>>89307798Interview
Zcat6: Regarding Vlad, was there any inspiration or anyone you thought of, real or fictional, when developing Vlad's character? I also heard Plasmius was originally only going to be a vampire. When did you decide to merge Vlad Masters and Plasmius together?
Butch Hartman: Yes. Vlad was originally going to be a vampire- "plasmius" is based on "Plasma" which is another name for "Blood" - but that kind of character borders on "occultic" and I - and Nickelodeon - refuse to have anything in my shows regarding that kind of overtly, occultic stuff. (Imagine, here I am doing two shows: One based on magic and one based on ghosts! We really had to walk a fine line on both. Sheesh). So it was decided to make Vlad a "ghost". And, also, by "ghost" I mean, a guy with special powers like Danny. Remember: in "Danny Phantom" our ghosts are not the disembodied spirits of dead people. Oh no no. They're "monsters/creatures" from a mysterious dimension. Although we never say that out loud, that's the slant we take. Get it? We just call them ghosts because it's easier.