The Vampire Diaries may be dead and buried on a network level, but hope remains alive for a continuation of the fan-favorite series. For the 15th anniversary, showrunner Julie Plec spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about a potential resurgence for the series. Premiering in 2009, The CW’s whirlwind romance set hearts aflutter with the love triangle between Elena Gilbert (Nina Dobrev) and two vampire brothers. The show would go on for eight seasons and spawned two spin-offs that came to an official end in 2022. But thanks to streaming, The Vampire Diaries continues to find life, and everyone with a pulse wants to know if there will be more content. According to Plec, anything is possible.
“Paul Wesley and I were literally just texting two days ago because he saw the news about the Twilight animated show and he’s like, ‘Why aren’t we doing this?’ And I said, ‘Good question. We should do this.’ There’s so many opportunities to keep this world alive and keep this franchise going. For me, it’s just about the right idea and the right time, like I’m game.”
Paul Wesley was one corner of the human-vampire love triangle in the role of sensitive but bloodthirsty Stefan Salvatore. The first to fall in love with Elena, Stefan chases his love for her as well as redemption for his ripper tendencies. But as all fans remember from the series finale in 2017, Stefan doesn’t survive the events of the show. That makes many wonder what Plec could have in store for the future.
What Would a ‘The Vampire Diaries’ Movie Entail?
As passionate as the creators of The Vampire Diaries are, Plec admits there are some difficulties with bringing the series back. Most of the characters die by the end of the series, making a return of the original characters a little difficult. There is also the issue of the actors’ ages. Long-form stories like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel struggle with the aging of characters who are supposed to be immortal. Plec acknowledges these setbacks. Not the first of which was The CW cruelly canceling the spin-off Legacies before its time. The co-creator has always been upfront about wanting to tell more stories and continues to support that.
“I personally know that there is a story that I would like to tell if anyone will have me eventually, so we shall see,” Plec said. Wesley’s opinion on the matter is an easy fix. Making an animated film a la Twilight or a continuation would take away the obvious pitfalls of bringing back vampires. There is also the consideration of continuing with the next generation. At the end of the series, Elena marries Stefan’s brother, Damon (Ian Somerhalder), who has taken the cure for vampirism. As humans, aging is not an issue, and Legacies establishes they have a daughter named Stefanie. The irony of all ironies could entail Stefanie getting pulled into a world that her parents desperately tried to escape. While the plot is in doubt, what isn’t is the fanbase. Any viewer of the show would happily go back to the world of Mystic Falls. Until that happens, The Vampire Diaries is available to stream on Max.
