Lili Reinhart, best known for her breakout role on Riverdale, is currently touring the press circuit to promote Prime Video’s adaptation of Ali Hazelwood’s novel The Love Hypothesis. The romantic comedy, which originated as a Star Wars-inspired fan fiction before becoming a bestseller, follows a faux-dating experiment between a chemistry professor and a PhD candidate. While the on-screen story leans heavily into a classic heterosexual romance, Reinhart repeatedly steers conversations toward her own identity, underscoring that the project serves as a platform for broader queer visibility. Photographs from the tour, captured by Emma McIntyre for Getty Images, show the actress fielding questions about representation as much as she discusses plot points.
Openly bisexual, Reinhart has used each interview as an opportunity to signal her desire for more nuanced queer roles. In a recent video segment she remarked, “I’m instantly way more interested in doing a movie if my character is a little gay” adding with a smile, “Because I’m a little gay.” She also read aloud a fan comment that hailed her as one of “the five pillars of bisexuality with preference to women,” which she described as an “honor.” These remarks are not merely personal statements; they function as a subtle lobbying effort, indicating that the actress hopes her next project will feature an explicitly gay narrative.
Reinhart’s push for a lesbian-vampire adaptation
During a candid interview with Hits Radio, the star took the conversation a step further, revealing that she is actively trying to bring a lesbian-vampire novella to the screen. “People are too afraid to make that” she told the host, before issuing a direct challenge to studio executives: “If you work at a studio and are watching this video, I don’t know why you wouldn’t make that in this day and age.” Reinhart’s appeal is framed as a call to action, highlighting the paradox of a market eager for fresh content yet hesitant to fund projects that center queer women in horror or gothic settings. She positioned the prospective film as both a personal passion project and a test of Hollywood’s willingness to embrace riskier narratives.
Potential source: Carmilla (1872) and its legacy
The unidentified work she references is widely believed to be Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu’s 1872 Gothic novella Carmilla which chronicles a young Austrian woman’s encounter with a seductive female vampire. Carmilla has already inspired a cult-favorite web series starring Natasha Negovanlis and Elise Bauman, as well as novel retellings such as Kat Dunn’s Hungerstone. Each iteration adds a modern queer sensibility to the classic tale, proving the story’s adaptability. Yet despite these successes, a full-length feature that places the lesbian vampire at the center of mainstream cinema remains elusive. Reinhart’s interest therefore aligns with a lineage of creators seeking to amplify the “gayer the better” ethos that has kept Carmilla alive across generations.
Industry reluctance and the need for representation
A recent GLAAD report underscored a worrying decline in LGBTQ+ characters across major releases, reinforcing why Reinhart’s advocacy resonates with many industry watchers. The scarcity of queer protagonists, especially in genre films, fuels a perception that studios view such stories as “too niche” or financially risky. By juxtaposing her own experiences on a predominantly straight romantic comedy with a demand for a queer horror narrative, Reinhart exposes a broader inconsistency: studios readily bankroll conventional love stories while sidelining narratives that could diversify their audience. Her statements thus serve as both critique and catalyst, urging decision-makers to recognize that representation can coexist with commercial viability, especially when the source material already boasts a dedicated fanbase.
Fans have already taken to social platforms, urging studios to heed Reinhart’s plea and promising a ready market for a lesbian-vampire film. Comments ranging from “I need the lesbian vampires movie ASAP” to celebratory memes label her a “real bi-icon.” Should a studio finally green-light the project, it would not only expand the catalog of queer genre cinema but also validate Reinhart’s broader mission to see more bisexual and lesbian stories on screen. Until then, her press tour for The Love Hypothesis will continue to double as a rallying ground, reminding Hollywood that queer narratives are not optional extras but essential components of contemporary storytelling.
