Netflix's upcoming vampire hunter drama First Kill unveiled a new teaser highlighting the series' LGBTQ+ themes and its central star-crossed romance.
Following its debut during the streaming service's Geeked Week showcase, the official Netflix YouTube channel uploaded an exclusive clip from the new series. The video sees young vampire Juliette Fairmont, played by Sarah Catherine Hook, sharing a moment of passion with Imani Lewis' budding monster hunter Calliope Burns.
Created by V. E. Schwab, arguably best known for Vicious, a 2013 novel about superpowers gone wrong, First Kill is based on Schwab's young adult short story of the same name. The series pits the Fairmont family of vampires against the monster slaying Burns. As the show's official synopsis reads, "When it's time for teenage vampire Juliette to make her first kill so she can take her place among a powerful vampire family, she sets her sights on a new girl in town named Calliope. But much to Juliette's surprise, Calliope is a vampire hunter, from a family of celebrated slayers. Both find that the other won't be so easy to kill and, unfortunately, way too easy to fall for…"
First Kill is far from the first series to feature complicated LGBTQ+ romances amidst the backdrop of monster-hunting antics. Likely the most famous of these is Buffy the Vampire Slayer's Willow Rosenberg, played by Alyson Hannigan, whose tragic relationship with fellow witch Tara Maclay, portrayed by Amber Benson, was of prominent focus at multiple points throughout the series. Willow and Tara have even impacted worlds well beyond the original television series, with their daughter Thessaly having found herself at the center of the events of the Buffy the Last Vampire Slayer comic book series.
First Kill's upcoming premiere comes on the heels of another LGBTQ+ teen romance series: Heartstopper. The Netflix series is based on a series of graphic novels by Alice Oseman and has been lauded by audiences as touching on many of the same themes as shows such as Euphoria without overtly relying on tragedy to carry its narrative. Alongside First Kill's star-crossed leads, the series' cast includes Hamilton and The Finest star Aubin Wise alongside Emmy-nominated Lost star Elizabeth Mitchell as two senior members of the warring families. The full cast list for First Kill was announced in May 2021.
First Kill premieres on Netflix on June 10.
Source: Netflix
