Intro
Recently, I finished reading The Immortal Dark and Eternal Ruin by Tigest Girma. I thought that I did not like vampires, but these books changed my perspective. I must say that I am thoroughly obsessed with Black vampires now. Thus, I want to explore how vampirism morphs when discussed from the Black perspective. This essay will analyze Sinners (2025), The Gilda Stories by Jewelle Gomez, Tigest Girma’s works, and conversations from Black fiction writers. We will explore how Black vampires reshape ideas of power, storytelling, sexuality, and representation. If you all are ready, let’s journey into the dark depths together!
What is Vampirism?
To begin, what exactly are vampires? Different parts of the world have their own variations of vampires. Vampires in 18th century Europe were used to explain diseases like tuberculosis. People who grew pale, lost their appetite, and bled from their mouth were thought to be vampiric. Filipino people have the Manananggal, which is a creature that can separate its torso from its lower body and sucks the blood from women and children (Sinaunang Panahon). The Anishinaabe and Algonquian tribes speak of the Wendigo. This is a cannibalistic creature that has an insatiable urge to feed on human flesh. All these creatures have one thing in common: they are undead creatures that feed on blood. With this groundwork laid out, we can discuss vampires in media.
Over the years, vampires transformed from terrifying creatures to sexy beasts through the power of media. Stories like Carmilla by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu and Dracula by Bram Stoker showed that vampires could use seduction to lure in their victims. The invention of film opened up a new avenue for vampires. Nosferatu is the nastier cousin to Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Nosferatu (1922) is a silent film that truly expressed the horror of vampires. In the early 2000s, the Twilight books renewed people’s love for the creatures. The Twilight film series showed that vampires could be sparkly, sexy, and almost redeemable creatures. It is also worth mentioning that films like What We Do in the Shadows (2014) showed a comedic side to vampirism. Being a vampire can be annoying and gross, and vampire comedies remind us of that. Now, let us delve into Black vampire media.
The Impact of Sinners (2025)
Sinners (2025) is a unique, Black vampire story that re-ignited my fascination with vampire media. Ryan Coogler directed this movie, so it is not surprising that it has been wildly successful. The movie follows twin brothers, Smoke and Stack (Michael B. Jordan), as they fight Klan members, build their community, and fall in love with Mary (Hailee Steinfeld) and Annie (Wunmi Mosaku). The story also follows young Sammie Moore (Miles Canton) as he tries to understand the power of music.
Sinners is not the first Black vampire film, but it did explore how vampirism changes when it comes into contact with different cultures. The vampires in the film shared one another’s thoughts. As Remmick (Jack O’Connell) continues to turn people into vampires, he sees into their minds. One of the reasons why he wanted to turn Sammie is because of the boy’s musical ability. In this story, vampires are a symbol of assimilation, among other things. These vampires take your blood, personhood, identity, and even thoughts from you. You are no longer fully operating as yourself. It all feels like this form of vampirism is quite colonialist, which tracks for a movie set in the 1930s.
What makes Sinners so beautiful is that we see how deeply connected people are despite time and space. There is a scene in the juke joint where Sammie is playing music, and then people from different eras materialize in the space. People from across Africa and Asia wore their traditional garments and danced to his music. The scene emphasizes that music connects people and ties us to our ancestors. The movie felt very Afrofuturist to me, which is one of my favorite genres. Sun Ra spent much of his career creating music and making art that connected Blackness of the past to Blackness in the future. I feel like Sinners illustrated that perfectly. After learning about Sinners, I knew that I had to write about Black vampirism.
Black Vamps: Power
Vampires are beings with great power. Most can fly, have super strength, and control minds. So what makes Black vampires’ power any different? Black people have historically been seen as powerless. This is not to say that people throughout the Black diaspora have been powerless. Black people have built long-lasting empires, designed innovative things, and many have maintained a healthy relationship with nature. Unfortunately, history books and conversations tend to focus on Black suffering and powerlessness.
European colonists and slave traders saw the Black race as inferior. Thomas Jefferson once wrote that Black people were “in memory… equal to the whites; in reason much inferior” (1832, 146). People were bought and sold across the Americas, Africa, and the Caribbean. People were stripped of their personhood, forced to speak the colonizers’ tongue, and treated like less than an animal. On continental Africa, colonialism meant that your way of life had to change to appease the colonial power. Folks had to learn a European language, mined for dangerous materials, lost their homes, and suffered many other atrocities.
Black vampire stories allow Black people to imagine a world where they are not seen as powerless. Instead, they are formidable beings to be reckoned with. They have the power to influence people and get their way. They can overpower their oppressors. Furthermore, they can choose to live a life free of strife because they can stop anyone who gets in their way. In some ways, vampirism allows Black people to imagine a world where they are treated as equals and not ridiculed.
Black Vamps: Griots
Griots are the storytellers of West Africa. Before written histories were globally popularized, oral histories were most common. There were dedicated families and groups who spoke with people and learned their histories. Griots pass down information through storytelling, singing, and poetry. They create captivating stories, so the legend will stick in people’s minds. Frankly, I greatly admire griots because of their mind’s storage capabilities and storytelling prowess. Music and books have had a great impact on my life. Compelling stories and memorable songs have stuck with me for decades. I remember the lullaby that my mom sang to me as a baby. I remember the first book that turned me on to science fiction. Sharing stories is a major part of life. Beyond that, maintaining an oral history is important for informing future generations.
Now, I doubt that most people would automatically associate vampires with griots. What does a bloodsucking humanoid have to do with those who carry history in their throats? When one looks deeper, they might realize that vampires being immortal beings gives them a unique advantage at retaining histories. Vampires often live for centuries. In many pieces of media, vampires keep mementos and stories from their long life.
In Immortal Dark by Tigest Girma, it is revealed that Susenyos has archived items that hold significant value to him. He knows the stories from centuries before, and he shares them with the main character. Stories connect people across time and space. Although Susenyos is no longer with those that he loves, he always has their stories. Music also has the power to transcend time and space. Sinners depicts the connecting power of music beautifully. As Sammie plays in the juke joint, his ancestors surround him because they are all connected by music. After sixty ageless years, Stack the vampire still remembers that night and recalls it fondly to an old Sammie. Black vampires carry the stories of those that time would like to forget. Black vampires remember the ugly chapters in history and the beautiful moments. Because they are unknowingly storytellers, they share those stories with others so that the moments will be immortal like them.
Black Vamps: Sexuality
Vampires are usually associated with four things: blood, bats, pointy teeth, and sensuality. Since the booming popularity of Bram Stoker’s Dracula and Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight, vampirism has been tied to strong sensuality. Vampires lurk in the dark. They usually bite into people’s necks to suck their blood. Usually, vampires in film and television are played by conventionally attractive actors. While Black vampire stories do not shy away from sensuality, they do subvert the conversation.
Black people in media has often been oversexualized. During chattel slavery in the United States, slave owners would base their payments on the perceived sexual proclivity of certain slaves. Mary Grayson, a former slave, remarked that her mother was sold to a Creek man, but because she was too young to “breed,” she was sold to a different man (Federal Writers Project, 1936, pg. 120). Many white scholars at the time wrote why they thought Black people were little more than wild, sexual creatures. Former president Thomas Jefferson wrote that Black men see sex as “an eager desire” instead of “a tender delicate mixture of sentiment and sensation” (1832, pg. 145). That quote was from a book published in Boston in the late 1700s. Black Americans had little to no say in their representation for much of American history. Thankfully, we are able to tell our own stories now.
Black vampire stories push the boundaries of sensuality and sexuality. These stories also show sensuality and Blackness coexisting and not as inextricably tied together. Let me clarify, in Jewelle Gomez’s The Gilda Stories, there are sensual scenes, but many of these scenes are meant to explore connectivity and community. In this story, bodies are not inherently sexual. The processing of turning someone into a vampire resembles breastfeeding, in my opinion. The vampire soothes the newcomer, cuts open both of their chests, and has the newcomer suck out the blood. Then the new vampire is buried in dirt from their homeland. If people only see a nude human body (and in this case, Black female bodies) as sexual, then these scenes feel erotic. But Gomez is showing that we all come from nudity and require it to be born again. This story was also impressive because it is unapologetically queer. Gilda loves women and does not care much for binary gender. In precolonial times, gender and sexuality were more fluid across tribes in Africa (Elnaiem, 2021). Although Gilda was stripped of her ties to precolonial Africa due to chattel slavery, she still felt that certain labels and societal rules were not for her.
Conclusion
In short, Black vampires are cool and subversive. There should be more Black vampire stories written, directed, and created by Black creatives. Vampires are scary, sexy creatures that also have the capacity to be fun and campy. Vampire stories explore what people would do with immortality and an insatiable hunger. Black vampire stories explore those same themes , but they also ask Black people to imagine themselves in a new light. These stories have Black people living without the fear of death, having power over those who hate you, and expressing yourself fully. If you have any recommendations for more Black-centered vampire stories, please leave a comment! Thank you for reading.
Further Reading/Watching
Nosferatu (1922)
Sinners (2025)
Twilight film series (2008-2012)
What We Do in the Shadows (2014)
Dracula by Bram Stoker (1897)
Immortal Dark by Tigest Girma (2024)
Notes on the state of Virginia by Thomas Jefferson (1832)
The Gilda Stories by Jewelle Gomez
Exploring the Myth of the Manananggal in Filipino Folklore from Sinaunang Panahon (April 2025)
The “Deviant” African Genders That Colonialism Condemned by Mohammed Elnaiem (April 2021)
Kai's Cozy Corner 
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