'True Blood' star Jacob Hopkins discusses playing the youngest vampire

'True Blood' star Jacob Hopkins plays the powerful but young vampire Alexander Drew on the hit HBO show.

In a good horror story, viewers are always surprised by who the real villain is.  It is when monsters do not look like monsters that we are simultaneously horrified and curious.  Preying our how our eyes fool us into believing that a young child is nothing to be afraid of, TRUE BLOOD has introduced the diabolical Alexander Drew, a vampire who only looks so innocent and sweet.  In a recent exclusive interview, young star Jacob Hopkins shared what he enjoys about playing the monster behind the eyes of a child. 

How exciting is it to work on TRUE BLOOD?
 JACOB:  You know, I’ve never seen the show because it’s for an older audience. So I didn’t know how it would go, but to tell you the truth, it is really fun.  There’s the fangs, and they are better than the plastic ones.  They are way cool.  They look so real and match my teeth color.  There’s also the wardrobe, I get to wear a suit.  That’s really cool ’cause I feel like an adult — and the set was so beautiful. It was like out of a movie.  There were so many people on set, so many different cameras, and it was very busy but everyone knew exactly what to do. We would rehearse in the morning before we would shoot and there was a lot of joking and laughing.  I had a lot of fun. So it is pretty cool.

So you had a great time portraying Alexander.  What drew you to the character?
 JACOB:  The character is really creepy and stuff.  So what drew me to him was he is an interesting monster.  The show explores a lot of monsters and I like characters that are monster-like, like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. That sort of personality is really fascinating and that’s pretty much how Alexander is.  He kind of has a really sly and sarcastic side to him, but then he’s also got a tough side.  Most monsters are kind of curious, and that’s how Alexander is.  He is pretty obnoxious and full of himself, but he’s pretty serious too.  Like he never jokes around with the other vampires.  He is very feisty and strong-minded vampire, and he has a little dark side to him.  I don’t know, maybe there is some good in him, but he never shows it.  He is a pretty mean vampire — let me just say that! [Laughs]  I like that we really get to explore him this season.

Is there one particular quality about him that you really appreciate?
 JACOB:  I really appreciate that he’s a quick thinker.  He always has a good come-back or something, and he really thinks deep.  He knows people better than you think he does and he’s kind of quiet.  He is also a talkative person, but at the same time, he thinks a lot.  While talking a lot, he also thinks in his head. Like he killed an Authority member without a second thought. He thinks quick like that.  I think that’s really cool.

What do you think his goals are?  What is he trying to accomplish?
 JACOB:   Well, every vampire on the Authority wants to accomplish the same goals: mainstreaming.  But like any other authority, there are the debates, the disagreements. Every council does that, and sometimes things gets a little heated with each other.

Is Alexander just thirsting for blood, or is he thirsting for power?
 JACOB:  He’s pretty much one of those vampires who wants power.  He wants to be the most powerful vampire in the world.  But there are two things in his way:  Roman and Russell.  He tries to get them out of the way because he’s pretty much full of himself.  ‘Cause, like I said, he only thinks about himself.  People don’t really think he could be the most powerful vampire because of my looks.  He’s like an old man stuck in a little kid’s body.  But he only looks like a 9 year old, but if you want to talk authority, he’s got authority.  He’s that important; he doesn’t look that way.

He probably uses the fact that he looks so young to his advantage.  Do you think that makes him a smarter enemy in conquering those who stand in his way?
 JACOB:  I guess, yeah.  Looking young has its advantages.  Like he looks so innocent and sweet and he’s really the big bad, horrible monster.  So he can do something like this:  he goes up to a mortal and because he looks so innocent and sweet, and they will be like, “What a cute little boy!” Then he just drops his fangs out and bites them.  So he can use that to his advantage.

He’s also kind of a mischief maker.  Are we going to see more of his calculating side, or are we going to see more of his fun side, creating more mischief?
 JACOB:  He is creating a lot of mischief so far and he’s not a nice vampire.  But he respects Roman a lot and he behaves as much as possible around him. 

Who has been your favorite character on TRUE BLOOD so far?
 JACOB:  Alexander is a feisty and strong-minded vampire.  He’s the kind of vampire who is very sneaky and he is a really smart vampire.  He’s also very important and wise, and he makes himself heard a lot.  He certainly has his own opinions and it doesn’t have anything to do with the importance of himself.  So I guess he’s my favorite vampire since he’s pretty cool.  I also like Roman too ’cause he looks really cool.  He’s got this really cool suit and Chris is a really good actor and he makes Roman come alive.

What can you like to tease about what’s upcoming for Alexander?
 JACOB:  I can’t tell you! [Laughs] But I can tell you that I love my job.  You’re going to be surprised.  There’s twists and turns and drama. So you’ll have to wait and see.

Tiffany Vogt blogs at The TV Addict.