The fourth season of What We Do in the Shadowshas been airing for a few weeks now, delighting fans of silly vampire antics and Blade-inspired vampire nightclubs. The mockumentary horror comedy has found a passionate fan base in the States and has been nominated for 17 Emmys.
The popularity of the show was a surprise to one of its lead stars, Matt Berry, who plays the perpetually hot and bothered vampire Laszlo Cravensworth. Stuck in the United Kingdom (where WWDITS is not nearly as popular) during the COVID-19 lockdown, he was insulated from the show’s popularity stateside.
Polygon spoke with Berry in late June, when the star shared his discovery of the show’s popularity on a recent trip to Los Angeles.
“I’m quite kind of slow to it all,” Berry told Polygon. “It wasn’t until I was in Los Angeles two weeks ago that I realized how successful the show actually was, because it’s moderately successful in the U.K., to put it kind of politely.”
It was one part noticing billboards for the show, and many parts people shouting things at him on the street.
“When I went [to LA], it’s like,Oh, shit, this is quite a thing,” Berry said. “There’s billboards everywhere. You know, people shout on the street and that kind of thing.
“It’s either ‘Bat!’or ‘Laszlo!’Mostly ‘Bat!’”
“Bat!” is one of the more popular Laszlo-isms, and has a funny little origin story that Berry shared with us in the same conversation. And if it wasn’t for that little catchphrase and some strategically placed billboards, he still might not know about the show’s considerable popularity.
For more What We Do in the Shadows content, check out what the cast had to say when asked about their favorite vampire movies, books, and TV.
New episodes of What We Do in the
Read more on polygon.com