Deborah Ann Woll, who played Jessica Hamby on hit HBO vampire series True Blood, addresses a potential follow-up movie. Based on The Southern Vampire Mysteries novel series by Charlaine Harris, the show revolves around telepathic waitress Sookie Stackhouse and her relationship with a 174-year-old vampire, amid the backdrop of vampire assimilation into human society. A critical and commercial success, True Blood ran seven seasons and 80 episodes before concluding in April 2014.
Speaking on Michael Rosenbaum’s Inside of You podcast, Woll discusses the possibility of a True Blood movie in the future, and how the show did not end in the way she had expected. Discussing how she believed some aspects of the show had reached a natural conclusion, the Daredevil series star also reveals she wanted more for the character of Jessica, and that she would be open to returning to the world of True Blood due to her love for the character, provided the story was well written. Read her full quote below:
I know nothing about any movie. I love the character, if it was well-written, sure. I’ll say this, True Blood did not end the way I thought it was going to end, or really wanted it to end. I was like, “She should go explore the world and become queen of Louisiana, or something like that.” So, I would love more story for Jessica out of that.
How A True Blood Movie Could Work
The idea of reviving a once-loved TV show as a movie, and being able to explore that universe and those characters one more time, has a track record of success. Short-lived space-western Firefly found a new lease of life on the big screen with the movie Serenity, so it is entirely possible that True Blood could enjoy similar success. In 2020, it was announced that HBO is planning a True Blood reboot with Riverdale creator Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, though this is planned as a TV series rather than a movie. Original showrunner Alan Ball is attached to executive produce the project, but not much more is known about the series. It would seem unlikely that a movie reboot or revival would happen in place of a series, but there is always the possibility that this could occur, especially if the planned reboot series falls through.
A movie could work well as a self-contained story, focusing on peripheral characters from the show, and even picking up where the show left off. Of course, if it were a revival, the movie would need to feature many of the original cast members, and this would depend on scheduling, as well as the age of some stars. Woll, who hosts True Blood rewatch podcast Truest Blood with co-star Kristin Bauer, has expressed interest, but it’s unclear if any of the other cast would be open to the idea of returning.
For now, it feels likely that any revival will be focused on a TV reboot, rather than a potential movie, but this is not to say it isn’t something that can happen in the future. Any chance of a movie continuation would require interest from fans, as well as cast members, and it’s likely Ball would need to have the urge to return to the franchise as well. In the meanwhile, True Blood fans will be watching and waiting for reboot news in the coming years, and hoping things get moving sooner rather than later.
Source: YouTube/Inside of You