- Secretary
- Waitress
Unnamed Mother - Mother
Unnamed Vampire - Step-Father
Eric Northman - Maker
Pam Swynford de Beaufort Vampire sister
Nora Gainesborough - Vampire aunt †
Tara Thornton - Vampire niece †
Colin - Vampire nephew
- Camp Burrell Doctor
- Hep-V Vamps
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- "I am dead and you're still overprotective! Isn't that just perfect?"
- ―Willa Burrell, to her father, Truman Burrell[src]
Willa Burrell was a character on the HBO original series True Blood. Played by American co-starring actress Amelia Rose Blaire, Willa makes her debut on the episode "The Sun" in the series' sixth season. Playing a recurring role through the series' sixth and seventh seasons, she is the daughter of former Louisiana Governor Truman Burrell and the progeny of vampire Eric Northman. Willa has long clashed with her father over vampire rights, and was last seen on the series' finale episode, "Thank You", in the series' seventh, and final, season.
Biography
Background
Willa is the only child of Truman Burrell and his ex-wife. It's presumed that she was born or grew up in Louisiana as it's the state where her father would eventually become governor. Willa's mother had an affair with a male vampire, and ended her marriage to be with him. While Truman openly resented vampires and wanted to take away their basic rights through politics, Willa was much more sympathetic as she knew her father's actions most likely came from the heartache of her mother leaving.
Season 6
"The Sun"
Willa is first seen handing her father some files in his office. She asks him if she can go out, but he deems it a bad idea in the current climate and forbids her.
When Willa takes off her anti-glamour lenses later that night, she notices her window is still open. When she goes to close it, Eric Northman flies up to her window, then glamours her so that she will invite him in.("The Sun")
"You're No Good"
While Eric is contemplating killing her, Willa tells him that if he doesn't, she will tell him about the experiments on vampires carried out by her father. Interested by this, Eric abducts her and the two leave before Truman's troops burst into her room.
Eric takes Willa to Fangtasia, where he meets up with Pamela Swynford de Beaufort and Tara Thornton, two of his vampire descendants. Pam suggests killing Willa in retaliation for the destruction of Fangtasia carried out by Truman, and Tara wants the group to glamour her, both of which Eric refuses. The two later leave and Eric talks alone with Willa. She tells him all she knows about the camp where vampires have been taken and experimented on. She denies knowing its location, having learned all she knows by "sniffing around" rather than being told of it directly.
Knowing Fangtasia isn't safe anymore, Eric leads the group to Ginger's apartment, where he instructs Ginger to give him and Willa her coffin to spend the day.
While he's sleeping, Willa removes the tape from her mouth and tries to have a conversation with Eric. She tells him that her mother left her father after having an affair with a vampire, which prompted his hatred of vampires, and currently lives with said vampire.
Ginger wakes Eric the next night when Truman calls Eric's phone, apologizing for answering. Willa is gagged again and left in the custody of Tara while Eric, Pam and Ginger talk on the phone in the living room. Upon hearing how Eric is going to kill Willa eventually, Tara pities the girl and escapes with her through the window.("You're No Good")
"At Last"
When Eric and Pam find Tara, she tells them Willa is at the Fairground I-20. Eric goes there and Willa waits for him on the carousel. She tells him that she hates what her father is doing to the vampires and she is on their side. Eric ask her if she really wants to help them and she says yes. He decides to turn Willa into a vampire. When she wakes, she is excited and asks Eric what they are going to do now. He tells her to go to her father so he can see his own child as a vampire. Willa thinks Eric only uses her for revenge but he tells her the truth, he made her vampire so she can prove to her father that they are not "monsters", that they were once human. He also tells her that she is one out of two humans he ever turned.
When Willa goes home, her father is terrified. She tells him everything Eric had said to her. In the end, she gets overcome by blood lust and tries to bite him. Sarah, who was in the room, shoots her and tells Truman to take her to the Camp.("At Last")
"F**k the Pain Away"
Tara sees Willa being escorted into the camp by an LAVTF guard. The guard tells Tara that Willa is a special case due to her relationship to the Governor, and that she will be kept segregated from the general inmate population. The guard takes Willa to the cell and begins making sexually suggestive comments to her. She rebuffs him, and the guard leaves the room after telling her that her father no longer cares for her. Truman speaks to Eric through an intercom and reveals that he has sent Willa to the camp, much to Eric's disbelief. ("F**k the Pain Away")
"Don't You Feel Me"
Burrell visits his daughter Willa in her cell who demands to be put in general population. Burrell claims he has kept her segregated to keep her safe. She asks him if he really cares so much about her then he will place her in general population with her own kind. Burrell states vampires are not her kind and he will find a way to "cure" her. Enraged, Willa tells her father he is trying to play God and if he is not going to cure everyone then she wants no part. She adds that she is going through many changes she can't understand. That's why she needs to be with her own kind, to learn how to be a vampire.
Tara sits with Willa playing connect four when Willa gets a sick feeling. Tara reveals to the newly turned Willa that Eric is summoning her and she needs to go to him. Tara teaches Willa how to glamour, and Willa gets the attention of a sleazy guard asking to speak with him alone under the pretense of sex. Eric is watching Nora weakening as the door to their cell opens. Willa and the glamoured guard come in and attack a woman doctor who was watching them. Eric puts on the guard uniform, Nora puts on the doctor coat, and they begin their escape. Eric says they must get Pam before leaving the Camp and Willa insists they get Tara and Jessica as well. As they hit a door Eric tells Willa and Nora to wait there for a moment. He goes ahead on his own and finds the part of camp that is producing the Tru Blood. Eric looks around seeing the Tru Blood being laced with Hepatitis V. Trying to maintain his composure, Eric heads back to where he left Nora and Willa stunned by what he has just found.("Don't You Feel Me")
"In the Evening"
Eric tells Willa she must stay at the camp and warn the others to not drink the Tru Blood and he carries Nora out managing to escape on a leaving contaminated Tru Blood Semi. Willa, finds Pam in solitary but she is not chained up and Pam admits its because the psychiatrist likes her. Willa tells her that Eric sent her and told her to not drink the Tru Blood because it has Hepatitis V inside it and explains to her it's a new fatal strain. Pam tells her to tell only to Tara and Jessica about the Tru Blood and no one else to make sure the humans don't realize they have caught on to their plan. Willa asks if Pam needs help getting into general population and Pam tells her to just get herself back to general population and she will get herself out of segregation. Willa leaves and dumps the doctor jacket and severed limb before sneaking back into general population.("In the Evening")
"Dead Meat"
Willa and Tara try to figure out a plan to free a captive Jason from the clutches of Violet. While in General Pop 1; Willa tried to convince Violet to share Jason, with the latter angrily refusing. Willa is there while Pam and Tara have a confrontation with Violet. The altercation came when Tara told them not to tell Violet about the contaminated Blood. Leading to all of them being sent to a chamber with Jessica, Steve, and James. With Jessica telling them they will meet the sun in there ending with all of them looking up.("Dead Meat")
"Life Matters"
Sarah is walking upstairs to the top of the building holding Willa, Pam, Tara, Violet, Jessica, James and Steve Newlin. She turns the mechanism to open the ceiling letting light into the building but as she does so Bill is already there feeding the group his blood. Eric, Jason, Ginger and Dr.Finn find themselves in the next room watching the scene through the two way mirrors. Willa becomes high from the blood and relishes in the sunlight.
The vampires make it outside and begin to destroy all of the contaminated Tru Blood. And leaves the grounds with the other vampires joyously.("Life Matters")
"Radioactive"
After Pam leaves to look for Eric, Tara and Willa are talking at the vampire-human social at Bellefleur's Bar and Grill. Tara's mother interrupts their conversation and asks Tara to meet her in the barn. After a little convincing, Tara follows her mother and says bye to Willa.("Radioactive")
Season 7
She helps Lettie Mae heal with her vampire blood and later helps Reverend Daniels take her home and she is upset over Tara's death, claiming that she has nowhere to live since it will be weird to live in the same place as she's supposed to with Tara, so Reverend Daniels offers her a place under the church because it's dark and secluded, which she accepts."I Found You"
Willa is awoken by Lettie Mae, after she intentionally burns her hand while cooking, to drink Willa's blood to heal. When Willa is awoken she at first attacks Lettie Mae then stops apologizing saying she's never been woken up during the day before. At first Willa refuses to give Lettie her blood because Daniels told her not to do so. But when Lettie shows Willa how bad the burn is eventually Willa gives Lettie blood. It's then the hallucinations begin again.("I Found You")
"Fire in the Hole"
Willa follows a drugged up Lettie Mae into the church where Daniels is talking with Sam Merlotte. Daniels tells Sam to leave as Daniels tries to get his wife under control again. Back inside the house once Daniels gets Lettie Mae to bed he has Willa feed from him while he tells her the story of his past, and how Lettie "saved himself". Daniels goes to tell Willa she's a sweet girl but at the end of the day all she is to Lettie Mae is a bottle of Captain Morgans and then sadly rescinds Willa's Invitation to his home.("Fire in the Hole")
Personality
Contrary to her father, Willa is a peaceful person. She does not believe in violence and does not agree with her father's current agenda. Unlike her father, she doesn't hate vampires.
Despite their different views, Willa would never harm her father, and truly cares for him. She is concerned with his safety, particularly in light of current events. Willa is intelligent and is shown to be capable of saving herself from almost being killed by Eric Northman by offering him fresh intel on her father. Willa is very similar to her mother, who ran off with a vampire. Truman hopes his daughter won't fall into the hands of vampires and has her heavily guarded, even refusing to allow her to leave the house without his permission.
Powers and Abilities
Willa possesses the normal powers and weaknesses of a vampire and will retain the appearance and health of a young woman. She has an infinite lifespan and cannot die by natural human causes such as disease or old age. She also possesses superhuman speed and strength, though she is weaker in strength than her elders, such as Jessica and even Tara. Willa's vision has also enhanced. She is able to see things in the dark and with more vibrant colors.("At Last")
Tara taught her the common vampire ability to glamour humans, for which she seems to have a natural talent.("Don't You Feel Me")
As a young vampire, Willa has a low level of self-control. After having already fed, she was unable to resist feeding from her own father.
She drank the blood of Bill Compton to be saved from the True Death. Because of that she gained the ability to daywalk. Warlow's death however, stripped this ability from her.
She can be killed by a stake through the heart, decapitation, massive bodily damage, heart extraction or destruction, massive blood loss, sunlight, UV-light, fire, Hepatitis D and Hepatitis V.("Life Matters")
Notes
- Willa was turned by Eric to show her father that vampires were once human and not monsters. Her father was torn, but was not able to abandon his war. He retaliated by forcing Eric to watch how Nora suffers from Hep V.
- When Willa mentions that her mother left her father after having an affair with her vampire boyfriend, the affair itself had to have occurred when Willa was still a teenager as the existence of vampires did not become public to humans until 2006.
Gallery
Images
Appearances
Season six appearances | |||
"Who Are You, Really?" | "The Sun" | "You're No Good" | "At Last" |
"F**k the Pain Away" | "Don't You Feel Me" | "In the Evening" | "Dead Meat" |
"Life Matters" | "Radioactive" |
Season seven appearances | |||
"Jesus Gonna Be Here" | "I Found You" | "Fire in the Hole" | "Death is Not the End" |
"Lost Cause" | "Karma" | "May be the Last Time" | "Almost home" |
"Love is to Die" | "Thank You" |