It has been over three months since Peacock granted a series order to Julie Plec’s Vampire Academy, and now the streamer has finally unveiled the main cast for the upcoming teen supernatural drama. After appearing as Mileena in Warner Bros. Pictures’ Mortal Kombat reboot, Sisi Stringer has been tapped to lead the project for the role of Rose Hathaway, the vampire-human hybrid who’s training to become a guardian at St. Vladimir’s Academy. Joining her is Daniela Nieves (Sex Appeal), who has also been enlisted for the leading role of vampire royalty, Lissa Dragomir.
In addition, Kieron Moore (Sex Education), Andre Dae Kim (Degrassi), J. August Richards (Generation), Anita-Joy Uwajeh (West End’s Cyrano de Bergerac and King Lear), Mia McKenna Bruce (The Dumping Ground), Rhian Blundell (Torchwood: Believe), Jonetta Kaiser (Tales) and Andrew Liner (Grown-ish) have also been cast in the series.
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Based on Richelle Mead’s bestselling YA supernatural romance novel series, Vampire Academy is created, written, and executive produced by Julie Plec, who will also serve as showrunner and director. Plec is no stranger to the genre as she is the mastermind behind The CW’s The Vampire Diaries series along with its two spinoffs The Originals and Legacies.
“In a world of privilege and glamour, two young women’s friendship transcends their strikingly different classes as they prepare to complete their education and enter royal vampire society,” reads the official synopsis. “This serialized and sexy drama combines the elegance of aristocratic romance and the supernatural thrills of the vampire genre.”
St. Vladimir’s Academy isn’t just any boarding school — it’s a hidden place where vampire royals are educated and half-human teens train to protect them from the savage ‘Strigoi’ vampires who would like to see them destroyed.”
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The character descriptions are listed below:
Stringer’s Rose – a vampire-human hybrid known as a Dhampir. Fiery and outspoken, Rose is a true fighter in spirit and in practice. She always jumps into action, and more often than not, this results in demerits. She might be the strongest fighter in her class, but her success will depend entirely on her willingness to toe the line when it counts.
Nieves’ Lissa – is a Royal Moroi vampire. Growing up the younger sister to the heir apparent, Princess Vasilisa Dragomir is a carefree, kind-hearted, royal princess coasting through her studies and happily chasing fun. Lissa is uninterested in the political machinations of the Royal Court or the hypocrisy of Moroi royal society. But with a sudden death in her family, Lissa is thrust into a role she’s neither trained for nor is emotionally equipped to handle.
Moore’s Dmitri Belikov – the model of a Dhampir guardian: lethal, disciplined, discreet, and totally committed to his role as bodyguard to the ruling Moroi, the “good,” mortal vampires of his world. He lives by a deep moral code, but beneath his stoic, watchful surface, there’s an expansive spirit that could threaten to expose the underlying tension between his sense of what’s right and his formal duty to the Moroi.
Kim’s Christian Ozera – a Royal Moroi vampire. Intelligent and thoughtful, Christian is the pariah of the school and royal court, due to his parents’ unforgiveable societal sins. Well-read and hungry for knowledge, he searches for faith-based answers and discovers a kindred spirit who is also looking for the truth.
Richards’ Victor Dashkov – is a Moroi noble vampire with a heart of gold who’s highly regarded for his role as advisor and political strategist to Moroi dignitaries. He’s a fierce loyalist who uses his intelligence and influence to protect that which he values most: the well-being of his husband and two adopted daughters, as well as the betterment of his Moroi community.
Uwajeh’s Tatiana Vogel – is a Moroi vampire and political underdog who slowly takes the royal court by storm. Motivated by love and a sense of justice, Tatiana has a unique skill of making herself seem of no consequence until we realize much too late that she was always the one to watch.
McKenna-Bruce’s Mia Karp – a student at St. Vladimir’s Academy. Witty, cutting, and just the right kind of ruthless when necessary, non-Royal Mia has a long-term plan to social climb her way into the ranks of royalty, with all the privilege and freedom that entails. A plan complicated by her instant chemistry with Meredith, a Guardian-in-training, as Mia struggles to reconcile her attraction to Meredith with her lowly status.
Blundell’s Meredith – a smart, strong-willed Dhampir who is a keen observer, which makes her an excellent strategist and a valuable asset. She has little patience for Rose’s volatility or Mia’s elitism, and regularly calls both of them out.
Kaiser’s Sonya Karp – quiet, careful, and decidedly odd, Sonya is not of royal bloodline and sits out on the fringe of Moroi society, preferring to spend her time in the library or her gardens. Not a person who likes a scene, nonetheless she has a quiet but profound power of her own. She is taken by surprise when a Dhampir Guardian named Mikhail shows interest in her, a relationship that will expose both the brightest and darkest parts of her heart.
Liner’s Mason Ashford – Charming, loyal and popular, Mason is Rose’s main competition in the quest to become the number one Guardian-in-training. Though their relationship is casual on her side, he is hopeful she will finally look at him and see him as something more.
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The Vampire Academy series will also be co-written and co-executive produced by Plec’s long-time collaborator Marguerite MacIntyre, who is also set as showrunner. It is a production by Universal Television.
Executive producers are Emily Cummins, Don Murphy, Susan Montford, Deepak Nayar, and Jillian DeFrehn, with Bille Woodruff, Luis Prieto, Jesse Warn, Erica Dunton, and Geoff Shotz attached to direct.
