Mena Suvari & India Eisley on Acting with Buckets of Fake Blood in Vampires of the Velvet Lounge | Interview
ComingSoon Senior Editor Brandon Schreur spoke to Vampires of the Velvet Lounge stars Mena Suvari and India Eisley about the new horror comedy movie. Suvari and Eisley discussed how they got involved with the project, what it’s like to act in gory scenes full of fake blood, and more.
“Deep in the American South, a back alley absinthe bar harbors a deadly secret: Countess Elizabeth Báthory and her glamorous coven of vampires keep their killer instincts sharp by preying on lonely singles through dating apps, seducing and slaughtering to preserve their youth,” the official synopsis reads. “But when Elizabeth swipes right on the wrong profiles—a cunning undercover vampire hunter and a band of emotionally stunted bros—the hunt spirals into hilariously horrifying chaos. Blood flies, fangs pierce flesh, and the bar erupts into a glitter-soaked, green fairy-winged, fang-filled fever dream of grindhouse gore, terrible decisions, and fashionably fatal carnage.”
Vampires of the Velvet Lounge will open exclusively in theaters in select markets, including New York and Los Angeles, on March 20, 2026, from Strand Releasing.
Brandon Schreur: Mena, I want to start just by asking what was it that drew you to this project? You’ve been in so many movies and shows that I’ve absolutely loved over the years; what was it about Vampires of the Velvet Lounge that really stood out to you when you were reading the script for the first time, and what made you want to be part of this movie?
Mena Suvari: There were so many things. I have always loved this genre. I’ve wanted to play a vampire, for sure, but had never gotten that opportunity. I had known and worked with a lot of our cast and crew before this project. So that felt really exciting and familiar to me. I really also loved this whole world that Adam, our writer and director, had created. This modern take on a vampire coven.
And I loved the dialogue. I loved the conversations that they were having. I loved the really dark and dry humor that was woven throughout it. It’s personally the type of humor that I really love. Even just knowing that we were going to be shooting in Savannah — it’s such an incredible city, and I knew that was going to really add an interesting, unique aspect to the film. Yeah. There was so much of that.
Totally. It’s so much fun to watch, too. Your performance and seeing how the story all plays out, I was having a blast with this one. India, I also want to ask how you got involved with this project. I’m such a fan of the Underworld movies, so it’s really fun to see you get to play in this space with vampires again. What’s the story of how you got cast in here, and what made you most excited to be a part of this?
India Eisley: Yeah, thank you, firstly. I’ve missed being part of the vampire world. There’s nothing like it; it’s fun. And she’s a completely different character to Eve, as you see — Joan. It came to me kind of out of nowhere. It was during the strike, it was one of the ones that was — I’m forgetting the word, but it was greenlit, at that point. The script came in out of nowhere, and I also saw that it was filming in Savannah. I had been there once before, a few months earlier, and I was like, ‘God, I’d love to work here.’ Lo and behold, this script comes in.
It’s this off-the-wall, bonkers, wild, zany, and wild ride of a script. And I was like, ‘Okay, it’s back in the vampire world, filming in Savannah, and this character is completely all over the place and unhinged. This looks like a blast.’
Totally. I think bonkers is a good word to describe it. It leads into what I ask what you want to next, because there’s so much fun blood and gore effects in this movie that I’m dying to ask the two of you about. Mena, after the intro with the one guy, we go right to the scene where you’re bathing in the blood of these three decapitated women who are hanging upside-down. Which, that’s such an image. Immediately makes you go, ‘Whoa.’ Can you tell me a little bit about filming that moment and how hard it is to act with these buckets of fake blood? Is that a challenge for you, or do you enjoy getting to play around in the goop?
Mean Suvari: I mean, I really enjoyed it. Like, as long as I understand the circumstance — like, what’s it going to involve? Is everybody safe? Then, I’m all for it, and it’s a lot of fun. I think that’s just a perfect representation of what it’s like for Elizabeth on the daily. That’s just normal.
Again, our cast and crew are just phenomenal. And our incredible stunt team. These ladies were hanging for a while above me, but they were just in the most joyous spirits, just really enjoying making this scene. It was great. Every day was like an adventure of coming to set and being a part of that discovery process, you know? It takes a huge community to make something like this happen. Our incredible production design, our set decoration — everything that was able to be made for us to play in was awesome, in my opinion. I was really excited to be a part of all of that.
It was just a lot of fun getting to play in that space, but at the same time, when I think about that scene, they’re having serious conversations about how to continue existing. Like, this is the game plan, this is what we’re going to do. That’s what I loved. It was so contradictory at moments.
India Eisley: And you’re so matter-of-fact in that scene, as far as the plan. The blood is there and stuff, but you’re just like, ‘No no no, we’re going to be doing this, and we’re going to be doing this, and it’s going to be fine.’ You have it all mapped out.
Mena Suvari: Yeah, and that’s what I loved about — I picked up on that right away. I’m like reading the script, and I loved that. I thought it was hilarious. All the circumstances are going on, and then just having this conversation. It’s just so weird and wacky. I was like, ‘This is genius. I’ve never seen anything portrayed like this before.’ That’s what I loved about it. And that’s throughout the film. There are always these moments of trying to understand what is happening, and everything is so heightened. But there’s this serious element to it.
Totally. There’s a lot going on. But again, I love how the movie kicks off with that. It suddenly tells you what you’re in for, here. and it doesn’t stop after that.
Mena Suvari: Yeah. Then I’m also frustrated that he’s just sitting there, and he’s like not getting the job done. It’s like, hurry up. Elizabeth is like, ‘There’s no time to waste, you know? We have a mission.’ And Joan is just, like, thinking about trying to feel things…I loved it. Everybody had their own, unique personality, and it really worked. That’s what made it really great.
Sure. India, you have a lot of great moments in here, too. The one I’m really dying to ask you about is the scene where your character takes Stephen Dorff’s character into the bathroom, because that was a trip. I thought I knew what was going to happen, but somehow it gets even bloodier and more insane than I was expecting it to. Can you tell me a little bit about playing around with the gore in that scene, but also just having Stephen Dorff as a screen partner in that moment? Because he goes for it, and it rocks.
India Eisley: That scene, I feel like, ultimately, both of us — we didn’t have much to do, one-on-one, before that scene. That was like our one and only scene to do together. But leading up to that scene, we’d briefly kind of talk about it and stuff. And we’d be like, ‘Well, let’s just see what happens on the day.’ And then we both just sort of went for it. Because, like, how can you not in that scene?
I just remember immediately shoving him into the door, and it just took off from there. But that was honestly one of the most fun scenes for me to do in the film.
As far as the practical effects, the special effects, and all the blood, that was a little tricky. We took many, many takes. Stephen had to leave early, at one point, but the shot of where I had the full fangs, after I’d bitten into him, and I’m just dripping with blood. We kept having to redo that over and over and over again, because the note always was, ‘We need more blood. We need more blood.’ Special effects, they just kept coming in, and make-up, they were coming in just to add little bits of blood on my face. And eventually I was like, ‘I think I need a bowl of blood that I can just hold underneath the camera, and then I’ll come up into frame so that it’s really just dripping.’ Then it was done. It was taken care of. But that was a very fun scene to shoot.
Thanks to Mena Suvari and India Eisley for taking the time to discuss Vampires of the Velvet Lounge.
Source: Comingsoon.net