Steven Prusakowski
When What We Do in the Shadows ended last year with the poignant “We’ll Meet Again,” it was a bittersweet farewell. The series concluded on a high note, though, unlike its immortal vampires, its journey came to a close. Six hilarious seasons of vampire chaos. One of my personal highlights was interviewing nearly the entire cast over the past few years, but a conversation with Natasia Demetriou had remained elusive – until now.
In the series, Demetriou brought to life Nadja, a fiery vampire whose unfiltered passion, sharp humor, and unapologetic narcissism won over fans. Nadja’s wild energy, biting one-liners, and intense chemistry with Laszlo (Matt Berry) blended comedic brilliance with unexpected depth all while dressed in exquisite period costumes, hair and make-up.
In our Awards Radar interview, Natasia reflected on her time on Shadows, sharing memories like Mark Proskch’ hilarious roast-jokes, her close bond with Berry, her favorite show moments, keeping Nadja’s iconic tartan dress, and the emotional weight of the final scene. This poignant interview, my last with the Shadows cast, felt like a fitting end – unless, perhaps, we’ll meet again.
You can listen to the full interview here or read it below:
Steven Prusakowski: It’s nice to speak with you. I’ve spoken with the rest of the cast. I was at New York Comic Con last year and was disappointed you weren’t there.
Natasia Demetriou: The thing is, if I was there, I would’ve been in some sort of sleep deprivation dimension. You would’ve just got boring anecdotes about the baby, who at that point wasn’t doing much. It would’ve been a huge disappointment.
Steven Prusakowski: I’m sure it’d be fascinating. I’m a father.
Natasia Demetriou: You get it.
Steven Prusakowski: Congratulations on the new addition.
Natasia Demetriou: Thank you. He’s absolutely wonderful.
Steven Prusakowski: That’s fantastic. Let’s get into the show. What was it about What We Do in the Shadows and Nadja that originally made you want to be part of it?
Natasia Demetriou: The film was so good. Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi (series creators) were making incredible, unbelievably funny work. The writers were exciting with an incredible back catalog. It was on FX, which was a channel making really good work. The character was a female vampire, it’s comedy, improvisation was encouraged. After I got the part, they said they’d love my input. It was a dream come true.
Steven Prusakowski: How was Nadja originally pitched to you?
Natasia Demetriou: I got the script and thought it was so funny. The scene with Jeff—she was as mad as a box of frogs. I thought, this is amazing, a female character as mad, funny, and stupid as the male characters. She was married to Laszlo (Matt Berry), which I thought was exciting. I didn’t know Matt Berry was playing Laszlo yet, but a marriage lasting centuries was incredible. In the audition, I drew on my Cypriot roots, stories from my Yaya—my grandma—about growing up in a tiny village on a tiny island. My dad, Greek Cypriot, struggled to pronounce certain words despite living in England so long. I pronounced Jeff as “Jesk” in the audition, and they kept it in the show. That was it.
Steven Prusakowski: What I love about the series is it’s like a box of crayons, all the best crayons are there. Everyone gets to be something, blending together so well. Without one of you, it wouldn’t deliver as well. Your character has spunk, attitude, a real presence in the marriage and the house. What are some favorite characteristics of Nadja you enjoyed playing, and what comic instincts did you bring to her?
Natasia Demetriou: My favorite thing about Nadja is she doesn’t think before she speaks. She just says what she thinks, what she wants, what she believes to be true. That’s refreshing and fun, especially being English, where we’re so polite and repressed. She’s the opposite. In Greek culture, from my family’s experience, everyone screams exactly what they think. There’s no softening. I loved moments where she’d tell Guillermo to shut up or center herself completely, being a selfish, self-serving narcissist with little shame. She has moments where she softens, thinks more deeply, but she’s a passionate character in all aspects, which is unbelievably fun and fulfilling for comedy. A lot of comedy comes from saying what’s inside your head when you shouldn’t.
Steven Prusakowski: She wasn’t limited to being a wife.
Natasia Demetriou: No, she was everything she wanted to be, but she loved being a wife. Everything she did was with complete conviction and passion. In human life, you might do things unsure or bored, but Nadja would say, “This is boring, I’m leaving,” or “I’m not good at this, bye.” That’s so fun.
Steven Prusakowski: It’s great to watch her as a wife.
Natasia Demetriou: She loves Laszlo passionately and feels strongly for him. She’s a narcissist but has love for people, so she’s not a complete evil maniac. She’s got a heart somewhere.
Steven Prusakowski: Your onscreen chemistry with Matt Berry is perfection. When I spoke with him, he couldn’t praise you enough. What makes that couple so enjoyable to watch? There’s a yin-yang dynamic; one doesn’t rely on the other, but you complete each other.
Natasia Demetriou: I love that man with all my heart. We’re both in the UK but had never worked together before. Within 15 minutes, I was like, I’ve hit the jackpot. It can be intimidating to play husband and wife, filming away from home, wondering if the chemistry will work. But instantly, I felt like I’d known him forever, like past lives. He’s a good old English gentleman, like my English uncles and cousins. The pairing was a blessing. Matt’s Laszlo is effortless, saying just enough, hilarious. Nadja’s screaming, ranting, raving. That yin-yang dynamic works.
Steven Prusakowski: You need sexual and comedic chemistry to pull it off, and you both nail it. They’re perfect together, like peanut butter and jelly, a joy to watch from minute one.Natasia Demetriou: As the years went on, I grew more in love with Matt. It was a pleasure. Off-screen and on-screen, we got closer as friends and confidants. In later series, with drama in the marriage, it was lovely to tell him how much I loved him because that’s how I felt.
Steven Prusakowski: That’s very sweet.
Natasia Demetriou: Sorry, I’m being soppy.
Steven Prusakowski: Not at all. You’re choking me up at noon in New York. What other characters were your favorites to be scene partners with?
Natasia Demetriou: Mark Proksch. He’s the funniest, born with a funny bone. I love to laugh, and he’d make me die laughing. We didn’t get to do much together, so it felt special. Colin Robinson’s mundane, flat, dry energy contrasted with Nadja’s all-over-the-place energy, like red wine and room-temperature water. That was always funny to play off. He’d roast me, whispering in scenes, “The crew’s complaining about your smell.” I’m so gullible, I’d believe him, then realize he was joking. That made me laugh so much.
Steven Prusakowski: That’s fantastic. I didn’t expect that. The last couple of seasons, the vamps got out into the world, and for Nadja, that meant getting a job. What was it like going beyond the Staten Island house, taking your characters to new places and learning new things?
Natasia Demetriou: I loved it. It was amazing to play in other scenarios. We were comfortable in the house, the vampire “family.” New scenarios meant more guest stars, working with talents like Tim Heidecker and Jeremy Irons. In the recent season, that was so fun. Seeing Kayvan Novak or Harvey Guillén (both whom were my guests on TV Topics Podcast) who had the look of someone living in a vampire house for decades, in a modern office with greys, creams, and blues—that contrast was endlessly hilarious. Seeing Matt as Laszlo ponce around a modern mall was funny just as an image. It was challenging and fun to work out how Nadja would react in these scenarios. The art department was amazing; every new setup felt like a real office, so cool as a TV and film fan.
Steven Prusakowski: They were sore thumbs. In the pilot, the guy in the park refers to Laszlo as Dickens’ Ghost of Christmas Past. In the office, they’re slightly off, yet treated as such, despite being standing out. What was it like getting into those costumes, hair, and makeup every day to become Nadja?
Natasia Demetriou: I loved it. When I do other work without being in drag, I feel naked. Shadows spoiled me. Costumes hold you differently, make you walk differently. The big wig made me stand up straight, think about posture. I feel stressed when people say, “Just look like you.” I want my 12 layers of makeup. It meant working closely with costume, makeup, and hair people, sitting in the chair, building close connections with the crew. They were insanely talented, with great crew retention—same people season after season. Building those relationships was fulfilling. We’d block shoot, so every block had new costumes. I’d get excited for a new dress at the end of each block.
Steven Prusakowski: Did you get to keep anything?
Natasia Demetriou: They were so generous. I got to keep a bunch, including the tartan dress from episode one of series four, the most beautiful dress I’ve ever worn, very Vivienne Westwood vibes. When Laszlo sent us off in coffins, the doll had a matching one. I love it so much. I don’t have a daughter, but maybe one day, and it’ll be a dream to let her play in those costumes.
Steven Prusakowski: That’s incredible. Any favorite episodes or moments from the series?
Natasia Demetriou: The first time I met Jeff (Jake McDorman), when I made Jemaine laugh while directing, was special. I had imposter syndrome, and his laughter made me feel good. The ghost episode was incredible, so fun to film, meeting the doll, which was only meant for that episode but became a character. Jackie Daytona was incredible to watch. The human music group episode with Matt was so fun, improvising stupid songs that didn’t make the cut. Series four, the nightclub stuff, Nadja’s wedding, looking at a room full of vampires, humans, the Baron (Doug Jones), the Sire (—that was insane. The big box store and Atlantic City episodes, staying in Niagara Falls, were so funny. In the final season, the episode with Mark, where Colin and Nadja go on a date. The final episode, singing “We’ll Meet Again,” was the last scene we filmed, surreal, sad, happy, celebratory. The twilight baseball game in heavy snow, with snow piling on me and Matt’s heads, was incredible. It was a wild, fun, amazing ride.
Steven Prusakowski: So many great memories, thank you for them. It’s one of my favorite series of all time. I still recommend it, and people come back thanking me. Thank you for your work, and I look forward to what you do next. Congratulations on the family addition and the Emmy nomination for the show. Well-deserved.
Natasia Demetriou: Thank you. We really appreciate the endless support from the media and press, which helped get it to more people. We were never unaware of that.
Steven Prusakowski: This comedy is immortal. I look forward to watching it again and again.
Watch all of Natasia’s work on all six seasons of What We Do In the Shadows streaming on Hulu.
Also check out my interviews with the rest of the cast on TV Topics podcasts.
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