Anne Rice’s ‘Talamasca’ Series at AMC Casts ‘Downton Abbey’ Alum Elizabeth McGovern (EXCLUSIVE)

Elizabeth McGovern has joined the upcoming AMC series “The Talamasca,” Variety has learned exclusively.

“The Talamasca” is the third series in AMC’s so-called Anne Rice Immortal Universe, along with “Interview with the Vampire” and “Mayfair Witches.” McGovern joins previously announced cast members Nicholas Denton and William Fichtner.

The Talamasca is a secretive group featured in a number of Rice’s novels. The official logline for the show states that it will “focus on the men and women responsible for tracking and containing the witches, vampires, and other creatures scattered around the globe.”

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McGovern will star in the series regular role of Helen, described as “a seasoned veteran of the Talamasca, and the leader of its New York Motherhouse. She has long suspected that London’s Motherhouse has fallen under the influence of traitorous elements, and a mysterious death prompts her to recruit Guy Anatole (Denton), who will become her protégé.”

McGovern received an Academy Award nomination in 1982 for the film “Ragtime.” She has also starred in films like “Once Upon a Time in America” and “The Wife.” McGovern is also known for her work in the hit British drama series “Downton Abbey,” earning an Emmy nomination for the show in 2011. She has since appeared in the two “Downton Abbey” followup films in 2019 and 2022.

She is repped by UTA, Tavistock Wood Management, and Anonymous Content.

“The Talamasca” was first reported to be in development at AMC in 2023, with the basic cabler formally greenlighting the show in June 2024. AMC has ordered six episodes, with the show set to go into production in Manchester, England next month. It is slated to premiere on AMC and AMC+ in 2025.

John Lee Hancock and Mark Lafferty serve as executive producers and co-showrunners on “The Talamasca,” with Hancock also set to direct. Mark Johnson also executive produces under his overall deal with AMC Studios, through which he oversees all the shows in the Anne Rice Immortal Universe.