Did you spot Charlaine Harris in the series finale of True Blood? We did and posted about it here Sunday night. Ms. Harris had not one but two cameos on the show during it’s seven year run. She got to sit in the bar after the maenad craziness of season two, by playing someone sitting at the bar in Merlotte’s, and then, was in the control room during the filming of Pam and Eric’s infomercial at the end of True Blood’s finale.
Below is an interview with Charlaine Harris, the writer of the Sookie Stackhouse novels which inspired True Blood:
Everyone is, except the vampires, in those flash-forwards! What did you think of all the resolutions for these various characters?
You know, I really enjoyed that, because to me it bears the mark of Alan Ball, even though I know there was a different showrunner the last year and a half. Because he gives you a glimpse of the future so often at the end of his runs, and in a way, Sookie ended up not with Sam, as she did in the books, but in the same place.
Who do you think that guy was?
He was someone she met after the show! A human. She had someone she could live a human life with, have human babies with, and stay in her home, which was what she wanted. He could be a shifter or a were, but my point is she didn’t end up with a vampire. I suppose it could have been Quinn [a were-tiger boyfriend of Sookie's from the books], but he didn’t look anything like Quinn. You know, he looks like the guy in the Maker’s Mark jacket who comes in during the last episode of The Sopranos! People can talk about it and talk about it, but in the end, it’s whatever you want it to be.
Was there ever a character depiction they surprised or delighted you with, by transforming what you did in the books?
Oh, for sure, Lafayette! Nelsan [Ellis]: Why he hasn’t gotten an Emmy, I don’t know. He was robbed. He’s brilliant, and he gave that character so much that was never in the books. People say, “Well, you killed him off in the books!” And I say, “Yeah, but he wasn’t the same Lafayette!” He’s much more fabulous in the TV show, and Nelsan gave him dimension and life and incredible lovable-ness that helped a lot of people relate to a character that they might not have related to in real life. There was just so much to him. He did deal drugs, but he was also a loving person. He was loyal to his family. He dabbled in magic. There’s a big system of checks and balances with Lafayette to make him seem [like] a real person. How could he not be your favorite? He was written beautifully.
There’s been a mixed reaction so far to the finale. You went through this with Dead Ever After, when you ended the book series and were confronted with the fan reaction. Some people were satisfied, but there were also some who were unsatisfied, because it’s not what they imagined in their heads.
[Laughs.] Yeah, and the deeply unsatisfied people are always super vocal about it. One girl told me she was going to kill herself.
What?!
Yeah. I figured, that’s a 16-year-old for sure. I thought, You really need to have a reality check here. Getting upset is a valid reaction. If you’ve been reading a series for a long time and you’re invested in the characters, then certainly you’re going to get upset if something upsets your apple cart [and goes against] the way you thought it should turn out. But ultimately, that’s the writer’s choice. Those are his or her characters, and they have to fit his or her vision. Ultimately, it’s a form of entertainment. It is not a life-or-death issue. What’s happening in the Middle East is a life-or-death issue. This is not. This is entertainment. Enjoy it, or not, and then turn to the next entertainment. I’m sure the True Blood showrunners are on some level relieved that it’s over with, and most of them, not all of them, but most of them are very media-savvy, and they know that this will subside eventually, and it won’t affect their job chances or their families, you know? Sure, it’s a tempest, and it’s unpleasant while it’s going on, but sooner or later, people will turn their attention to something else that offends or disappoints them. I’ve read comments that the show was coming to an end because I’d finished the books, which of course was ridiculous. As far as I’m concerned, the show could have gone on forever. But I think everybody was ready to move on to other things.
Right now, people are grappling with what it means or what it was that prompted Bill to ultimately kill himself via Sookie, and whether that was an act of compassion or villainy.
You know, he was so close to death anyway that I found myself thinking, Why don’t you just wait 24 hours? Why put her through it? But he wanted, I guess, the dignity of going on his own terms. And I could see him not wanting to go through that, getting weaker and weaker, sicker and sicker. And he really expected Sookie to fireball him, I guess. And it was her choice to keep her faerie nature and to stake him. She could have just walked away. So she made a choice. And he ultimately did do it himself. He helped her push the stake in.
What about Jason? I feel like in the books he had some faerie essence, because women were so attracted to him the way men were attracted to Sookie, but the show didn’t explore that angle.
Right. But I disagree with you there, because I think he was really attracted to women who might otherwise be put off by the fact that he was abysmally stupid. And I think he pretty much ended up in the same place — a somewhat-reformed, somewhat-improved character.
Read the complete interview with Ms. Harris by going to: vulture.com
