True Blood season 5

The fifth season of the HBO supernatural drama series True Blood premiered on June 10, 2012 and features 12 episodes, bringing the series total to 60. It picks up right after the events of season four. It is loosely based on the fifth book in The Southern Vampire Mysteries series, Dead as a Doornail, but incorporates much more of the following books than the previous seasons have.

Main cast

 * Anna Paquin as Sookie Stackhouse
 * Stephen Moyer as Bill Compton
 * Sam Trammell as Sam Merlotte
 * Ryan Kwanten as Jason Stackhouse
 * Rutina Wesley as Tara Thornton
 * Alexander Skarsgård as Eric Northman
 * Christopher Meloni as Roman Zimojic
 * Chris Bauer as Andy Bellefleur
 * Kristin Bauer van Straten as Pam Swynford De Beaufort
 * Lauren Bowles as Holly Cleary
 * Valentina Cervi as Salome Agrippa
 * Nelsan Ellis as Lafayette Reynolds
 * Scott Foley as Patrick Devins
 * Janina Gavankar as Luna Garza
 * Lucy Griffiths as Nora Gainesborough
 * Todd Lowe as Terry Bellefleur
 * Joe Manganiello as Alcide Herveaux
 * Michael McMillian as Steve Newlin
 * Denis O'Hare as Russell Edgington
 * Jim Parrack as Hoyt Fortenberry
 * Carrie Preston as Arlene Fowler Bellefleur
 * Deborah Ann Woll as Jessica Hamby

Special guest cast

 * Kevin Alejandro as Jesus Velasquez
 * William Sanderson as Bud Dearborn
 * Alfre Woodard as Ruby Jean Reynolds
 * Adina Porter as Lettie Mae Daniels

Guest cast

 * Carolyn Hennesy as Rosalyn Harris
 * Peter Mensah as Kibwe Akinjide
 * Giles Matthey as Claude Crane
 * Dale Dickey as Martha Bozeman
 * Louis Herthum as JD Carson
 * Christopher Heyerdahl as Dieter Braun
 * John Rezig as Deputy Kevin Ellis
 * Jamie Gray Hyder as Danielle
 * Tina Majorino as Molly
 * Kelly Overton as Rikki Naylor
 * Chloe Noelle as Emma Garza
 * Jessica Clark as Lilith
 * Camilla Luddington as Claudette Crane
 * Jacob Hopkins as Alexander Drew
 * Brendan McCarthy as Nate
 * Tanya Wright as Deputy Kenya Jones
 * John Billingsley as Mike Spencer
 * Emma Greenwell as Claudia Crane
 * Robert Patrick as Jackson Herveaux
 * Patricia Bethune as Jane Bodehouse
 * Tara Buck as Ginger
 * Allan Hyde as Godric
 * Dale Raoul as Maxine Fortenberry
 * Aaron Christian Howles as Rocky Cleary
 * Keram Malicki-Sánchez as Elijah Stormer
 * Noah Matthews as Wade Cleary
 * Alec Gray as Coby Fowler
 * Mariana Klaveno as Lorena Krasiki
 * Laurel Weber as Lisa Fowler
 * Erica Gimpel as Faerie Elder

Production
True Blood was officially renewed for a fifth season on August 11, 2011.

In February, 2012 it was announced that creator Alan Ball would be stepping down as showrunner at the end of the fifth season. Ball will continue on as executive producer in a more advisory role and leave the day-to-day production of the series to others. "Because of the fantastic cast, writers, producers and crew, with whom I have been lucky enough to work these past five years, I know I could step back and the show will continue to thrive," said Ball in a statement.

Series co-star Stephen Moyer made his directorial debut with the eighth episode of season five, titled "Somebody That I Used to Know." D.E.B.S. writer/director and former The L Word producer Angela Robinson has joined the writing staff. She wrote episodes five and eleven.

Series co-star Rutina Wesley confirmed that the character Tara would be returning.