Sinners has brought vampires and Black stories back together. However, the new movie is not the first to feature iconic black horror characters.
Stack and Tara are just two remarkable Black vampires. Image source: Warner Bros / HBO
With Ryan Coogler’s blockbuster hit Sinners, a long-overlooked genre has finally returned to the big screen: vampire horror. The dark fantasy drama, starring Michael B. Jordan, masterfully blends blood-chilling thrills with the Black American experience – earning rave reviews and raking in an impressive $236.7 million at the global box office so far.
To celebrate this success, we’re shining a light on the characters who helped pave the way for Sinners. Here are 10 Black characters from film and television who just so happen to be vampires – and not only incredibly cool ones, but also complex, layered, and thought-provoking.
Eric "Blade" Brooks – Blade
You can’t talk about Black vampires without mentioning Blade. He’s the most iconic one, starring in a hit film trilogy, a TV show, an anime, and a cinemtaic reboot on the way.
Born Eric Brooks, Blade is what's known as a Daywalker – a rare half-vampire with all the powers of the undead, like superhuman strength, speed, healing but none of their usual
weaknesses against sunlight, garlic, or silver. His mother was bitten while pregnant and died giving birth, which set Blade on a lifelong path of vengeance: hunting vampires and keeping humanity safe from the shadows.
As one of the first Black superheroes to lead a successful blockbuster franchise, Wesley Snipes’ portrayal of Blade in the 1998–2004 trilogy helped pave the way for modern comic book cinema, including what would eventually become the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Akasha – Queen of the Damned
With The Vampire Chronicles Author Anne Rice has created a vast universe of gothic stories. In this universe, the origin of all vampires traces back to Akasha, the first of all vampires.
Thousands of years ago, she and her king, Enkil, were made immortal by the gods in ancient Egypt. Played by the late singer Aaliyah, Akasha awakens in Queen of the Damned after centuries of slumber, with big plans for the new world: kill all men and destroy most of the other vampires. That can only go well, right?
Akasha is an incredibly powerful character, and instead of being just the hundredth version of a pretty female sidekick, she becomes a ruthless villain, embodying a mix of divinity and madness..
Blacula / Prince Mamuwalde – Blacula
Of course, vampire cinema wouldn’t be complete without the Blaxploitation horror films of the 1970s. These movies were directed by, produced by, and, starring African Americans, as a way to break free from the white-dominated film industry.
The first true Blaxploitation horror movie is considered to be Blacula, in which African prince Mamuwalde, played by William Marshall, is turned into a vampire and imprisoned by Count Dracula in 1780, while his wife Luva dies a slow and painful death. He’s awakened in 1972 by unsuspecting interior decorators, who become his first victims, and soon meets a woman named Tina, whom he believes to be the reincarnation of Luva.
Blacula brought the Black perspective into the vampire genre and created a character that blended classic horror tropes with themes of Black identity, loss, and the social issues of its time.
Tara Thornton – True Blood
Tara Thornton is a central character in HBO’s True Blood, based on the Southern Vampire Mysteries novels by Charlaine Harris. Played by Rutina Wesley, Tara is one of the few prominent Black vampire characters in modern television.
She starts the series as a human; sharp-tongued, independent, and angry, as Tara carries deep emotional scars from a childhood marked by poverty, neglect, and abuse from her alcoholic mother. When she’s mortally wounded later in the series, the vampire Pam turns her to save her life. Becoming a vampire only intensifies Tara’s inner struggles around control, rage, and identity – while also giving her a new kind of strength.
Tara embodies many of the social themes True Blood explores: racism, trauma, marginalization, and the fight for self-acceptance in a hostile world.
Maximillian – Vampire in Brooklyn
Even horror can benefit from a touch of comedy now and then. In Vampire in Brooklyn (1995), horror icon Wes Craven teamed up with Eddie Murphy – who also took on the lead role of vampire Maximilian.
Max is the last surviving member of his vampire clan and travels from the Caribbean to Brooklyn to find one specific woman: Detective Rita Veder, played by Angela Bassett. As a half-vampire, she represents his only chance to continue his bloodline. To seduce the unsuspecting Rita and fully turn her, Max pulls out every trick in the book – but impressing a woman like her isn’t so easy, not even with Eddie Murphy’s shape-shifting skills.
Max is a truly special character: charming, cultured, ruthless, yet clearly overwhelmed. He struggles to adapt to the modern urban world, often failing in grotesque and absurd ways
Ramona Royale – American Horror Story: Hotel
Remember those Blaxploitation films from the ’70s we mentioned earlier? Well, they matter now, because in Season 5 of American Horror Story, there’s a vampire character who draws directly from that genre.
In AHS: Hotel, former B-movie actress Ramona Royale is portrayed by Angela Bassett (that makes two Angela Bassett vampire characters in total for this list!). She returns to the eerie Hotel Cortez to take revenge on its owner, The Countess. Back in the 70s, the two were lovers, and it was The Countess who turned Ramona into a vampire. But twenty years later, their relationship crumbled, and when The Countess killed Ramona’s new love in cold blood, she vowed revenge.
While only being a side character, Ramona is a powerful, vulnerable, and incredibly stylish figure who embodies themes of pride, loss, rage, and identity. She’s a tribute to 1970s Blaxploitation cinema, searching for purpose in a modern world.
Louis De Pointe Du Lac – Interview with a Vampire (2022)
The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice didn’t just give us Akasha, they also brought us the iconic Interview with the Vampire. While the main character Louis de Pointe du Lac was portrayed by Brad Pitt in the 1994 movie, the 2022 TV adaptation offers a radically reimagined version of the character.
Here, Louis, played by Jacob Anderson, is a wealthy Black businessman in 1910s New Orleans. He struggles with systemic racism, family pressure, and deep internal conflict. When he enters a passionate yet toxic relationship with the vampire Lestat, he’s turned into one himself, slowly losing his humanity along the way.
Louis is melancholic and morally torn. Casting him as a Black man added new layers to his story: it’s no longer just about immortality and bloodlust, but also about identity, racism, queer love, and the haunting legacy of colonialism.
Drolta Tzuentes – Castlevania Nocturne
Just like you can’t talk about pop culture vampires without mentioning Blade, you also can’t leave out Castlevania, in this case, the spin-off anime series Castlevania: Nocturne.
Set during the French Revolution, the show follows a group of vampire hunters led by Richter Belmont as they face off against a vampiric conspiracy headed by the vampire goddess Erzsebet Báthory. Her devoted right hand, Drolta Tzuentes, serves both as a warrior and a high priestess with fanatical zeal.
Though technically a supporting character, Drolta stands out with her striking design, commanding presence, and radical ideology – she embodies fanatical evil with a dangerously calm elegance.
Laurent – Twilight
The pre-2010 era was a different kind of wild. With Twilight, vampires had fully arrived in the modern age, and firmly in the hearts of a young audience. The central love story between Bella and Edward was accompanied by a number of side characters, including Laurent, portrayed by Edi Gathegi.
Laurent appears as part of a group of nomadic vampires and has a complicated relationship with our main couple. Initially, he stands out for his restraint and civility, even joining the Denali clan, which abstains from human blood. But he can’t quite break away from his old crew of bloodthirsty sadists.
While Laurent is described as “olive-skinned” in the books, Gathegi’s portrayal brought a visibly Black vampire into the spotlight – something that stood out in the Twilight universe, where diversity had long been lacking.
Stack – Sinners
And now, let’s talk about the character this entire list is dedicated to. Without giving too much away, a few words on Stack from Sinners. He’s played by Michael B. Jordan, who also takes on the role of Stack’s twin brother, Smoke.
Stack is the more extroverted and charismatic of the two – but also more impulsive, driven by a need for recognition and success. When the brothers return to their Mississippi hometown in 1932 to open a juke joint, they cross paths not only with remnants of the Ku Klux Klan but also with vampires. One of them eventually turns Stack, testing the bond between the brothers and leading to a tragic conflict.
Sinners blends horror with a deep exploration of African American history and culture, with music playing a major role throughout. The Juke joint gave it away.
Both critics and audiences have praised the film highly. On Rotten Tomatoes, Sinners currently holds a 98% Tomatometer score (critics score), with a 97% audience rating. So, if you’re into vampires and haven’t seen Sinners yet – do it!