Talamasca: The Secret Order Review

Talamasca: The Secret Order is the latest series in AMC’s Immortal Universe, a franchise based on the works of Anne Rice. It joins Interview With The Vampire, whose season 3 is set to release in 2026, and Mayfair Witches, which is expected to begin filming its season 3 next year. This universe, though, hasn’t really felt very connected, but Talamasca aims to change that. For the most part, it succeeds, further fleshing out the world of Rice’s iconic characters and shining a light on a group who are more accustomed to sticking to the shadows.

The series stars Nicholas Denton as Guy Anatole, a clairvoyant who is initially hesitant when Helen (Elizabeth McGovern) – an agent for the Talamasca, a clandestine organization that monitors all supernatural activity – approaches him about joining. He agrees only when Helen reveals that his mother is still alive, not dead as Guy believed, and that she will help him find her in return for his help in stopping a vampire who’s infiltrated the Talamasca’s London offices. Soon, Guy finds himself entangled in the messy affairs of vampires, witches, and more, all the while navigating a tense spy game with high stakes.

Talamasca: The Secret Order Expands AMC’s Immortal Universe In Interesting Ways

Interview With The Vampire and Mayfair Witches are adapted from actual novels of Rice’s, but Talamasca isn’t based on any specific story. Instead, it’s inspired by the world of those stories, and it’s a credit to the creative team that it really feels like a part of the same universe. The ways in which it adds to it are pretty interesting. The Talamasca themselves, for instance, are an intriguing organization to learn more about. At their most basic, they spy on the supernatural world, but within the wider organization, there are groups with their own mysterious agendas.

Peeling back the layers of a mystery is the crux of what Talamasca: The Secret Order is all about, almost to excess. First, there’s the mystery of Guy’s mother, with some breadcrumbs sprinkled throughout the series; then the main hunt for a book containing all of Talamasca’s records; then another involving Helen’s backstory – and it’s a bit much for the six-episode series. Then again, the show moves at a brisk pace, and the reveals come quickly. There are also some solid emotional throughlines, and they help to invest us in the twists and turns.

Overall, it’s an engaging enough spy thriller with the added fun of throwing vampires, witches, and more into the mix, and world-building will be crucial for the future of the Immortal Universe. However, what actually makes Talamasca a show worth tuning in for is the cast.

William Fichtner Steals The Show As A New Vampire To The Franchise

Not being based on anything specific in Rice’s books, Talamasca has a lot of freedom in the story it’s telling and the characters included. There are a couple of established Immortal Universe characters who do appear – Eric Bogosian’s Daniel Molloy and Justin Kirk’s Raglan James. Their roles here are great cameos, with Kirk’s actually being more of a guest appearance as he’s around for a whole episode (which also happens to be the best in the series). But it’s otherwise entirely new characters, most of whom are great and fit well within Rice’s world.

Denton’s Guy is a very capable lead, and he’s able to hold his own opposite some strong onscreen performances. McGovern, likely best known from her work in Downton Abbey, surprised me as Helen. It’s a tricky role because it could be too motherly, but McGovern gives her enough of a threatening edge that you’re also wary of her. Jason Schwartzman appears briefly as a vampire, and he’s quite fun. It’s very unexpected, and his performance here gave me some Gideon Graves vibes, but it works very well in establishing how alluring and dangerous this supernatural world is.

Though no character really does that better than William Fichtner’s vampire, Jasper. He’s everything and more you want from a vampire bad guy. He’s charming, he’s funny, he’s also deadly scary when he needs to be. I’m not exaggerating when I say that Talamasca is a pretty good show most of the time, but it is an excellent show when Fichtner is on the screen. His level of camp is perfectly tuned, and without it, the show would be so dull.

Talamasca: The Secret Order isn’t anywhere near as good as Interview With The Vampire, but then that’s a high bar for just about any show — genre television or not. And I’ll be honest, I haven’t seen Mayfair Witches and, therefore, can’t fairly compare, but the surrounding consensus hasn’t been too stellar. Talamasca appears to fall squarely in between, neither excellent nor bad, but a pretty good story, great performances, and a promising premise that hints at a stronger cohesion for the Immortal Universe in the future.

Talamasca: The Secret Order premieres October 26 on AMC and AMC+.