Ryan O’Rourke

Published Jul 12, 2026, 10:15 PM EDT

Ryan O’Rourke is a Senior News Writer at Collider with a specific interest in all things adult animation, video game adaptations, and the work of Mike Flanagan. He is also an experienced baseball writer with over six years of articles between multiple outlets, most notably FanSided’s CubbiesCrib. Whether it’s taking in a baseball game, a new season of Futurama or Castlevania: Nocturne, or playing the latest From Software title, he is always finding ways to show his fandom. When it comes to gaming and anything that takes inspiration from it, he is deeply opinionated on what’s going on. Outside of entertainment, he’s a graduate of Eureka College with a Bachelor’s in Communication where he honed his craft as a writer. Between The IV Leader at Illinois Valley Community College and The Pegasus at Eureka, he spent the majority of his college career publishing articles on everything from politics to campus happenings and, of course, entertainment for the student body. Those principles he learned covering the 2020 election, Palestine, and so much more are brought here to Collider, where he has gleefully written on everything from the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes to Nathan Lane baby-birding sewer boys.

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Sam Reid’s global tour as a rock god is nearing its end. Tonight, AMC and AMC+ released the penultimate episode of The Vampire Lestat, and it was a heavy one. The third, renamed season of Interview with the Vampire has thus far followed Lestat as his band rose to superstardom, and thus gave him unparalleled influence over humans and vampires alike in the wake of the Great Conversion. Last week, however, saw him reunite with his love, Louis (Jacob Anderson), and stir up some emotions, thanks to an imposter pretending to be Claudia (Delainey Hayles). With Episode 6, titled “Montreal,” the duo was forced to confront some painful truths, and for the occasion, everyone’s favorite undead rocker had a new soul-bearing ballad prepared.

Collider can exclusively share a new behind-the-scenes video that breaks down the complexities of Lestat’s latest single, “Brutal Love.” Compared to his more swaggering, David Bowie-inspired tracks like “Long Face” or his upbeat cover of Billy Idol’s “Dancing With Myself,” the new song slows things down to let Reid’s voice shine with some hauntingly beautiful vocals. It’s one of many original pieces with music and lyrics by the show’s acclaimed composer, Daniel Hart, but the most important aspect that gives it metaphorical fangs is where it’s placed in Episode 6. Lestat performs it with the lights down low, violins in the background, and with both Louis and Gabriella (Jennifer Ehle) in the audience watching on.

In the breakdown, Reid remembered being blown away by “Brutal Love” from the moment he first heard it, but also recalled how much meaning it gained with two important people from Lestat’s life listening along. The beauty of it, he believes, comes from lyrics that leave it initially unclear whether the immortal rock deity is singing it to his mother or the man with whom he’s forged such a stormy, yet inherently unbreakable bond. Ehle found it especially delicious playing things out firsthand, depicting the initial contentment of Gabriella until she slowly realizes she isn’t the most important person in the room. Lestat made this an anthem to his and Louis’ turbulent love, one that not only encapsulates everything they’ve been through in the series but also where they are now.

Your answers point to the iconic universe your values, your instincts, and your particular way of seeing the world were built for. This is where you would find your people — and your purpose.

You believe in the cause — in the idea that freedom is worth fighting for even when the odds are impossible and the empire is vast.

You understand, in the deepest part of yourself, that the journey matters as much as the destination — and that the world’s beauty is worth protecting even at great cost.

You believe that love, loyalty, and doing what’s right are not naive sentiments — they are the most powerful forces in any world, magical or otherwise.

You see the world clearly — its power structures, its hypocrisies, its brutal arithmetic — and you are not paralysed by that clarity. You use it.

You believe the future is worth building — that curiosity, cooperation, and the expansion of understanding are not just ideals but the most practical path forward for any civilisation.

After two acclaimed seasons centered on Louis, The Vampire Lestat, under showrunner Rolin Jones, has once again wowed critics by adapting Anne Rice’s sequel novel and telling Lestat’s side of the story, in all its glitz and glam. Tracks like “Brutal Love” have been an integral part of that success, helping to forge a new persona that still echoes the immortal vampire’s past and passion for music. In addition to helping him express his feelings for Louis, it’s also been the key to connecting Lestat with the vampiric queen herself, Akasha. In an interview with Collider’s Carly Lane after Episode 5, Sheila Atim teased how that rock star phase could shape the future of Interview with the Vampire and expressed her hopes that music will continue to be an integral part of the series as it looks to the Season 3 finale and beyond.

“I can’t say much because there’s still a lot to be worked out and discovered there between us as a team. I probably think a bit of all of those things. They connect over music. Yes, she senses him and wants him to come and be the keeper, but the thing that really wakes her up is his music, his love of music, his passion for wanting to learn instruments. Then, here we are, all these hundreds of years later, and now he’s a rock star, and not only is he a rock star, but he’s singing about her.

That already is like the perfect tinderbox for something very, very exciting in terms of how she feels about that, [and] why she comes back into his life. It’s also painful, but I think it’s going to be fun. I hope the music continues in some way — not in the same way necessarily, but in some way, because it’s so at the heart of their connection, and it’s just a very potent, emotive… Everyone can connect to that. Through song, you can tell similar stories. So, I’m excited about that.”

The Vampire Lestat Episode 6 is now streaming on AMC+. Check out our exclusive sneak peek in the player above and visit The Vampire Lestat’s official page on Spotify or other music platforms to listen to “Brutal Love” and other new tracks as they drop in the show.

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Mark Johnson

Sam Reid