‘True Blood’ Actor Discusses His Character’s Ending in the Show 10 Years Later

Star Joe Manganiello discusses his character’s fate in the fantasy horror series True Blood. 

Based on the Sookie Stackhouse books by Charlaine Harris, HBO’s ‘True Blood’ had a run of seven seasons between 2008 and 2014. 

Joe Manganiello joined the cast in season 3 as werewolf Alcide Herveaux and was a series regular until he was killed off in season 7.

In an interview on ‘Andy Cohen Live,’ Manganiello discussed his character’s disappointing exit in the last season of True Blood. The star explained that the character’s death was crucial to the plot progression so that Sookie could solve the problems between Bill and Eric.

Read his quote below: 

I thought there was so much left on the table for me. The thing about it was they never planned for me to be on the show past one season. I was signed up as a guest star my first season, and when my character really broke and people really loved the character, they were kind of unprepared for that to happen. I wound up on the show for five years in total, but my character had to get out of the way so that Sookie could wind up settling the A and B plots with Bill and Eric. The only way to get me out of the way was — spoiler alert — you know, to shoot me in the face. I really felt like there was a lot that was left unexplored.

[I’m] always on the lookout for like a good werewolf script for me because… I feel like there’s a lot in me that was unfinished. I have unfinished business in the werewolf department.

Although True Blood season 7 has recorded substantial viewership numbers, it has disappointed many fans of the show. 

This is because of a montage of shocking deaths that starts with Rutina Welsey’s Tara and includes Manganiello’s character, too. 

It ended with Sookie delivering Bill into the arms of ‘true death,’ and what could have been a shocking climax was bland and generic. 

In 2020, there was a buzz among fans of the show about a possible revival of True Blood. This reboot promised a shot at a more satisfying conclusion than before. However, even with the original creator, Alan Ball, returning, the project was canceled in February 2023 due to broader budget reductions at Warner Bros. Discovery.

Even though HBO has put the True Blood reboot on hold, it doesn’t mean it’s off the table forever. Just like the Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot, there is always a possibility of a True Blood reboot. If it ever comes to life, we hope to get a better conclusion for Alcide Herveaux.

About True Blood

True Blood is an American fantasy horror drama television series produced and created by Alan Ball. It is based on The Southern Vampire Mysteries, a series of novels by Charlaine Harris.

The series revolves around Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin), a telepathic waitress living in the fictional rural town of Bon Temps, Louisiana. It is set two years after the invention of a synthetic blood product branded “Tru Blood” that has allowed vampires to “come out of the coffin” and let their presence be known to mankind.

It chronicles the vampires’ struggle for equal rights and assimilation while anti-vampire organizations begin to gain power. Sookie’s world is turned upside down when she falls in love with 174-year-old vampire Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer), and for the first time, she must navigate the trials and terrors of intimacy and relationships.