AMC's Mayfair Witches Series Finds Its Lead In Alexandra Daddario

Anne Rice fans have something to celebrate today. Though we've known for quite a while that AMC is bringing us a "Mayfair Witches" series based on Rice's "The Lives of the Mayfair Witches" novels, we didn't know who would be playing the lead character Rowan. Today Variety reports that Alexandra Daddario ("The White Lotus," "Why Women Kill") has been cast as the doctor and heir to the powerful witch family.

Dan McDermott, president of entertainment and AMC Studios for AMC Networks said in a statement, "Alexandra is a singular talent who has lit up the screen in everything she's been in and we couldn't be happier to have her on board leading the cast of a series that will be a centerpiece of an expanding Anne Rice universe on AMC+ and AMC. We found our Rowan and can't wait for her to meet viewers later this year in a series being brilliantly conceived and led by Esta [Spalding], Michelle [Ashford] and Mark [Johnson]."

I'm a huge fan of Anne Rice's vampire novels, but I will admit that I haven't read the Mayfair novels in a very long time. There are three including, "The Witching Hour," "Lasher," and "Taltos." AMC has the rights to not only these novels, but also Rice's "The Vampire Chronicles." "Interview with the Vampire" is also being turned into a series at AMC starring Sam Reid and Jacob Anderson, and is currently in production. I'm over the moon excited for that series, as I loved the film with Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, and Kirsten Dunst back in 1994. (I did think before I saw it that Pitt and Cruise should have had their roles switched. I'm still not sure I was wrong about that.)

"Mayfair Witches" are getting eight episodes in the first season. It will launch on both AMC's linear channel and on its streaming service AMC Plus later this year. Esta Spalding and Michelle Ashford will serve as writers and executive producers, with Mark Johnson overseeing the development of the books into a connected universe. There are some crossover characters in the books. Spalding will serve as showrunner and producer as well. 

It's nice to see more supernatural shows being made, and with Anne Rice's passing in December 2021, it's comforting to know that her work is about to get even more popular with the advent of these two new series.