One of the very first days on set of the pilot of True Blood was shot at Merlotte’s Bar. That and Sookie’s house were the only real sets we had before we were picked up. Most else was out on location. I was there to shoot Vampire Bill’s entrance into the bar, but before that, they were shooting the sequence where the audience get to see the girls. There was a general feeling of excitement like few I’ve ever experienced. It was almost as amazing as our Merlotte’s, but not quite - They didn’t have a Lafayette. In the scene that was being shot that day, Lafayette, a male cross-dressing short order cook in the show, was expounding on his theory of men’s fear of the female anatomy.. specifically, the vagina. ‘I know every man whether Straight, Gay or George MotherFuckin’ Bush is afraid of the pussy..’ I’m not sure I have ever seen, before or since, people crowd around a monitor at video village with their hands clapped to their mouths from shock, sheer laughter and wonder as the actor playing Lafayette jiggled and shook and humped the butchers block to get his point across. it was completely original, funny, sardonic, risqué and brilliant. All of the above. I turned to Alan when the scene was finished… ‘you can’t kill him!’ (Lafayette’s death at the of the first book is the cliffhanger that leads to Book 2… the writers had to find a way to keep him in the show) Nelsan Ellis was the only actor in the 7 years of True Blood whom Alan allowed to improvise. Actually, it wasn't that Alan allowed him to do it, it was more that when Nelsan inhabited the world of Lafayette, he COULDN’T STOP himself. In actuality Nelsan was quiet, smart, thoughtful, warm and kind. He taught all of us that intent and courage and fearlessness and freedom are the aspects of playing make-believe that spark the corners of the room where the dark is most impenetrable; to shine a light on those corners within ourselves is the very reason we go back time & time again to Movies and TV shows & Theatre. To see that Spark ignited. Nelsan had that electricity in an abundance I have rarely seen. I can’t believe he’s gone. #RIPNelsan
