Nina Dobrev and Ian Somerhalder And Paul Wesley |
'The Vampire Diaries' Why Nina Dobrev Left After Season 6
Elena Gilbert was central to the Vampire Diaries for a large portion of the series run - until actress Nina Dobrev left the show at the end of Season Six. With one of the first most-watched series in CW history, Vampire Diaries first appeared in 2009 and eventually lasted for eight seasons. It has since produced two equally successful spinoffs in the form of The Originals and Legacies.
Vampire Diaries set in a fictional town of Mystic Falls, The Vampire Diarieس picked up with Elena still mourning the loss of her adopted parents in a car accident. Her life became more complex, however, when she got stuck in a soaring love triangle with the vampire brothers Stefan and Damon Salvatore. Elena and her friends often found themselves stuck in various evil plots and conflicts between opposing factions between supernatural creatures - including werewolves, witches, hunters, and ghosts. Among other things, the series also starred Steven R. McQueen as Elena little brother Jeremy Gilbert, Kat Graham as Bonnie Bennett, Candice King Caroline Forbes. Despite the large group, Dobrev worked as the core of the Vampire Diaries - with the actress playing various versions of Elena and several doppelgängers.
In 2015, it was announced that Dobrev would leave the show after the sixth season of The Vampire Diaries ended. Many jumped on the idea that her break up with co-star Ian Somerhalder (who played Damon) fueled the decision. However, this turned out to be wrong, with the pair still being good friends to this day. In fact, Dobrev revealed in an Instagram post that she has always viewed Elena's trip as a six-season trip. During that time, Dobrev also reported that she played "a human, a vampire, a doppelganger, an immortal, a doppelganger pretending to be a human, a human pretending to be a doppelganger." Likewise, her numerous characters have been "kidnapped, killed, revived, tortured, cursed, her body-snatched and enjoyed two epic romances on screen and much more."
Stefan Salvatore And Elena Gilbert |
Playing a lead role on a TV show is a stressful effort under normal circumstances. Given the wealth of characters that Dobrev played and how quickly Vampire Diaries stories ran, there was no doubt about that in this case. Elena alone had been put through so much of a ringer over the six seasons that there were some new directions to go. As such, despite her evident love and loyalty to the crew and cast, it is understood that Dobrev welcomes comfort and some new challenges. After her departure from the Vampire Diaries, Dobrev has a number of roles in other shows and in many movie outings - including cult horror-spoof The Final Girls. Later, her departure allowed more supporting characters to come into the spotlight and experience their new challenges.
The Vampire Diaries Season 7 and Season 8 focused on delving deeper into the complex brotherly bonds between Stefan and Damon, which often served as a source of conflict and emotional turmoil. Likewise, the writers went on to make the relationship between Stefan and Caroline more central. Such detours served the show well, keeping her passionate following for two other seasons. However, Dobrev will return for a short time, with her appearance again at the conclusion of the Vampire Diaries series like Elena and her evil partner Katherine. The actress's extended absence from The Vampire Diaries, while leaving a void, did little to hinder bringing the character's story full circle.