Lestat

Lestat de Lioncourt
The Vampire Chronicles character
Tom Cruise as Lestat (1994)
First appearance	Interview with the Vampire (1976)
Created by	Anne Rice
Portrayed by	Tom Cruise (Interview with the Vampire) Stuart Townsend (Queen of the Damned) Hugh Panaro (Lestat)
Information
Nickname(s)	The Brat Prince Lestat de Valois Wolfkiller The Damndest Creature The Rule-breaker
Aliases	The Vampire Lestat
Species	Vampire
Gender	Male
Occupation	Hunter Theater actor Rock star Author
Title	Prince
Family	Gabrielle de Lioncourt (mother/fledgling) The Marquis (father) Augustin (eldest brother) Five unnamed elder siblings Unnamed sisters-in-law Several nieces and nephews
Significant other(s)	Nicolas de Lenfent (fledgling/lover) Magnus (maker) Louis de Pointe du Lac (fledgling/lover) Akasha (lover) David Talbot (fledgling/lover) Rowan Mayfair (lover) Mona Mayfair (fledgling)
Children	Claudia (fledgling/adoptive daughter) Viktor (biological son) Rose (adoptive daughter)
Religion	Christian (as a human, by family duty)
Nationality	French American (naturalized)

Lestat de Lioncourt is a fictional character appearing in several novels by Anne Rice, including The Vampire Lestat. He is a vampire who was the narrator and an antihero in the majority of The Vampire Chronicles.

The Vampire Lestat (the second book in The Vampire Chronicles series) is presented as Lestat's autobiography and it follows his exploits from his youth in the Auvergne region of France to his early years as a vampire fledgling. Many of the other books in the series also follow his story, such as The Queen of the Damned, The Tale of the Body Thief, Memnoch the Devil, and also Blood Canticle.

According to Rice, Lestat was largely inspired by her husband, the poet and artist Stan Rice; both have blond hair and they share November 7 as a birth date. In a 2003 interview, Rice noted that the character had also taken on some of her own attributes, stating "Stan was Lestat; he was the inspiration. Perhaps it is best to say Lestat was Stan and me. He was Stan and what Stan taught me. Lestat was inspired by Stan, and then I became Lestat." The name "Lestat" was a misspelling of "Lestan," which Rice believed to be an old French name. According to the characters themselves, who discuss the issue in Blackwood Farm, Blood Canticle and Memnoch the Devil, the name is pronounced "les-dot" "with a rather French flair."

Lestat describes himself as six feet tall. He has blond hair that is not quite shoulder length, and that is rather curly, which sometimes appears white under fluorescent lighting. His eyes are gray, but they reflect the colors of blue or violet easily from surfaces around them. He has a short narrow nose, and a mouth that is well shaped, but has always been slightly large for his face. His mouth can look very mean or extremely generous, but always sensual. He has a continuously animated face. Lestat's fingernails (like those of all vampires in The Vampire Chronicles) look like they are made of glass.