L.A. Times: Julie Plec teases a character’s return, Klaus & flashbacks

The closer we get to the return of Vampire Diaries on April 7th, the more tidbits we’re being teased with…and we’re not complaining. L.A. Times‘ Vlada Gelman chats with Julie Plec about the epic casting process for Klaus and why Joseph Morgan ultimately landed the role, as well as the introduction of the infamous character on our TV screens. We’ve known for a while that Klaus would make his first appearance in episode 219 on April 21st, but now we know for certain that flashback time is rolling around again. And that doesn’t just mean more period garb, but the return of a familiar face (one who met a somewhat violent and messy end). But back to Klaus:

Morgan “can handle the weight and the gravitas that Klaus needs, but he’s also got these dimples and this grin and this sparkle in his eyes,” she said. “You always need your villains to have multiple layers and to be able to kill you with kindness as much as they can kill you with violence. I think Joseph really represents that.” She adds that casting someone relatively unknown to American viewers gives the producers some exciting advantages. “We’ve been talking about [Klaus] for 15 episodes, so we really wanted to make it feel like it was something new for the audience.”

READ THE ENTIRE INTERVIEW AT L.A. TIMES.

Zap2It confirms new guest star + a full moon in Mystic Falls?

Zap2It‘s Carina MacKenzie has officially confirmed that Lisa Tucker, whom some may recognize from American Idol Season 5, has landed the role of Greta, daughter of Dr. Martin and sister of Luka. If you’re caught up on the show through Crying Wolf, you should remember why Greta is so significant and her ties to Klaus.

Greta will appear in at least two episodes, but we’re hearing that she may actually appear in four — including the big finale.

READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE AT ZAP2IT.

And let’s talk about a series of interesting tweets from Julie Plec, Michael Trevino, and Ian Somerhalder tonight, shall we?

Julie Plec:

Shooting a full moon on an actual full moon. Weird.

Michael Trevino:

Interesting… T @julieplec: Shooting a full moon on an actual full moon. Weird.

Ian Somerhalder:

In the woods, late night, moon almost full and running around with a werewolf-not smart…

TV Guide: Nina Dobrev on Katherine’s bad side, brief interview with Steven

Nina Dobrev is featured in TV Guide Magazine‘s latest issue (click for full size). She comments on Katherine’s bad side a.k.a how being stuck in the tomb reflects her. Thanks, Diarios do Vampiro!

In addition to the scan, TV Guide posted a behind the scenes video. Nina has a small part in which she talks about keeping your personal life, well, personal. Check it out over at their site.

Robyn Ross‘s last chat is with Steven R. McQueen. He talks about Bonnie and Jeremy and the tension between them. Read an excerpt here and head over to TV Guide for more.

“There’s so much passion between them,”Steven R. McQueen told TVGuide.com. “Even though Bonnie feels that it’s not right and Jeremy’s like, ‘I don’t give a s—,’ eventually that passion got a hold of them and they give in to the temptation they’ve been holding back from.”

Zap2It interview with Julie Plec: The deliciously bad & the epically good

Zap2It‘s Carina MacKenzie caught up with Vampire Diaries’ Executive Producer Julie Plec to discuss dark pasts, relationship drama, and painful character development on Vampire Diaries – and don’t expect things to get any easier over the next few episodes. First up, Plec discusses Damon’s rocky road to better man-ness, learning more about who Stefan used to be, and why it’s important to find a balance for Elena.

“Nina’s so good!” she says. “The non-supernatural heroine in a show like this is hard to write. You want her to be strong-willed and you want her to be fierce, but also, by definition of being at the center of it all, she’s often the damsel in distress. Trying to find the balance between putting her in jeopardy and also letting her be badass is something we deal with every week. With ‘Rose,’ I loved that shot where she kicks the chair and she grabs the chair leg and she holds it up, because it was so ‘Buffy.’ It’s such a badass, ‘Buffy’ moment, and that really embodies Elena.”

READ THE REST OF THE INTERVIEW AT ZAP2IT.

As for the Caroline/Tyler/Matt triangle (which doesn’t seem to be much of a triangle after the events of Daddy Issues), Plec stresses that it’s important to remember that Tyler has also been wronged and is confused about who he is and who he can trust.

Plec assures us that while Tyler definitely screwed up when he hesitated to take Caroline’s side in the vampires vs. wolves showdown, he’s not all bad. “You have to remember that he’s also a victim,” she says. “For a guy not used to understanding his own emotions — between the way he was raised and the relationship with his dad and just being kind of a macho testosterone-driven dude — he’s confused. He’s kind of lost. It’s all part of his journey.”

READ THE REST OF THE INTERVIEW AT ZAP2IT.

Entertainment Weekly chat with Lauren Cohan

Entertainment Weekly‘s Mandi Bierly spoke with Lauren Cohan about her time on Vampire Diaries as Rose and the guest star provides some fun insight into shooting of a particularly difficult scene. (You’ll know which one.) And the savvy Bierly asked Cohan about the famous “It’s okay to love them both” scene present in the CW promo but cut from the final airing of The Descent.

“I loved that piece between Rose and Elena because I think Rose looked at Elena like a younger sister in a way, and it really was okay that Elena loves different things in both of these men. Being conflicted doesn’t make her a bad person. It was almost like Rose needed to tell her to not be so hard on herself and to not give up,” she says. “It was really cute because Elena tried to cover the fact that she does love them both in a way. That’s when Rose kinda pushed her to say it. [She's saying] ‘Come on. Just admit it. You don’t have to feel bad about it,’ in the same breath as, ‘Own who you are. It’s okay to let them fight for you. It’s okay to want to live. And it’s okay to be conflicted. Keep going.’”

READ THE ENTIRE INTERVIEW AT ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY.

Ian Somerhalder chats about Damon with PopWrap and TV Line

Ian Somerhalder discusses Damon’s evolution and growth over the series with New York Post’s PopWrap.

PW: You said before that Damon today is totally different than how you envisioned him. Could you expand upon that?
Ian: I had called Kevin [Williamson, co-creator], freaking out because I wasn’t ripping more people’s heads off and dancing half-naked with sorority girls. He told me, “Damon is evolving.” There is a 100 episode arc to this guy’s journey and he must evolve … or die.

PW: So you just weren’t anticipating his evolution happening so quickly?
Ian: One of the appeals of the show is that it moves very quickly, which is fun because TV doesn’t typically move that way all the time. So Damon went through a pretty quick process of coming to town with an agenda to finding out that his agenda was completely wrong to staying in town because he started to care for people. That raised the stakes for him in a big way. When you forge relationships, you run the risk of caring. That makes it hard to walk away. And Damon, unfortunately, found himself subconsciously wanting to nurture those relationships. Now, he really cares about someone he wouldn’t have normally given a flying s*** about, pardon my French [laughs].

READ THE REAST OF THE INTERVIEW OVER AT POPWRAP.

Ian chats with TV Line about Damon’s new human lady friend, Mystic Falls’ newscaster Andie Star (we wonder if she’ll be asking any awkward questions about her predecessor, Logan Fell), and how no one is safe on the Vampire Diaries.

Enter Andie Star (played by Dawn Olivieri) as Damon’s new girlfriend. Sadly, this is no love story. ”Damon gets a hot beard, who just so happens to be a local newscaster,” Somerhalder explains. ”She’s super-fun to be around, and she’s a woman, not a high school girl. She adds a totally different dynamic to the show. She’s very quirky, very witty, she doesn’t have anything to lose. She’s not running from any supernatural entity, she’s just a person — but underneath it all, it’s sad that the only way he can express his real feelings is when he has compelled someone not to do anything.”

READ THE REST OF THE INTERVIEW OVER AT TV LINE.

The Vampire Diaries' Brotherhood Is the Heart of the Show

Is The Vampire Diaries' Damon Salvatore getting soft?

Ordinarily, we would have expected bad boy Damon (Ian Somerhalder) to move in on Elena (Nina Dobrev) while her true love — and Damon's brother — Stefan (Paul Wesley) was locked away in a tomb. So why didn't he?

On the set of The Vampire Diaries: What the show will — and won't — take from the books

"There is a bit of a bonding moment that's happening with those two," Somerhalder told TVGuide.com during our visit to the set. "One would think ... that Damon is flying high and really ecstatic about that. Maybe six months ago, yes, he would be over the moon, but I don't think so anymore."

Executive producer Julie Plec adds that the sometimes strained bond between Damon and Stefan is crucial to the show. "The power of the brotherhood between these two in times when they're living their lives the same, making the same heroic choices, or times when they're on opposite ends of the fight — that's the weight of the show," she says.

Even though Damon has threatened an eternity of misery on Stefan for making him turn into a vampire, Plec says will continue to continue to explore both sides of the brothers' love-hate relationship until the end of the series.

Vampire Diaries' Boss Julie Plec: Mythology is getting personal

"I love this idea of the two brothers, whether at odds or as partners, [taking] us all the way to the end," she says.

The Vampire Diaries cast talk behind the scenes shenanigan

Besides her interview with Ian, Catalina Walsh has one more behind the scenes video with the cast. This time, Paul Wesley, Sara Canning, Steven R. McQueen and Katerina Graham take part in the chat as well. They share some behind the scenes adventures. Sounds like fun! Ian drops a spoilery tidbit at the end, so beware. Thanks, Vampire-Diaries.net!

Candice Accola on Cambio Connect, talks to Fancast

Candice participates in “Long Story Short” and “Word Association Games” on Cambio Connect. Check out the video below for some fun, thanks to Candice Accola Web for the heads up!

The actress also dished about the show with Fancast. She talks about how Caroline’s trasnformation into a vampire has changed her as well as her character’s relationship with Tyler and Matt both. Plus, Candice teases what’s to come in the “Vampire Diaries” return in January. Read a quote below and find the rest of the story at Fancast.

What was it like shooting Tyler’s transformation scenes? I read it was so grueling you asked the caterers to bring chocolate chip cookies to Michael Trevino afterward.
It was a very vulnerable setting for an actor, especially for a man. It’s one thing to be emotionally vulnerable with all the crew around, and on top of that he wasn’t wearing many clothes. All the chains that he had on were real chains. It was two twelve to fourteen hour days of him screaming these gut wrenching screams and crying. There’s these normal things that tend to happen on a set… a light blows out. Here he gets into an emotional mode and he’s screaming and he’s crying and then it’s ‘Oh, we have to reset the light.’ Luckily we’ve got such an amazing and respectful, good-hearted crew. He’d been so good about eating healthy. Of course it was the one day that whole week that there was sugar cookies [in craft services] and he knew it. Luckily, craft services had some chocolate chip cookie dough left over [for afterward]. It’s important I think especially in the circumstance where you have a very heavy emotional scene, you have to know that everybody has your back. That’s what the cookies were for.

E!’s Watch with Kristin video interview with Ian Somerhalder

AOLTV’s The Show Girl video interview with Ian Somerhalder

Watch Nina’s AP Interview

aplive on livestream.com. Broadcast Live Free

Nina on MTV The Seven

The Seven - MTV Shows

Nina Dobrev at Late Night with Jimmy Fallon