Live. Laugh. Blood. Noah Segan’s vampire comedy ‘BLOOD RELATIVES’ drives emotional stakes into hearts

Preston Barta // Features Editor

BLOOD RELATIVES

Thirsty for a vampire movie with more of a sweet tooth? Open your heart to Noah Segan’s Blood Relatives – a charming, playful and reverberant father-daughter road comedy that’s now streaming on Shudder.

Laced with the punk-rock energy of Near Dark and Raising Arizona‘s comedy and good vibes, the film follows vampiric drifter Francis (Segan). While he may be a century (and some change) old, he looks like a 35-year-old Fonzie with piercing canines and Jedi mind tricks. But trust me, these are the joys you’re looking for.

One day, while riding around in his beat-up muscle car, a teenager named Jane (an excellent Victoria Moroles) appears on his heels. She claims to be his daughter, and she has the chompers to prove it. They hit the road together when things get a little hairy during their discoveries of who they are and who they are to each other. Maybe they’ll sink their teeth into family life or leave this strange encounter in the rearview.

Making his feature directorial debut, Segan (actor in Knives Out and Looper) enters like a seasoned pro, crafting a script packed with thoughtful dialogue that’s more focused on the connections between characters and less on things that go boom. However, he doesn’t lose sight of the exciting markings of the genre, such as super strength and neck dives. (Look out for one amazing Falcon Punch thrown in a hotel room.) 

Blood Relatives has the swagger and feel-good fun to turn your feast-timed entertainment up to 11. It’s a true horror-comedy treasure. 

Q&A

Pepper your week’s fun by watching our interviews with Segan and Moroles below. They chat with us about character reactions, best movie dads, and what went into pulling off one of the most technically astonishing scenes of the film. Enjoy!

Noah Segan (director, writer and star)

Victoria Moroles (star and associate producer)