Tricia Helfer Discusses ‘Van Helsing,’ ‘Creepshow,’ and Her Return to ‘Lucifer’ [Exclusive Interview]

Fans will recognize Tricia Helfer from her role as Number Six in Battlestar Galactica her roles on Burn Notice and Lucifer, and maybe even from her work on several Hallmark Christmas movies.

Soon, she’ll be gracing television screens again with her performance as female Dracula on Van Helsing, the Syfy series that reimagines the story of a vampire hunter. 

I recently spoke with Helfer about playing the iconic vampire, her appearance in Shudder’s Creepshow, and her upcoming return to Lucifer. 

Helfer never imagined that she’d be playing the iconic vampire. In fact, when the role came to her it was titled differently. 

“When I first got the offer, it came in as The Dark One,” said Helfer. “I thought okay, what’s the Dark One?”

She recalled reading the moment when her character is first introduced, which on the seventh episode of the season. “I’m reading it along and she turns and says, ‘You’re master, Dracula.’ And I think I might have squealed!” 

After Helfer was cast, she did some research about the vampire’s history but most of her work focused on Van Helsing itself. In finding her version of Dracula, Helfer opted not to watch any of the previous Dracula movies. 

“With Van Helsing, it’s a reimagining of the brand, so it’s about fitting into the world that we’re creating, and I didn’t want to go back and try to watch some of the performances of some of the big films and things that have been done over the years, because I just didn’t want to then subconsciously try to copy something,” Helfer explained.

Van Helsing‘s Dracula has a very unique look that Helfer was excited by. The look that she was presented with was on-par with what she’d imagined a female Dracula to look like. 

“I was concerned, I didn’t want to be, to my knowledge, the first female Dracula, and go in and be all vampy. The character is vampy enough in that [she’s] is all-powerful, so it lends itself to that kind of grandness anyway. I didn’t want to go in with long flowy locks and red lips like a femme fatale,”

“Some of the images they sent me right away were more of an androgynous look, and I kind of always saw her a little bit more creature-ish than femme fatale,” she continued.

While Helfer’s Dracula is sure to shake things up, the plot is hard to talk about without giving too much away. However, she was able to tease a little bit about where her character comes in. 

“My first episode, I interact predominantly with Vanessa and Sam, and a couple of other characters in the scene. She’s just released and she’s taking in what has happened in the world and not understanding what’s been going on,” Helfer explained.

She also teased that her story arc will involve two of the season’s new characters, played by Nicole Muñoz and Keeya King. 

Recently, Helfer also made an appearance on Creepshow Season 1 Episode 4, “The Companion/Lydia Layne’s Better Half.”

“I read it, and I hadn’t seen the original 1980s movie, but I’ve since gone back and watched them and I thought they were fantastic. And I’ve always been a fan of Greg Nicotero’s work, so it was just an easy yes,” Helfer said.  

Lydia Layne’s storyline follows a woman’s descent into madness after an accident and a series of wrong decisions. 

“It’s sort of modeled in some ways off of The Hitchhiker from the original movie,” she explained. 

Some fans might remember that Helfer played Charlotte, the Devil’s mother on Lucifer Seasons 2 and 3. Charlotte died in Season 3, but a TV Line exclusive teased that her character would be back for the show’s final season on Netflix. 

“I think it’s going to surprise audiences. Of course, I’m just completely tickled and excited to be back. I had so much fun filming those two seasons.”

While the details of Charlotte’s return are being kept under wraps Helfer was able to tease a little bit about what fans could expect from Mom’s return. “I think from the picture that was released and some of the behind-the-scenes pictures on some of the cast’s Instagrams and such, there is a period aspect to it. I’m getting to play in a different costume and different style, so it’s been really fun.”

“I think it’s gonna surprise the fans because it is really a departure,” Helfer said. “I will say, what Kevin Alejandro is doing on this episode is just fantastic, it’s amazing. It’s going to be really really funny, I think.”

Fans said goodbye to Charlotte on Lucifer Season 3 Episode 23, “Quintessential Deckerstar,” when she was shot by a bullet intended to kill Amenadiel. She is then carried to Heaven after Amenadiel’s wings came back. Helfer talked a bit about that ending for the character.

“That death scene with Charlotte was so beautifully written and filmed. I couldn’t have asked for a better end to the character, and send-off from the show. It really resonated with fans. I hear all the time about how that just broke people. It was a beautifully done ending to the character for sure,” Helfer reflected. 

Helfer is known for her role in the 2004 TV series Battlestar Galactica where she played various versions of Number Six, one of twelve Cylon models. The reimagined series, created by Ronald D. Moore, ended almost ten years ago, but Helfer’s found herself revisiting the world recently. 

“I’ve actually kind of been living in the world again for the last year and a half because I’ve been doing a podcast called Battlestar Galacticast with my co-host Marc Bernardin who covered the show for Entertainment Weekly during its entire run,” Helfer explained. 

The podcast, in partnership with SYFY Wire, is an episode-by-episode rewatch of the series. To date, they’ve released episodes covering the miniseries and the first and second seasons with two seasons left to cover. 

“It’s been really fun for me to go back and watch,” Helfer said. “There are so many things that I’ve forgotten. I was like, ‘Oh I completely forgot that!’ and I am really struck by what a good show it was.” 

Last month, NBC announced that it would be rebooting Battlestar Galactica once again on its forthcoming streaming platform, Peacock. This reboot will be helmed by Mr. Robot creator, Sam Esmail, and has the blessing of Ronald D. Moore.

While not much has been released for the intentions of the new reboot, there is some trepidation that it might be too soon.

“I won’t lie, it feels a little odd, because to me it doesn’t seem like it was that long ago. But I guess it actually is. To my knowledge, none of us are involved with it. It’s kind of a side story,” Helfer noted. “At least I think that’s how Sam [Esmail] has described it. He’s a great creator and showrunner, and I am sure what he’ll create will be fantastic.”

Outside of all the science fiction roles Helfer has also done several Hallmark Christmas movies. She’s currently filming a new one for the holiday season. It’s a departure from the roles she normally takes, but she’s seen a lot of engagement from fans.

“I would get kind of taken by surprise by how [many] fans on Twitter or Instagram or even at science fiction conventions, [say] they love the films I’ve done on Hallmark.”

You can catch Tricia Helfer on Van Helsing Fridays at 10/9c.

*Featured image credit: Manfred Baumann

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