades, 'Interview with the Vampire' is not just a vampire movie; it is also a fascinating document of Hollywood casting, the psychological preparation of the stars and the various conflicts behind the production. Jordan said, 'It's the kind of movie that studios don't usually make.'