Cast/Characters
Learn all about the characters of The Vampire Diaries!
Nina Dobrev- Elena Gilbert/Katherine Peirce*
Nina Dobrev plays both Elena Gilbert and Katherine Peirce.
Born on 22 June 1992, Elena Gilbert, portrayed by Nina Dobrev since the pilot, is the series' female protagonist. Elena lives with her younger brother, Jeremy Gilbert, and her aunt, Jenna Sommers, who became her legal guardian after her parents died in a car crash. Her best friend is Bonnie Bennett, who later discovers she is a witch, and friends with Caroline Forbes. Before the beginning of the series she was in a relationship with Matt Donovan, who still carries a torch for her in the beginning of the series. She later begins a relationship with Stefan Salvatore, whom she discovers is a vampire. Stefan's brother Damon also falls in love with Elena. At the end of season one, Elena discovers that her parents aren't actually her biological parents, but that she is actually the daughter of John Gilbert, who she thought was her uncle, and Isobel Flemming, who was turned into a vampire by Damon Salvatore, is Elena's mom. In season two she learns that she is a Petrova doppelgänger, just like Katherine Pierce, which means that she has to be sacrificed to release Klaus' werewolf side. The sacrifice later happens, but Elena is saved, because John sacrificed himself for her after being put under a spell by Bonnie. However, her aunt Jenna is turned into a vampire and, as part of the sacrifice, is killed by Klaus, leaving Elena without a guardian. In the season two finale, while Damon is dying due to a werewolf bite, she forgives him for forcing her to drink his blood and kisses him with the thought that it might be Damon's last day, however Damon gets cured by drinking Klaus' blood. In season three, Elena does everything in her power to make Stefan get his humanity back, which was turned off by Klaus. Meanwhile, she grows closer to Damon while working together on saving Stefan and trying to defeat Klaus, eventually even sharing a kiss. She later admits to Stefan that she has feelings for Damon as well but that she never stopped loving Stefan. While in Denver together, Elena kisses Damon, later telling him that she doesn't know how she feels about him. She eventually chooses Stefan in the season finale but before she can tell him, Elena drowns ,DR. FELL gives her vampire blood
Katherine:
Katherine Pierce, portrayed by Nina Dobrev since season one, is one of the main antagonists of the series. Originally known as Katerina Petrova, she was born in Bulgaria on June 22, 1474 and later banished to England after having an illegitimate child. Upon meeting Klaus and Elijah, two of the original vampires, she found out that she is a Petrova Doppelganger, which means that she has to be sacrificed to release Klaus' werewolf side. She used a vampire named Trevor, who'd fallen in love with her, to escape and tricked vampire Rose into turning her,making her useless to break the curse.Katherine's escape infuriated Klaus who vowed to find her and kill her for her disobedience. She then spent 500 years running and hiding to escape his wrath. Hundreds of years later, Katherine arrived in Mystic Falls, where both Stefan Salvatore and Damon Salvatore fell in love with her. When all the vampires in Mystic Falls were discovered and brought together to be burned to death, she escaped. During her stay in Mystic Falls she had given Damon and Stefan her blood which turned them into vampires after they were shot. Damon, believing Katherine was locked up in a tomb, spent 145 years loving her and trying to find a way to free her. When he is finally able to open it, he finds out that she is not in the tomb and was alive the entire time. In the last episode of season one, Katherine returns to Mystic Falls. In the first episode of Season 2,she tells Damon that she has always been in love with Stefan and tries to break up the relationship between Stefan and Elena Gilbert, Katherine's descendant and the current Petrova Doppelganger. It is later revealed that her real reason for returning is to get the moonstone and offer it and Elena to Klaus, in order to be free from him. upon learning of her plan, she is locked up in the same tomb by Stefan and Damon, which has a spell that keeps all vampires locked inside. When the spell is finally broken later on, she is compelled by Elijah to stay. Elijah dies and Katherine is freed, but chooses to start helping Stefan and Damon. When Klaus comes to Mystic Falls, he kidnaps her and keeps her in Alaric's apartment, where he tortures her. He eventually releases her, but she keeps track of Klaus and Stefan's whereabouts. When she finds out that a vampire hunter named Mikael is the key to killing Klaus, she finds him and wakes him up, but when Mikael's plan to kill Klaus fails, she goes back into hiding. She has not been seen since her departure from Mystic Falls. Katherine also pretends to be Elena but then sorts through all kinds of trouble as she goes on.
Learn about Nina Dobrev!
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Born on 22 June 1992, Elena Gilbert, portrayed by Nina Dobrev since the pilot, is the series' female protagonist. Elena lives with her younger brother, Jeremy Gilbert, and her aunt, Jenna Sommers, who became her legal guardian after her parents died in a car crash. Her best friend is Bonnie Bennett, who later discovers she is a witch, and friends with Caroline Forbes. Before the beginning of the series she was in a relationship with Matt Donovan, who still carries a torch for her in the beginning of the series. She later begins a relationship with Stefan Salvatore, whom she discovers is a vampire. Stefan's brother Damon also falls in love with Elena. At the end of season one, Elena discovers that her parents aren't actually her biological parents, but that she is actually the daughter of John Gilbert, who she thought was her uncle, and Isobel Flemming, who was turned into a vampire by Damon Salvatore, is Elena's mom. In season two she learns that she is a Petrova doppelgänger, just like Katherine Pierce, which means that she has to be sacrificed to release Klaus' werewolf side. The sacrifice later happens, but Elena is saved, because John sacrificed himself for her after being put under a spell by Bonnie. However, her aunt Jenna is turned into a vampire and, as part of the sacrifice, is killed by Klaus, leaving Elena without a guardian. In the season two finale, while Damon is dying due to a werewolf bite, she forgives him for forcing her to drink his blood and kisses him with the thought that it might be Damon's last day, however Damon gets cured by drinking Klaus' blood. In season three, Elena does everything in her power to make Stefan get his humanity back, which was turned off by Klaus. Meanwhile, she grows closer to Damon while working together on saving Stefan and trying to defeat Klaus, eventually even sharing a kiss. She later admits to Stefan that she has feelings for Damon as well but that she never stopped loving Stefan. While in Denver together, Elena kisses Damon, later telling him that she doesn't know how she feels about him. She eventually chooses Stefan in the season finale but before she can tell him, Elena drowns ,DR. FELL gives her vampire blood
Katherine:
Katherine Pierce, portrayed by Nina Dobrev since season one, is one of the main antagonists of the series. Originally known as Katerina Petrova, she was born in Bulgaria on June 22, 1474 and later banished to England after having an illegitimate child. Upon meeting Klaus and Elijah, two of the original vampires, she found out that she is a Petrova Doppelganger, which means that she has to be sacrificed to release Klaus' werewolf side. She used a vampire named Trevor, who'd fallen in love with her, to escape and tricked vampire Rose into turning her,making her useless to break the curse.Katherine's escape infuriated Klaus who vowed to find her and kill her for her disobedience. She then spent 500 years running and hiding to escape his wrath. Hundreds of years later, Katherine arrived in Mystic Falls, where both Stefan Salvatore and Damon Salvatore fell in love with her. When all the vampires in Mystic Falls were discovered and brought together to be burned to death, she escaped. During her stay in Mystic Falls she had given Damon and Stefan her blood which turned them into vampires after they were shot. Damon, believing Katherine was locked up in a tomb, spent 145 years loving her and trying to find a way to free her. When he is finally able to open it, he finds out that she is not in the tomb and was alive the entire time. In the last episode of season one, Katherine returns to Mystic Falls. In the first episode of Season 2,she tells Damon that she has always been in love with Stefan and tries to break up the relationship between Stefan and Elena Gilbert, Katherine's descendant and the current Petrova Doppelganger. It is later revealed that her real reason for returning is to get the moonstone and offer it and Elena to Klaus, in order to be free from him. upon learning of her plan, she is locked up in the same tomb by Stefan and Damon, which has a spell that keeps all vampires locked inside. When the spell is finally broken later on, she is compelled by Elijah to stay. Elijah dies and Katherine is freed, but chooses to start helping Stefan and Damon. When Klaus comes to Mystic Falls, he kidnaps her and keeps her in Alaric's apartment, where he tortures her. He eventually releases her, but she keeps track of Klaus and Stefan's whereabouts. When she finds out that a vampire hunter named Mikael is the key to killing Klaus, she finds him and wakes him up, but when Mikael's plan to kill Klaus fails, she goes back into hiding. She has not been seen since her departure from Mystic Falls. Katherine also pretends to be Elena but then sorts through all kinds of trouble as she goes on.
Learn about Nina Dobrev!
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Ian Somerhalder- Damon Salvatore*
Born in 18 June 1844, Damon Salvatore, portrayed by Ian Somerhalder since the pilot, serves as the series' anti-hero. Damon was born in Mystic Falls. When Katherine Pierce came to town, both he and his younger brother, Stefan Salvatore, fell in love with her. In 1864 he is turned into a vampire after being shot by his father with Katherine's blood in his system. His transitioning was completed after Stefan, also now a vampire, convinced him to kill a woman. Damon, angry that Stefan forced him to complete his transition to a vampire, vowed to make Stefan's life miserable. More than a hundred years later, Damon returns to Mystic Falls to free Katherine, who he believes is locked in a tomb there. Damon meets Elena Gilbert before Stefan (later found out in the season finale of season 3) but compells her to forget their meeting.Later, still hating his brother, decides to bring havoc to her relationship with Stefan. When he finds out that Katherine is not in the tomb and has been alive the entire time, he finds comfort in Elena. He then starts to fall in love with her. His relationship with Stefan also improves and it is shown that Damon actually does care about his brother. In the beginning of the series, Damon kills people impulsively, but as the series progresses he starts to act more humane and stops killing people. He even starts friendships with others, such as Alaric Saltzman and Sheriff Forbes. When Katherine returns in season two and tells him that she has always loved Stefan and not him, his love for her vanishes and he starts to hate her. He becomes close to another vampire named Rose. When Rose is bitten by a werewolf, Damon is left with no other choice but to stake her and briefly falls back into his old ways, killing a young girl. Damon then starts a relationship with a reporter called Andie Star. He compels her to agree to him taking her blood and uses her to distract himself. However, she is later killed by Stefan. Despite these relationships, Damon still loves Elena deeply. When Damon is dying, due to Tyler Lockwood's werewolf bite, Elena tells him that she forgives him for everything and they share a "goodbye kiss". However, Damon is cured after drinking Klaus' blood, brought to him by Katherine after Stefan had exchanged himself for his brothers cure. In season three, while trying to find and save Stefan, Damon and Elena grow closer to each other and they later even share a kiss. When Elena tells Damon that his love for her is a problem, Damon in anger, has a one-night stand with the original vampire with Rebekah.However, while in Denver Elena kisses Damon showing her love for him as well as for Stefan. When Klaus tries to suck Elena dry of her blood to continue his hybrid obsession, Damon helps his brother Stefan along with help from Bonnie, Tyler, and Jermey, stop Klaus's heart. The vampire- hunting vampire Alaric Saltzman tries to find Klaus's desecrated body and as he meets up with Rebbekah Alaric finds them and kills Klaus sending Rebbekah into anguish.Towards the end of the season 3 finale it is also revealed that Klaus isnt actually dead but Bonnie had transfered his mind into that of Tyler's , but Klaus's old body was gone for good.Damon calls Elena to see where she is and finds out that she is on her way to see Stefan and her friends instead of going to him in the storage building, he says he understands and requests she told him who she chooses.Elena chooses Stefan over Damon because Stefan met her first and was there for her when she needed someone to love after her parents death. Alaric next tries to go after Rebbekah but Damon protects her and tells her to flee, which she does, Alaric, angry with Damon, proceeds to brutally beat him until Damon starts to fight back until Alaric suddenly dies due to Elenas death, seeing as how Alaric and Elenas lives are tied together. In a flashback towrds the end of the season 3 finale it is revealed that it was Damon who actually met Elena first and that he was there for her first but he had to compell her to forget their meeting so no one would know he had arrived to town yet.
Learn about Ian Somerhalder!
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Paul Wesley- Stefan Salvatore*
Born on 5 November 1847, Stefan Salvatore, portrayed by Paul Wesley since the pilot, is the series' male protagonist. Stefan Salvatore was born in Mystic Falls. Both he and his brother, Damon, fell in love with the same girl, Katherine Pierce, a vampire. In 1864, Stefan was turned into a vampire after being shot by his father with Katherine's blood in his system, before unwillingly killing his father. Damon, who was turned into a vampire as well, promised Stefan an eternity of misery as he was angry that Katherine had also turned Stefan. Stefan was unable to resist human blood and became addicted, killing many people until he was taught to control it by a vampire named Lexi Branson, who later became his best friend. After decades of absence, Stefan returned to Mystic Falls after he saved Elena Gilbert from a car crash and noticed that she looked exactly like Katherine. Stefan and Elena begin a relationship and he reveals to her that he is a vampire. However, Damon returns to Mystic Falls, too, and he also falls in love with Elena. Further on in the series, Damon and Stefan start to bond as brothers again and it becomes apparent that they do love each other. Because of his addiction to human blood, Stefan only drank animal blood in the beginning of the series, which made him weaker than other vampires. In season two Stefan starts to take small amounts of Elena's blood each day to mitigate its effect on him and to increase his strength. When Katherine returns it is discovered that she has always been in love with Stefan and not with Damon; however, Stefan is in love with Elena and not interested in Katherine. Stefan starts to build a friendship with Caroline Forbes after she is turned into a vampire. After Klaus gives Stefan his blood to save Damon from his werewolf bite, he turns Stefan into a ripper again and Stefan starts working for him as he agreed to do, in hopes of protecting Elena by making sure Klaus never returns to Mystic Falls, as he believes her to be dead. Klaus later finds out and compels Stefan to kill her, but when he is able to resist the compulsion, Klaus makes him turn his humanity and all his emotions off. However, he is later able to get his humanity back, which is seen when he saves Klaus's life to protect Damon. He then takes it upon himself to kill Klaus. He steals Klaus's family as retaliation, and uses it as blackmail, when that fails (The witches give Klaus the coffins when he threatens to end the Bennett line) he threatens to drive Elena off Wickery Bridge with vampire blood in her system if Klaus doesn't get his hybrids out of town, Klaus agrees right as Stefan's about to drive Elena off the bridge. He and Elena get into a fight, Stefan claiming Klaus took everything from him, Elena retorts, you had me! Which Stefan replies, "I lost you the second I left town with him, you just haven't let yourself admit it yet." In the season three finale, he kisses Elena, saying "just in case there is no later" in the end, Elena chooses Stefan over Damon, but when Rebekah causes Matt's (who kidnapped Elena in an attempt to get her away from all the vampires) truck to drive off Wickery Bridge. Stefan, who barely gets there in time tries to save Elena, but Elena makes him save Matt. Thus, Elena drowned. Though it is later revealed Dr. Fell gave Elena vampire blood, meaning she died with vampire blood in her system.
Learn about Paul Wesley!
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Candice Accola- Caroline Forbes
Caroline Forbes is a friend of Elena Gilbert's. She is portrayed by Candice Accola. Caroline is the daughter of the sheriff of Mystic Falls, Liz Forbes, with whom she has a troubled relationship. Her father left her and her mother after coming out as gay. In the beginning of the series, she is shown as shallow, self-absorbed and envious of Elena. However, Caroline's character becomes multi-layered over the seasons and she matures. During season 1, she starts a relationship with Matt Donovan. In season two, Caroline is injured and is fed Damon's blood so that she can heal; however, after Katherine Pierce kills her and she later feeds on human blood by killing a man, she gets turned into a vampire. Stefan Salvatore helps Caroline take control of her blood lust, and they start to build a friendship. After turning, Caroline also becomes closer to Elena. She discovers that she is not able to control her blood lust when she is around Matt, and thus tricks him into breaking up with her in order to protect him. When Tyler Lockwood starts his werewolf transformations, Caroline helps him deal and he starts to develop romantic feelings for her. However, Caroline is still in love with Matt and they get back together as soon as Tyler leaves town. Matt later finds out that Caroline is a vampire; feeling alienated and betrayed, he tells her mother. At first they don't accept her, but when they realize that Caroline has retained her humanity, they soften. However, Matt still breaks up with her, due to his aversion of the supernatural since the vampire death of his sister, Vicki. When Tyler returns to Mystic Falls, he and Caroline become closer and in the season three premiere, they sleep together.However, Carol Lockwood finds out Caroline is a vampire and contacts her father, Bill Forbes. He thinks Caroline is a monster and tries to "fix" her through torture, but she is saved by her mother and Tyler. Bill and Caroline eventually make amends, and she is devastated when he is killed during season three. Caroline and Tyler become a couple, but they break up due to Tyler's affection for his sire to Klaus. She has a brush with death when she suffers from a werewolf bite, only to have Klaus save her. Klaus later develops an unrequited romantic interest in Caroline, and invites her to his family's ball. At the ball, they dance and talk together and she soon discovers a soft side to Klaus. When she returns home that night, she finds a hand-drawn picture of her and a horse, from Klaus. In the meantime, Tyler has traveled to the Appalachian mountains in hope to break his sire-bond and get to continue a relationship with Caroline. Although she is unsure about any feelings she might have for Klaus, it is certain that she misses Tyler immensely. When he returns home, Caroline is thrilled and they spend the night together. They go to the 20's decade dance together, and dance the whole night. In the season finale, Liz Forbes and Ms.Lockwood both tell Tyler and Caroline that they need to leave town in result of Alaric telling the counsel that they are supernatural. They are not excited to be leaving their friends behind, but they both are anxious to start a life with each other. When Klaus is staked and killed, Caroline is devastated knowing that Tyler is now going to die because of he is part of Klaus' bloodline. However, after she says her goodbye to Tyler, it is revealed that he is in fact being "possessed" by Klaus, after Bonnie put Klaus' spirit in Tyler's body. Caroline doesn't know this, yet.
Katerina Graham- Bonnie Bennet
Bonnie Bennett, portrayed by Kat Graham since the pilot, is Elena Gilbert's best friend. She is also good friends with Caroline Forbes. In the beginning of the series, Bonnie discovers that she is born from a line of witches and that she is also a witch. Her grandmother, a witch too, helps her learn to use her powers, which causes them to create a strong bond. When her grandmother dies, Bonnie is devastated, but she keeps training and as the series develops she becomes more and more powerful. In the midst of season two, she starts a relationship with Jeremy Gilbert, Elena's younger brother. She later discovers from warlock Luca Martin that the only way to kill Klaus, the original vampire who wants to kill Elena, is for her to get the power of one-hundred dead witches, which she later gets. She then pretends to be dead, a scheme of Damon's, in order to trick Klaus. But when she brings Klaus to the brink of death, Elijah does not kill him, as planned, and carries him away before she could react. In the season two finale Bonnie is able to save Jeremy from dying after she tells her dead ancestor Emily Bennett that she loves him. However bringing Jeremy back from the dead had consequences, for Jeremy is now able to see his dead ex-girlfriends Anna and Vicki Donovan whenever he thinks of them. Bonnie later finds out that Jeremy kissed Anna when the doorway to "the other side" was temporarily opened and she breaks up with him. Later on, Bonnie reconnects with her mother, Abby, who had abandoned her as a child, who helps her to kill the original vampires. However, Abby is turned into a vampire by Damon and abandons Bonnie again.
Steven R. McQueen- Jeremy Gilbert
Jeremy Gilbert, portrayed by Steven R. McQueen since the pilot, is Elena Gilbert's younger brother, later revealed to be her cousin.He is now her cousin because his uncle John Gilbert was Elena's biological father. In the beginning of the series he is emotionally damaged by the death of his parents and uses drugs. He is in love with Vicki Donovan, who uses drugs as well, but she is dating Tyler Lockwood, which causes a rivalry between the two boys. Vicki later breaks up with Tyler and starts a relationship with Jeremy. However Jeremy later witnesses how Stefan Salvatore kills Vicki after Damon Salvatore had turned her into a vampire. Elena, afraid that Jeremy couldn't handle this, asks Damon to make Jeremy forget this and take away his pain. This causes Jeremy to become more stable and to stop taking drugs. Jeremy then starts a relationship with a vampire named Anna, but John Gilbert, Jeremy’s uncle, kills Anna at the end of season one. Jeremy, not wanting to deal with this pain, tries to become a vampire by overdosing while having Anna's blood in his system, but he fails. He is later given John's ring, which protects him from a death caused by anything supernatural. In season two, Jeremy falls in love with Bonnie Bennett and they start a relationship. Jeremy later loses both his aunt and uncle on the day of the sacrifice, leaving him and Elena without a guardian. In the season two finale, Jeremy is accidentally shot to death by Sheriff Forbes, but Bonnie is able to bring him back. However, bringing Jeremy back from the dead was said to have consequences and since then Jeremy has been able to see and communicate with the ghosts of his dead ex-girlfriends Anna and Vicki, whenever he thinks about them. When the doorway to "the other side" is opened, Jeremy is even able to physically interact with Anna. Elena later catches them kissing and Bonnie also finds out, resulting in their break-up. When Bonnie closes the doorway to "the other side", Jeremy and Anna decide to let each other go. After Jeremy kills a hybrid by chopping off his head and is almost killed by Klaus, Elena asks Damon to compel Jeremy into leaving Mystic Falls in order for him to live a normal life. However, after Klaus and the other Originals find out where Jeremy is, Elena takes Jeremy back home.
Zach Roerig -Matt Honeycutt
Matthew "Matt" Donovan, portrayed by Zach Roerig since the pilot, is Elena Gilbert's ex-boyfriend. Vicki Donovan is Matt's older sister, who he has to take care of all by himself, for their troubled mother has left them. When Vicki dies, Matt is devastated. He is best friends with Tyler Lockwood and the quarterback of the Mystic Falls High School football team. He is also employed at the Mystic Grill as a busboy. Elena had broken up with Matt after her parents had died and in the beginning of the series Matt still has feelings for her and wants to get back together with her. However he later starts a relationship with Caroline Forbes. When Caroline is turned into a vampire in season two, she tricks Matt into breaking up with her, for she can't control her lust for blood around him. However, they later get back together. When Matt later finds out that Caroline is a vampire, he gets upset for he thinks she had something to do with Vicki's death. He asks her to make him forget, but he secretly has vervain in his system and only pretends to forget, a plan Sheriff Forbes came up with after he had told her about Caroline. However, he finds out that Caroline is still the same person and tells her about the plan. He then breaks up with her due to the fact that he has too much to handle with work and school and doesn't want to deal with the fact that Caroline is a vampire. In season three, Matt finds out that Jeremy is able to see Vicki and after he drowns himself on purpose and Bonnie saves him with CPR, he is able to see and speak to her as well. She tells him that with his help, the original witch can make her come back whenever she wants without needing Matt to think about her, but after he helps her, he finds out that the original wants her to kill Elena in return and with the help of Bonnie, he makes her return to "the other side" and shuts her out of his thoughts.
Matt Davis-Alaric Saltzman [RIP]
Alaric Saltzman, also known as "Ric," is portrayed by Matt Davis in seasons one, two and three. He was a recurring character from episodes nine until thirteen and as a main character from episodes fourteen until sixty-six. He is the history teacher at Mystic Falls High. Alaric originally comes to town, to kill Damon Salvatore because he believes that Damon killed his wife. However it is later found out that his wife, Isobel Flemming, isn't dead, but that on her own request she was turned into a vampire by Damon. He then starts to become friends with Damon. Alaric owns a Gilbert Ring, which he got from Isobel, which prevents him from getting killed by anything supernatural, however John Gilbert later claims the ring. Alaric starts a relationship with Jenna Sommers. In the second season John starts causing trouble between Jenna and Alaric and when Jenna meets Isobel, she knows that Alaric is keeping things from her and she leaves him. His body is later possessed by Klaus and he uses this ruse to gain the group's trust. Eventually Klaus releases Alaric and he gets back together with Jenna, but soon afterwards Klaus has her turned into a vampire and killed for his sacrifice ritual, leaving him heartbroken. In season three, he moves in with Elena and Jeremy Gilbert to take care of them. He also joins the Founder's Council as the representative of the Gilbert family. He later starts dating Meredith Fell, a local doctor and member of the Founder's Council. It is later found out that he is unknowingly killing people, because of the Gilbert ring he is wearing which gives him a dark vampire-hating alter ego that is referred to as "The Darkness" or "Dark-Alaric" in the show. He is later turned into an Original vampire by Esther in order to kill Klaus with an indestructible White Oak stake. In the season three finale, he dies when Elena drowns, for their lives have been linked by Esther. He appears to Jeremy as a ghost to say goodbye, stating that he will always be there for them.
Michael Trevino - Tyler Lockwood
Tyler Lockwood, portrayed by Michael Trevino since the pilot, is the son of Mayor Richard Lockwood and Carol Lockwood. He plays for the Mystic Falls High School football team and is best friends with Matt Donovan. Tyler doesn't have a good relationship with his father, who sometimes acts violently towards Tyler. However when his father dies, Tyler is shown to be genuinely upset. In the beginning of the series Tyler is arrogant, selfish and a bully. He is dating Vicki Donovan, but she later breaks up with him due to her feelings for Jeremy Gilbert, which causes a rivalry between the two boys. Tyler is also shown to have a short temper and in season two Tyler learns from his uncle, Mason Lockwood, that he acts this way due to his family carrying the werewolf gene. After Tyler accidentally kills Sarah, a classmate who was compelled by Katherine Pierce to provoke Tyler, his fears come true as he has triggered the curse. Caroline Forbes, a young vampire who wasn't his friend, offers her support to him, helping him through his first transformation and preparation for his new life. Tyler eventually falls in love with Caroline, but when Jules, another werewolf, comes to town and tells Tyler that Caroline and two other vampires, Stefan and Damon Salvatore, are responsible for his uncle's death, Tyler feels betrayed. After Caroline is taken captive by a group of werewolves and Tyler hesitates to come to her rescue, Caroline breaks off their friendship. Hurt by Caroline's decision and to protect his friends Tyler later decides to leave town with Jules. However, he returns when his mother is in the hospital and makes amends with Caroline, he decides to stay in Mystic Falls. His and Caroline's friendship deepens over the summer and in the season three premiere, they end up sleeping together. After his mother learns that Caroline is a vampire and kidnaps her as she is trying to sneak out, Tyler reveals that he is a werewolf by transforming in front of her. After he helps Sheriff Forbes rescue Caroline from her father, they begin an official relationship. Tyler is later turned into a hybrid by Klaus. Due to his transformation to a hybrid, he is sired to Klaus, which means that he feels great loyalty to Klaus and would do anything to protect his master. When Tyler tells Caroline that he is okay being sired to Klaus, she breaks up with him. Tyler eventually realizes that is sire bond to Klaus is bad for both him and the girl he loves, and breaks it by turning into a werewolf many times in order to no longer feel thankful for Klaus for taking the pain of his transition away. He and Caroline get back together, but in the season three finale, Bonnie places Klaus' spirit in Tyler's body in order to save his bloodline (Which includes Katherine, Stefan, Damon, Caroline and Tyler himself). It is currently unknown what has happened to Tyler's spirit, or if he agreed to the plan.
Joseph Morgan-Klaus
Played by Joseph Morgan as a recurring character in season two and as a series regular in season three, Niklaus Mikaelson, more commonly known as Klaus, is an original vampire, later the first hybrid and one of the main antagonists of the series. He and his father, brothers and sister became the very first vampires after their mother, a witch, had cast a spell on them in order to protect them from werewolves. It was later found out that his mother had committed adultery and Klaus' biological father was a werewolf, which makes Klaus the only vampire/werewolf hybrid. However his werewolf powers were bound to the moonstone by a band of witches, which includes his mother. To release his werewolf powers a ritual, in which a werewolf, a vampire and a Petrova dopplegänger have to be sacrificed, has to take place. The first Petrova dopplegänger Klaus found was Katerina Petrova, but she escaped Klaus with the moonstone and hung herself in order to become a vampire, so that she would be useless for the ritual. Klaus then wanted revenge on Katerina, causing her to spend centuries running from him. Hundreds of years later, Klaus finds Katerina and Elena Gilbert, the next Petrova dopplegänger, through Isobel Saltzman. He kidnaps Katerina and makes her torture herself. After collecting the moonstone, a werewolf, Jules, the Petrova dopplegänger, Elena, and turning Jenna Sommers into a vampire, he begins the ritual and his werewolf side is released. He later blackmails Stefan into helping him create more hybrids, which he wants to create because he feels lonely, and turns him into a killer again. It is later revealed that he brought Stefan with him, because they were once friends. After he finds out that he needs Elena's blood to create more hybrids, he compels Stefan to stay in Mystic Falls to protect her, but also turns off his humanity. He also turns Tyler Lockwood into his first hybrid. It is later found out that Klaus killed his own mother, because she cast the spell on him that locked away his werewolf side and that therefore his stepfather, Mikael, has been hunting him for centuries. After Damon un-daggers Elijah, who un-daggers Klaus' other siblings, and Bonnie Bennett and her mother are able to open up the tomb that holds Klaus' mother, Klaus gets reunited with his entire family again. After saving Caroline Forbes' life by giving her his blood to heal her from Tyler's bite, he becomes interested in Caroline and invites her to the Originals' ball, where they share a dance together. Bonnie later performs a desiccation spell to neutralize him, but he is later staked to death by Alaric. However it is revealed that Bonnie cast a spell allowing him to inhabit Tyler's body.
Claire Holt-Rebekah
Claire Holt plays Rebekah.
Rebekah Mikaelson, portrayed by Claire Holt in season three, is Klaus and Elijah's younger sister and also an original vampire. Rebekah shares a deep bond with her brother Klaus, and was the only family member that remained loyal to him despite his vicious behavior. Klaus thus kept her by his side, while he kept the rest of his family staked and stored away in boxes for hundreds of years. She had a romantic interest in Stefan Salvatore during their encounters in the early 1920s. However, when Klaus and Rebekah were once again forced to go on the run after the arrival of their vengeful father Mikael, Rebekah professed an interest to stop going on the run and live a stable life with Stefan by her side. Klaus subsequently forced her to choose between him and Stefan, and she chose the former. Eventually, Klaus daggers Rebekah. He brings her back to life during the period in which the show takes place, in order to obtain her necklace (which is originally Esther's). The same necklace had been gifted to Elena by Stefan in season one. Rebekah and Klaus thus head to Mystic Falls. Rebekah develops a deep hatred and envy of Elena, and continually tries to hurt, kill, and emotionally distress her, until her brother makes her stop. Later on, Rebekah is once again daggered by Elena, to simplify the Salvatores' plans of killing Klaus. Klaus makes Elena reveal Rebekah's location, and takes her body with him. She is eventually undaggered by Elijah. During her time in Mystic Falls, Rebekah enrolls at the local high school, much to the disgust of Elena and her friends. There, she at first makes romantic advances towards Tyler Lockwood, Caroline Forbes's boyfriend. She later develops a fondness for Matt Donovan, and invites him to her family's ball. Rebekah is shown to be lonely and insecure, though she hides this by being cruel and violent. This is demonstrated quite well through her sexual rendezvouses with Damon Salvatore, an enemy of her family, and the subsequent torture she makes him endure upon being betrayed by him. Rebekah's body is temporarily taken over by her witch mother, Esther, through a spell which Esther performs. She invades Rebekah's body in order to be able to go unnoticed while scheming to kill all of her Original children. Esther later leaves Rebekah's body and stakes her. However, Klaus restores Rebekah to full vitality by removing the stake. In the season 3 finale, while Matt is driving Elena out of Mystic Falls, Rebekah is seen standing in the middle of Wickery Bridge. Matt sees her, loses control, and drives the car in the lake; which is the reason for Elena turning into a vampire as revenge. This recreated the incident of Elena's parents' deaths.
Rebekah Mikaelson, portrayed by Claire Holt in season three, is Klaus and Elijah's younger sister and also an original vampire. Rebekah shares a deep bond with her brother Klaus, and was the only family member that remained loyal to him despite his vicious behavior. Klaus thus kept her by his side, while he kept the rest of his family staked and stored away in boxes for hundreds of years. She had a romantic interest in Stefan Salvatore during their encounters in the early 1920s. However, when Klaus and Rebekah were once again forced to go on the run after the arrival of their vengeful father Mikael, Rebekah professed an interest to stop going on the run and live a stable life with Stefan by her side. Klaus subsequently forced her to choose between him and Stefan, and she chose the former. Eventually, Klaus daggers Rebekah. He brings her back to life during the period in which the show takes place, in order to obtain her necklace (which is originally Esther's). The same necklace had been gifted to Elena by Stefan in season one. Rebekah and Klaus thus head to Mystic Falls. Rebekah develops a deep hatred and envy of Elena, and continually tries to hurt, kill, and emotionally distress her, until her brother makes her stop. Later on, Rebekah is once again daggered by Elena, to simplify the Salvatores' plans of killing Klaus. Klaus makes Elena reveal Rebekah's location, and takes her body with him. She is eventually undaggered by Elijah. During her time in Mystic Falls, Rebekah enrolls at the local high school, much to the disgust of Elena and her friends. There, she at first makes romantic advances towards Tyler Lockwood, Caroline Forbes's boyfriend. She later develops a fondness for Matt Donovan, and invites him to her family's ball. Rebekah is shown to be lonely and insecure, though she hides this by being cruel and violent. This is demonstrated quite well through her sexual rendezvouses with Damon Salvatore, an enemy of her family, and the subsequent torture she makes him endure upon being betrayed by him. Rebekah's body is temporarily taken over by her witch mother, Esther, through a spell which Esther performs. She invades Rebekah's body in order to be able to go unnoticed while scheming to kill all of her Original children. Esther later leaves Rebekah's body and stakes her. However, Klaus restores Rebekah to full vitality by removing the stake. In the season 3 finale, while Matt is driving Elena out of Mystic Falls, Rebekah is seen standing in the middle of Wickery Bridge. Matt sees her, loses control, and drives the car in the lake; which is the reason for Elena turning into a vampire as revenge. This recreated the incident of Elena's parents' deaths.
Daniel Gillies- Elijah
Played by Daniel Gillies in seasons two and three, Elijah Mikaelson is the eldest of the original vampire siblings. Elijah first appears in episode eight of season two. Elijah first appears in episode eight of season two, entitled "Rose". Elijah is brought into the Vampire Diaries circle by two vampires named Rose and Trevor. They make a deal to be allowed immunity from Elijah and the Originals, if they hand over Elena Gilbert, the new Petrova doppleganger. It is later revealed that Rose and Trevor were the vampires who failed to keep Katerina Petrova (Katherine Pierce) alive for Klaus to sacrifice in the ritual required to release his werewolf abilities. They were subsequently hunted by Klaus and Elijah for centuries. Elijah had feelings for Katerina in 1492 (perhaps due to her resemblance to Tatia the Doppleganger that preceded her) and tried to save her from Klaus; however, she did not trust Elijah and chose to flee. Later, he would punish her for her betrayal by compelling her to stay in a tomb until he said otherwise. Elena is rescued by the Salvatore brothers not long after Elijah kills Trevor, who had betrayed Elijah in the past by helping Katerina escape. The Salvatores attack Elijah and succeed in staking him; however, he comes back to life at the end of the episode because he is an Original vampire who can not be killed by any wooden stake. Elijah then works with a witch to locate Elena. The witch is able to locate her, so he goes to Mystic Falls to confront her, where he ends up saving her from a group of vampires who also wanted to take Elena. It is revealed that those vampires wanted to hand her over to Klaus. When Elijah discovers this, he makes peace with Elena and her friends, because he wants to use Elena as bait to draw out Klaus and kill him. He thus makes a deal with Elena that if she helps him kill Klaus, he will leave her and her friends alone. However, he intends for Elena to be successful sacrificed as once klaus breaks the curse and starts transforming, he will be left vulnerable enough to be killed. During a series of events, Elijah is temporarily "killed" when Elena stabs him with the dagger that can kill an original. When Klaus comes to town, Elena un-daggers Elijah because she needs his help, and he then reveals to her his family's history and the fact that Klaus killed the rest of his siblings. Elijah thus at first tries to help Elena and her friends kill Klaus, but ends up saving him instead in the Season 2 finale episode, because Klaus promises to take Elijah to their family (which Elijah had assumed Klaus had hid their "dead" bodies deep in the ocean) if Elijah spares him. In season three, however, it is revealed that Klaus double-crossed Elijah once again, and daggered him to keep him close to him, like the rest of his daggered siblings. Damon undaggers Elijah later to help him find a way to kill Klaus. When Elijah awakes, he undaggers the rest of his siblings who were located in coffins like his in the same room. They begin to plot their revenge against Klaus, however, before they can make their move, their thought to be dead mother Esther reappears and convinces the siblings to be a family again [which later turns out to be a front for her true motives]. After Elijah foils his mother's plans to kill him and his siblings, he leaves Mystic Falls a tortured soul, ashamed of his own barbaric actions and those of his family's. He is shown to be one of the most sophisticated and peaceful of the Original siblings, alongside Finn. He is the most compromising regarding Elena and her friends. Elijah and Elena develop a sort of understanding during the series, and Elena comes to be fond of Elijah's company. She thus feels especially betrayed when earlier Elijah threatened to allow Rebekah to kill Elena if the Salvatore brothers are not able to stop Esther Mikaelson from killing the Original Family. However, in the 18th episode of season 3, Elena professes that she hopes that her vampire friends are descended from Elijah's bloodline, so that he can be spared. Elijah returns to town in the season three finale episode, "The Departed", in order to make a deal with Elena and her friends. Elijah proposes that he be allowed to take Klaus's desiccated (by witch Bonnie and help from the Salvatores and Tyler) body with him and his siblings and leave town, and in exchange, he would make sure that Klaus would not be resurrected within Elena's lifetime or even that of her children, stating: "perhaps that will teach him some manners". However, Klaus is staked, and Elijah and Rebekah believe him to be dead, even though Klaus actually switched bodies with Tyler Lockwood and lives on.