Episode 3 of The Vampire Lestat, “Toronto,” finally shows us the vampiric transformation of Sam Reid’s Lestat back in the 1700s. At last, we see how his maker, Magnus (Damien Atkins), turned the young stage actor into the glamorous immortal we all know today. But who is The Vampire Lestat‘s Magnus, and what is his relation to the other vampires in the series? Here’s everything we know about Lestat’s centuries-old sire.
Who Is Magnus, Lestat’s Maker, in The Vampire Lestat?
Magnus is an ancient vampire with dark hair and unsettling features. A French alchemist in the 15th century, he was denied the supernatural blood by the ancient vampire Rhoshamandes for being too physically unattractive. So he found a vampire named Benedict, made by Rhoshamandes around 800 AD. While Benedict was hibernating, Magnus stole the blood from him and turned himself into a vampire. He was an outcast from the local covens, who considered him a heretic for living outside their rules. Over 300 years, he accumulated vast wealth from his victims, which he hoarded in a tower outside Paris. But as the centuries passed, the immortality began to drive Magnus insane.
How Does Magnus Find Lestat?
Magnus becomes fascinated with the mortal Lestat in the late 18th century, when he’s a young actor playing Lelio in a local Paris theater—a tale which Lestat recounts to readers in Anne Rice’s The Vampire Lestat. Magnus reads his mind and sees that Lestat killed eight wolves back home and barely survived. Fascinated by his bravery and tenacity, Magnus begins to stalk Lestat, telepathically calling him “Wolfkiller.” Also, Magnus finds Lestat physically beautiful, citing his blonde hair and blue eyes. One night, he pulls Lestat through the window of his home, while his lover Nicki screams, believing Lestat died in the attack.
Why Does Magnus Choose Lestat as His Heir in The Vampire Lestat?
Magnus mainly picks Lestat as his undead heir for his looks; that’s true. But that was not the only reason. After Lestat was transformed, he found the decomposing bodies of dozens of identical blonde men in Magnus’ dungeons. Clearly, Magnus meant to turn them, but ultimately chose to just kill them, for not being up to snuff to receive the Dark Gift. Lestat made the cut because of his innate bravery and his irreverent personality.
How Does Magnus Turn Lestat Into a Vampire?
Unlike what Lestat will eventually do with Louis, Magnus did not give Lestat a choice in becoming his fledgling. Magnus essentially assaulted him and forced him to become a vampire, even though Lestat resisted and said no with his dying breath in The Vampire Lestat. Even though Lestat relishes his vampire nature, it was done to him completely against his will.
What Happens to Magnus After Turning Lestat?
After Magnus turns Lestat, he gives him a quick rundown on what to do (and what not to do) as a vampire. With his heir now fully a vampire, he sets a funeral pyre and ends his undead life. Before Magnus dies, he warns Lestat to scatter the ashes, or he might return, in a nightmarish form that he can’t conceive. He leaves Lestat his tower and his vast wealth. In Anne Rice’s 2014 novel Prince Lestat, Magnus actually does returns as a ghost, who now looks like the blonde beauty he always coveted. But occasionally, his ghostly form flickers back to his old self, which is a shock to those around him. We’ll have to wait and see whether Magnus in The Vampire Lestat series is able to achieve this ghostly status.
How Old Is Magnus in Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles?
Magnus was made a vampire about 300 years before the events of The Vampire Lestat, somewhere around the late 15th century. Thus, the ghostly form of Magnus we meet in Prince Lestat is about five centuries old.
Is Magnus One of the Oldest Vampires in the Series?
While Magnus is old, he’s nowhere near the oldest vampire in Anne Rice lore. He’s roughly the same age as Armand. Marius is over 2,000 years old, as are the vampires Pandora and Mael. And of course, Akasha, the Queen of the Damned, is 6,000 years old. So are the twins Maharet and Mekare.
What Powers Does Lestat Inherit From His Maker Magnus?
Because Magnus never sired another vampire in his 300 years, his blood never became diluted. So Lestat inherited a full array of vampire powers from his maker. Lestat gained telepathy, called the Mind Gift, from Magnus, could set fires with his mind with the Fire Gift, and was much harder to kill thanks to his maker’s age when he transformed him.
Magnus in AMC’s The Vampire Lestat Series
In the AMC series, we don’t get much of Magnus’ backstory. We know he’s old, not very attractive, and is an outcast from Armand’s coven. We see him stalk and kidnap Lestat, just as in the book, and we see glimpses of the other blonde men he killed in his tower. However, we don’t see him throw himself into the flames. Instead, Lestat describes the event to Daniel Molloy. A version of Magnus haunts Lestat in the present day, but we assume it’s not a real ghost, but a manifestation of Lestat’s trauma.
Lestat’s Song “Your Biggest Fan” Is About Magnus
One of the songs in The Vampire Lestat, “Your Biggest Fan,” written by Daniel Hart, is sung by Lestat. But it’s told through what Lestat believes is his maker’s POV after he gave him the Dark Gift. Since Magnus kidnapped, assaulted, and transformed Lestat against his will, leaving behind no guidebook, the song is his way of reckoning with what Magnus did to him centuries ago. Despite the torture Magnus put him through, he now romanticizes it all (to a degree). He sees Magnus as “his biggest fan,” who gave him a powerful gift in the worst possible way. It’s pretty twisted, but Lestat uses music as a coping mechanism when dealing with what Magnus did to him in The Vampire Lestat.
The Vampire Lestat airs on AMC and AMC+, Sundays at 9 pm ET/PT and midnight, respectively. You can snag The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice to read, if you’d like to know a little bit more about what’s going on.
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