'The Vampire Diaries' Cast, Then and Now

In the realm of TV teen dramas of the 200os, no one did love triangles like The Vampire Diaries. Not only did it involve two handsome brothers who are destined to look hot forever, but it also had tension, twists and tragedy — not to mention that  The Vampire Diaries cast was seriously magical on screen. 

The Vampire Diaries is based on the best-selling book series by L. J. Smith and follows a young mortal woman named Elena Gilbert (Nina Dobrev) as she tries to figure out which of the vampiric Salvatore brothers holds the key to her heart. The show aired from 2009 until 2017 for a total of 171 episodes. But who were the men behind the fangs, really? Well, we found everything there is to know about The Vampire Diaries cast, including what they really think of the show.  Keep reading for more.

Nina Dobrev

CHARACTER PLAYED: Elena Gilbert/Katherine Pierce

BORN: January 9, 1989 in Sofia, Bulgaria.

BEST KNOWN FOR: Degrassi: The Next Generation (2006 t0 2009), The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012), xXx: Return of Xander Cage (2017) and Reunion (2024). 

PERSONAL: Her birth name is Nikolina Dobreva. 

THOUGHTS ON THE VAMPIRE DIARIES: "This show was like actor boot camp...I sort of did every kind of acting that you can possibly do, so I feel like it groomed me and prepared me for the next step. I'm ready."

FUN FACT: Dobrev left the show after six seasons.

Paul Wesley: The Vampire Diaries cast

CHARACTER PLAYED:Stefan Salvatore

BORN: July 23, 1982, in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

BEST KNOWN FOR: Wolf Lake (2001 to 2002), American Dreams (2002 t0 2005), Peaceful Warrior (2006) and Tell Me a Story (2018 to 2o20).

PERSONAL: Wesley was married to Torrey DeVitto from 2011 until 2013. Then he married Ines de Ramon in 2019 but divorced her in 2022.

THOUGHTS ON THE VAMPIRE DIARIES: “When I get recognized, it's because of Stefan. I've done a bunch of roles since The Vampire Diaries, but nothing has been nearly as popular."

FUN FACT: Dobrev and Wesley didn't get along when filming first started.

Ian Somerhalder

CHARACTER PLAYED: Damon Salvatore

BORN: December 8, 1978 in Covington, Louisiana.

BEST KNOWN FOR: Young Americans (2000), The Rules of Attraction (2002), Lost (2004 to 2010), Pulse (2006) and V-Wars (2019).

PERSONAL: Somerhalder has been married to Nikki Reed since 2015. They have one child together.

THOUGHTS ON THE VAMPIRE DIARIES: Damon was first introduced to viewers as a villain with Somerhalder saying, "He does things that would definitely be deemed as evil, but he does them because he believes in what he’s doing. Damon is the most fun character I’ve ever played. He’s such a blast. I guarantee you he’s not gonna be a one-trick pony."

FUN FACT: Somerhalder and Dobrev dated from 2010 to 2013.

Kat Graham: The Vampire Diaries cast

CHARACTER PLAYED: Bonnie Bennett

BORN: September 5, 1986 in Geneva, Switzerland.

BEST KNOWN FOR: The Parent Trap (1998), 17 Again (2009), How it Ends (2018), Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2018 to 2020), TrollsTopia (2020 t0 2021), Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie (2022) and Love in the Villa (2022). 

PERSONAL: Graham has been married to Bryant Wood since 2023.

THOUGHTS ON THE VAMPIRE DIARIES: "I feel like I gave that show, and hopefully the fans that watch it, eight years of my life and poured so much into it and sacrificed a lot of time with my family, even time doing work with the UN refugee agency, doing my activism — so much of that has to get put on hold when you're on a twenty-two episode series for eight years. [But I am grateful], because I grew from that show, I became who I really am in my twenties from that show, for me, yeah the door is closed."

FUN FACT: Graham's character Bonnie died and came back to life more than anyone else on the show.

Candice King

CHARACTER PLAYED: Caroline Forbes

BORN: May 13, 1987 in Houston, Texas.

BEST KNOWN FOR:  Juno (2007), Deadgirl (2008), The Originals (2018), After We Collided (2020) and Legacies (2021 to 2022).

PERSONAL: King has been married to Joe King since 2014 and they have two children together, but they have filed for divorce.

THOUGHTS ON THE VAMPIRE DIARIES: "The writers kept Caroline interesting over the years. I am grateful that she's always had a very strong arc. With her turning into a vampire, I thought that was such a fun and beautiful, defining arc for her. It was still so early on in the series that I just wanted to keep my job and I wanted the character to stay alive, even if that meant that she had to become dead to do so. I just really loved being here and I didn't want to have to leave."

FUN FACT: King's real life pregnancy had to be written in the show's seventh season.

Zach Roerig: The Vampire Diaries cast

CHARACTER PLAYED: Matt Donovan

BORN: February 22, 1985 in Montpelier, Ohio.

BEST KNOWN FOR:  One Life to Live (2007), Assassination of a High School President (2008), As the World Turns (2005 to 2009), Rings (2017) and Dare Me (2019 t0 2020). 

PERSONAL: Roerig has one child.

THOUGHTS ON THE VAMPIRE DIARIES: "For me, not only has The Vampire Diaries been the longest job I’ve ever had, but it’s been a quarter of my life. I became a parent doing this job. It’s been a very healing process. We all started this show, almost all of us, in the midst of some sort of life turmoil, whatever it may have been. And somehow through these eight years we’ve patched ourselves up and are now ready to face the world again."

FUN FACT: Roerig's character Matt is the only main cast member to remain human throughout the shows run.

Michael Trevino

CHARACTER PLAYED: Tyler Lockwood

BORN: January 25, 1985 in Montebello, California.

BEST KNOWN FOR: Cane (2007), The Factory (2012), Out of Control (2017) and Roswell, New Mexico (2019 to 2022).

PERSONAL: Trevino is 5'9.

THOUGHTS ON THE VAMPIRE DIARIES: "Being a part of this show has literally changed my life and it will forever be a part of me. I remember when we moved out to Atlanta to do the show, there was maybe only one other production going on at the time. It forced us all, cast and crew, to come together and explore the city but also get work done. Each and every one of them is family to me, truly. Looking back, I feel incredibly lucky to be a part of this Vampire Diaries family."

FUN FACT: Trevino originally auditioned for the role of Damon.

Steven R. McQueen: The Vampire Diaries cast

CHARACTER PLAYED: Jermey Gilbert

BORN: July 13, 1988 in Los Angeles, California.

BEST KNOWN FOR: Everwood (2005 to 2006), Piranha 3D (2010), Chicago Fire (2015 to 2016), Home by Spring (2018) and The Warrant (2020).

PERSONAL: McQueen is 6 feet tall.

THOUGHTS ON THE VAMPIRE DIARIES: "I shot the pilot when I was 19, so I grew up with these people. What I've learned about life, what I've learned about acting on that set is priceless. From hanging out with the crew, to going out with the guys, to getting advice on set, to talking to the producers and writers about life, they're a group that means a lot to me."

FUN FACT: McQueen also left the show after six seasons, only returning for the series finale.

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