All 3 actors who have played Claudia from Interview With the Vampire, including Delainey Hayles

Interview With The Vampire is back on AMC, and I couldn't be happier. This deep dark vampire drama is dripping in atmosphere and resplendent with sumptuous period detail. The vampires are tortured, the journalists are sarcastic, and the blood flows freely. It's a great show.

One of the most interesting characters is Claudia, who was turned into a vampire as a child. That means she's forever stuck in the body of a child, despite being around for decades. In the second season of Interview With the Vampire, Claudia is played by Delainey Hayles, who's replacing Bailey Bass from the first season.

And they aren't the only two to play this character. Here are all three actors so far to occupy the role of Claudia:

Kirsten Dunst as Claudia in the 1994 Interview With The Vampire movie

Interview With The Vampire is based on the 1976 book of the same name by author Anne Rice. That book was adapted to the screen by director Neil Jordan in 1994. The cast was star-studded. A young Brad Pitt played the lead role of Louis, a young Tom Cruise played his cruel companion Lestat, and a very young Kirsten Dunst played Claudia.

Dunst would go on to become a bona fide Hollywood star thanks to roles in movies like Spider-Man and Marie Antoinette. Interview With The Vampire was the first time most viewers had seen her, and they were impressed. As Claudia, she truly did seem to be an adult inside a child's body. Her performance was creepy and powerful.

In the movie, Claudia is turned into a vampire by Louis, which is accurate to Rice's book. In the AMC TV show, it's Lestat who makes her a vampire. Speaking of the show, let's meet the first of two actors to play the role of Claudia on it:

Bailey Bass as Claudia in Interview With The Vampire season 1

Bailey Bass played Claudia in the first season of Interview With The Vampire. Whereas Kirsten Dunst was only 11 when she played Claudia, Bailey Bass was closer to 16 or 17. Claudia was aged up in the show, probably because a TV series requires the actors to be on set more and that would be different for a child.

Bass plays the early parts of Claudia's journey, including when she's an eager young vampire just getting used to being part of a family with Louis and Lestat, and later when she becomes embittered and plots with Louis to kill Lestat. Bailey did a good job, but she did not return for season 2.

There's no official explanation for why Bass was replaced. Bass herself only said that she couldn't return to the show due to "unforeseen circumstances," according to Deadline. It's possible that the filming schedule for Interview With The Vampire conflicted with her work on the Avatar movies, where Bass plays the role of Reya, but we don't know for sure.

Delainey Hayles as Claudia in Interview With The Vampire season 2

Delainey Hayles is the newest actor to play Claudia. She picks up the role as Claudia and Louis have left Lestat for dead in New Orleans and traveled to Europe to search for other vampires. One episode into the second season, she's doing an excellent job.

This is the biggest screen role of Hayles' career so far. Previously, she appeared in TV projects like Holby City and Too Close. There are some major plot twists coming up in Claudia's story, and if Hayles kills it, her career could blow up very soon.

New episodes of Interview With The Vampire air Sunday nights on AMC.

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