Anne Rice initially objected to Tom Cruise playing Lestat, then publicly endorsed his performance after seeing it. Released on November 11, 1994, Interview with the Vampire brought Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise and Kirsten Dunst into a story about living forever with grief, guilt and the people you can’t escape.
Pitt plays Louis de Pointe du Lac, who tells a San Francisco interviewer, played by Christian Slater, that he’s been a vampire for more than 200 years. His account begins in Louisiana in 1791, where Lestat, played by Cruise, turns him after the deaths of his wife and child.
Their life together becomes more complicated with Claudia, the young vampire played by Dunst. The story follows them from New Orleans to Paris, with Antonio Banderas appearing as Armand. Stephen Rea and Thandiwe Newton also feature in the cast.
Neil Jordan directed the adaptation, and Rice wrote the screenplay from her own 1976 novel.
The film earned roughly $224 million worldwide against a $60 million budget and received 2 Academy Award nominations: Best Art Direction and Best Original Score.
