# Sam Reid (actor)
**Sam Reid** (born 1987) is an Australian actor best known for playing the vampire [Lestat de Lioncourt](https://www.edgepedia.org/lestat-de-lioncourt) in AMC's *Interview with the Vampire* and its third season, rechristened *The Vampire Lestat*, and for his role as newsreader Dale Jennings in the Australian drama *The Newsreader*.
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1987, New South Wales, Australia[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/sam-reid) |
| Training | Graduated from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) in 2010; cast in *Anonymous* during his final semester[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2730580/) |
| Breakthrough film roles | John Davinier in *Belle* (2013); Lt. Armitage in *'71* (2014), his highest-rated film on Rotten Tomatoes at 96%[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/sam-reid) |
| Signature television role | Lestat de Lioncourt in *Interview with the Vampire* (2022–2026, 22 episodes) and *The Vampire Lestat* (2026)[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2730580/) |
| Other major TV role | Dale Jennings in *The Newsreader* (2021–2025, 18 episodes)[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2730580/) |
| Stage work | Original London cast of the Bob Dylan musical *Girl from the North Country* (2017–18); Father Flynn in Sydney Theatre Company's *Doubt*[3](https://www.televisionacademy.com/features/emmy-magazine/articles/vampire-lestat-sam-reid) • [4](https://playbill.com/article/sam-reid-says-the-vampire-lestat-is-the-ultimate-theatre-kid) |
| Recognition | Critics Choice Super Awards nomination in 2023 for *Interview With the Vampire*[5](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/sam-reid/) |
## Early life and training
Reid was born in [New South Wales](https://www.edgepedia.org/new-south-wales), Australia, and grew up on a cattle property in the state's Monaro region[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/sam-reid) • [6](https://www.who.com.au/entertainment/sam-reid-interview-with-the-vampire/). As a teenager he played Hamlet while studying at the Cranbrook School, an experience he credits with drawing him to Shakespeare's language[4](https://playbill.com/article/sam-reid-says-the-vampire-lestat-is-the-ultimate-theatre-kid). He relocated to London and graduated from LAMDA as the school's 'star' student in 2010; during his final semester he was cast in [Roland Emmerich](https://www.edgepedia.org/roland-emmerich)'s *Anonymous* (2011), in which he played the Earl of Essex under the screen credit Sebastian Reid[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2730580/).
## Film and television career
Reid's early film career ran through British period pictures. He played Young Finlay in *The Railway Man* (2013) opposite [Colin Firth](https://www.edgepedia.org/colin-firth) and [Nicole Kidman](https://www.edgepedia.org/nicole-kidman), John Davinier opposite [Gugu Mbatha-Raw](https://www.edgepedia.org/gugu-mbatha-raw) in Amma Asante's *Belle* (2013), and Lt. Armitage in Yann Demange's *'71* (2014)[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/sam-reid) • [7](https://www.metacritic.com/person/sam-reid/). Later film work included John Cree in *The Limehouse Golem* (2016) and Sergeant Nate Klintoff in *The Drover's Wife: The Legend of Molly Johnson* (2021)[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/sam-reid). On American television he played John Glenn in *The Astronaut Wives Club*[8](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/11/interview-with-the-vampires-sam-reid).
**The Newsreader.** From 2021 to 2025 Reid played Dale Jennings, a 1980s Australian television newsreader, opposite [Anna Torv](https://www.edgepedia.org/anna-torv) across 18 episodes[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2730580/). The role is far removed from Lestat; fans and interviewers have noted the whiplash of watching him move between the two characters, which he has discussed as a deliberate test of range[9](https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/in-conversation-with-sam-reid-part-1/id1686849901?i=1000689398855).
## Lestat de Lioncourt
Reid's defining role is Lestat de Lioncourt in AMC's adaptation of [Anne Rice](https://www.edgepedia.org/anne-rice)'s Vampire Chronicles, created by Rolin Jones. He was a lifelong fan of the novels, having read them as a teenager in New South Wales, and put himself forward for an audition when the series was announced[10](https://www.thewrap.com/interview-with-the-vampire-sam-reid-interview/) • [3](https://www.televisionacademy.com/features/emmy-magazine/articles/vampire-lestat-sam-reid). Across the first two seasons of *Interview with the Vampire* (2022–2026), in which Lestat is largely seen through [Louis de Pointe du Lac](https://www.edgepedia.org/louis-de-pointe-du-lac)'s ([Jacob Anderson](https://www.edgepedia.org/jacob-anderson)) narration, Reid's performance swung from seductive to tender to violent within single scenes[3](https://www.televisionacademy.com/features/emmy-magazine/articles/vampire-lestat-sam-reid). In season two, when Lestat appears mostly as "Dream-stat," a projection of Louis's tormented mind, Reid initially resisted the device because he did not want it to pull focus from Louis and Claudia's storyline[11](https://www.tvinsider.com/1197821/interview-with-the-vampire-cast-sam-reid-jacob-anderson/).
**The Vampire Lestat.** For the third season the series was rechristened [The Vampire Lestat](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-vampire-lestat), shifting the point of view to Lestat as a rock star in the modern world, with the story also visiting 1980s San Francisco and his vampire origins in 18th-century France[12](https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/the-vampire-lestat-sam-reid-performance-80370/) • [17](https://www.thewrap.com/the-vampire-lestat-interview-season-3-summer-premiere-amc/). It premiered on June 7, 2026, on AMC and AMC+[13](https://www.amcglobalmedia.com/2026/04/30/amc-and-amc-plus-present-the-vampire-lestat-one-night-only-live/). Reid performs the season's original songs, written by series composer Daniel Hart, including the singles "Long Face" and "All Fall Down" released on streaming services ahead of the premiere[13](https://www.amcglobalmedia.com/2026/04/30/amc-and-amc-plus-present-the-vampire-lestat-one-night-only-live/). The vocal demands were substantial: he had already learned piano and violin for season one, added electric guitar for season three, and for a scene singing to Lestat's mother Gabriella ([Jennifer Ehle](https://www.edgepedia.org/jennifer-ehle)) he sang in French while playing piano against an earpiece recording[3](https://www.televisionacademy.com/features/emmy-magazine/articles/vampire-lestat-sam-reid). Unlike his West End musical experience, where he protected his voice across eight shows a week, he deliberately pushed it raw for the rock performances[3](https://www.televisionacademy.com/features/emmy-magazine/articles/vampire-lestat-sam-reid).
To promote the season, Reid performed as Lestat at the Beacon Theatre in New York City on June 2, 2026, in *The Vampire Lestat: One Night Only – LIVE*, a staged concert following a screening of the premiere episode[13](https://www.amcglobalmedia.com/2026/04/30/amc-and-amc-plus-present-the-vampire-lestat-one-night-only-live/).
## Approach to the role
Reid treats Lestat as a performer. Because the character grew up in a poor aristocratic French family and trained as an actor, Reid plays him as deliberately performative, "putting on a show" even in cruelty, with his terrible acts framed by what the character believes is love[10](https://www.thewrap.com/interview-with-the-vampire-sam-reid-interview/) • [14](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/sam-reid-made-anne-rice-220047727.html). He has drawn on Hamlet, commedia dell'arte, and Dracula in building the character, and calls Lestat "100 percent a theatre kid"[4](https://playbill.com/article/sam-reid-says-the-vampire-lestat-is-the-ultimate-theatre-kid). His physical preparation for the first season included stunt-rig work for flying scenes and training the dog featured in a season-one train scene[8](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/11/interview-with-the-vampires-sam-reid).
Jacob Anderson, his co-star across five years of working together, has described Reid's willingness "to be the clown, to push it as far as you can possibly push it" as a gift to scene partners because it licenses them to push in their own ways[15](https://www.vanityfair.com/story/sam-reid-interview-vampire-lestat).
## Stage work
Reid has maintained a stage career alongside screen work. He appeared in the original London run of the [Bob Dylan](https://www.edgepedia.org/bob-dylan) musical *Girl from the North Country* (2017–18), an experience he says made him newly aware of his voice as an actor[3](https://www.televisionacademy.com/features/emmy-magazine/articles/vampire-lestat-sam-reid) • [4](https://playbill.com/article/sam-reid-says-the-vampire-lestat-is-the-ultimate-theatre-kid). While *The Vampire Lestat* aired in mid-2026, he returned to Australia to play Father Flynn, a priest accused of sexual assault, in [Sydney Theatre Company](https://www.edgepedia.org/sydney-theatre-company)'s production of [John Patrick Shanley](https://www.edgepedia.org/john-patrick-shanley)'s *Doubt: A Parable*, running June 30 to August 2[4](https://playbill.com/article/sam-reid-says-the-vampire-lestat-is-the-ultimate-theatre-kid). He has said he lives deliberately quietly at home in Australia with his partner and his dog, with no public internet presence[4](https://playbill.com/article/sam-reid-says-the-vampire-lestat-is-the-ultimate-theatre-kid).
## Reception
Reid's Lestat has drawn sustained critical praise. Backstage's review of *The Vampire Lestat* argued that his vocal work, from the sung performances to a narration that shifts "from sultry to manic on a dime," elevates the series as a whole[12](https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/the-vampire-lestat-sam-reid-performance-80370/). He received a Critics Choice Super Awards nomination in 2023 for the first season[5](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/sam-reid/). Showrunner Rolin Jones has said of him, "You'll be hard-pressed to see any other actor on television have to do the number of things that he has to do"[16](https://www.gq.com/story/the-vampire-lestat-gq-hype).
## References
1. [Sam Reid – Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/sam-reid)
2. [Sam Reid – IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2730580/)
3. [Playing a Vampire Rock Star Is a Humbling Job, According to Sam Reid – Television Academy, Emmy Magazine](https://www.televisionacademy.com/features/emmy-magazine/articles/vampire-lestat-sam-reid)
4. [Sam Reid Says The Vampire Lestat Is the Ultimate Theatre Kid – Playbill](https://playbill.com/article/sam-reid-says-the-vampire-lestat-is-the-ultimate-theatre-kid)
5. [Sam Reid – TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/sam-reid/)
6. [Interview With The Vampire: Aussie star Sam Reid takes on iconic Tom Cruise role – WHO](https://www.who.com.au/entertainment/sam-reid-interview-with-the-vampire/)
7. [Sam Reid – Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/person/sam-reid/)
8. [Interview With the Vampire's Sam Reid on the Particular Peculiarity of Playing a Vampire – Vanity Fair](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/11/interview-with-the-vampires-sam-reid)
9. [In Conversation with Sam Reid – Emsolation, Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/in-conversation-with-sam-reid-part-1/id1686849901?i=1000689398855)
10. [Anne Rice's Interview With the Vampire: Sam Reid Interview – TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/interview-with-the-vampire-sam-reid-interview/)
11. ['Interview With the Vampire' Season 2: Sam Reid Picks His Costars' Best Scenes (Exclusive)](https://www.tvinsider.com/1197821/interview-with-the-vampire-cast-sam-reid-jacob-anderson/)
12. ['The Vampire Lestat' Isn't Possessing Sam Reid; Sam Reid Is Possessing Lestat – Backstage](https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/the-vampire-lestat-sam-reid-performance-80370/)
13. [AMC and AMC+ Present The Vampire Lestat One Night Only – Live – AMC Global Media](https://www.amcglobalmedia.com/2026/04/30/amc-and-amc-plus-present-the-vampire-lestat-one-night-only-live/)
14. [How Sam Reid Made Anne Rice's 'Brat Prince' Deliciously Dark – Yahoo Entertainment](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/sam-reid-made-anne-rice-220047727.html)
15. [For Sam Reid, Playing the Vampire Lestat Comes With Pleasure—and Perhaps a Nip of Pain – Vanity Fair](https://www.vanityfair.com/story/sam-reid-interview-vampire-lestat)
16. ['The Vampire Lestat' Turns It All the Way Up – GQ](https://www.gq.com/story/the-vampire-lestat-gq-hype)
17. [The Vampire Lestat Interview Season 3 Summer Premiere Amc, thewrap.com](https://www.thewrap.com/the-vampire-lestat-interview-season-3-summer-premiere-amc/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › Australian actors › Surnames O to S*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license