“The Vampire Diaries” may be based on L.J. Smith’s young adult novels from the ’90s, but star Ian Somerhalder warns that the show doesn’t stay completely faithful to the books. So, it’s probably a good thing he hasn’t read much of them yet.
“I was actually told not to,” he told MTV News. “I think by virtue of the fact that they may be deviating very often from the books and not to be married to whatever was in those books. But now I’m checking it out.”
What little he has read, however, has helped the TV vampire find his inner teenage girl. “It’s on my bedside table. I feel like a young girl when I wake up,” he joked. “Grab my coffee and open ‘The Vampire Diaries.’ ”
Here is an excerpt from the interview: PW: Why do you think that kind of character is so appealing?
Ian: Because they’re so dangerous and fun, you can’t help but watch. And for me it’s so fun to say the lines they’re giving me — I was always so envious of Josh Holloway on “Lost” because he got the best things to say! Boone just wasn’t that guy, so now it’s so cool to actually be that guy. I’m forever indebted to Kevin and everyone else who was dumb enough to give me this job.
PW: So was this a role you actively pursued?
Ian: Oh yeah, this show was very tough to get. It was highly competitive — they tested a lot of people for the show, so it was definitely tough. When you want something and there’s a risk of you not getting it, that’s when you feel how high the stakes are. And the stakes to get this show were really high for me.
PW: How soon will we start learning about Damon and Stefan’s history? Ian: Very, very quickly. They’re not going to make the audience slowly get to know these people, which I think is smart. I’m one of the worst, but we’re all ADD. I have the attention span of a mosquito from multitasking and all the things that have affected my poor little brain. We want to get to the meat of the story, so Damon starts doing something things right off the bat that are so wrong … but so much fun. And that’s the key, man.
Ian Somerhalder is answering fan questions at an article over at the EW.
Read the entire interview at the EW to hear what he has to say.
Here is an excerpt from the interview:
Is Damon purely evil? A lot of readers are trying to figure out how they should feel about him.
He does things that would definitely be deemed as evil, and at best, mean, at times. But he does them because he believes in what he’s doing. It would not be on the heels of someone like Kevin Williamson to write a one-dimensional character. Damon’s clearly not that. 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.
Some people would say the show’s success depends on the chemistry between Elena and Stefan. I think a show like this is only as good as its villain. How do you see it?
I just see it as another component in the story. Every love story needs a catalyst of some sort. Love is tested in so many ways. How do I articulate this? Two people are together. There are stakes, strife, struggles, all these things that make us fall for someone, love someone even more, leave someone. But there’s always a catalyst. Something happens. And Damon, I think, is just that catalyst.
The EW has an article talking about where you have seen the stars of The Vampire Diaries before. The discuss where you have seen the following stars before:
1. Paul Wesley
2. Nina Dobrev
3. Steven R. McQueen
4. Kayla Ewell
5. Michael Trevino
6. Zach Roerig
7. Katerina Graham
8. Sara Canning
9. Ian Somerhalder
10. Candice Accola
Head on over to the EW to find out where they have been.
Your character, Damon, shows up late in the first episode so we still have a lot to figure out about him. What can you tell us beyond that he’s the “bad” brother?
Well, he comes back for very specific reasons. It’s very interesting to him that there’s this girl that Stefan found. She bears a striking resemblance to someone that we knew very well a very long time ago and it is a source of animosity between us brothers. Damon is definitely a bad guy — he can wreak havoc at times — but he does have his reasons. He’s got a major beef with his brother and possibly with the town.
How do you like playing Damon? He’s very different from characters you’ve played, and it’s interesting to see another side.
Damon doesn’t take himself very seriously and every other character that I’ve ever played does. It’s so liberating and so fun to actually go to work every day and not take myself seriously. Kevin [Williamson, the show’s executive producer] and the team, they just write such great stuff for me to say and I’m really, really happy and lucky that I got to do this.
Below are interviews with the cast of the Vampire Diaries put up by the CW. Interviews are with Nina Dobrev, Paul Wesley, Ian Somerhalder, Katerina Graham, Candice Accola and Steven R. McQueen. There is also a featurette.
Below is the featurette including some cast interviews and details on the show. Click the Read the rest of this entry » button below after the video to see the cast interview videos.
Ian Somerhalder is teaming up with New York’s WPIX-TV for a blood drive.
Here is some information on the event from their site:
Ian Somerhalder, former Lost castaway and current star of The CW’s Vampire Diaries and PIX are teaming up with the New York Blood Center to conduct a blood drive outside of PIX studios at 220 East 42nd Street on Thursday, September 10th, from 6am-1130am.
