7 Stars Who Were Almost Cast in The Vampire Diaries (And One Would Have Changed Everything)

The late 2000s and early 2010s was an incredible time for vampire-themed media and a big part of that trend was The Vampire Diaries. Based on the book series of the same name by L.J. Smith and developed by Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec, The Vampire Diaries quickly became a massive hit for The CW when it debuted in 2009, running for eight seasons and even spawning two spinoff series as well. A key part of the series’ success was the characters at the center of the supernatural teen drama and the actors who brought them to life, such as Nina Dobrev as Elena Gilbert and Ian Somerhalder as Damon Salvatore.

But while it’s hard to imagine The Vampire Diaries’ iconic characters played by anyone else even now, nearly a decade after the series finale, the series almost looked very different. It’s the case with any television show: as the series is being put together, various actors are considered before final casting decisions are made, but in the case of The Vampire Diaries, there are some stars that who were almost cast — and in some cases would have made not only The Vampire Diaries very different, but would have impacted other popular franchises like the Marvel Cinematic Universe as well.

7) Ashley Tisdale as Elena Gilbert

Fresh off the success of Disney’s High School Musical series of films, Ashley Tisdale wasn’t just a candidate to play series protagonist Elena Gilbert in The Vampire Diaries, she was actually offered the role. However, despite being offered the role, Tisdale opted to take a different job: a role as Savannah Monroe in the cheerleading comedy drama Hellcats, also on The CW. Unfortunately, Hellcats was cancelled after its first season, something that series producer Tom Welling later attributed to the network changing its president of entertainment from Dawn Ostroff to Mark Pedowitz.

6) James Van Der Beek as Alaric Saltzman

By the time The Vampire Diaries was gearing up, James Van Der Beek was already a popular television actor, especially with The WB audiences (The WB was the network predecessor of The CW) thanks to his six seasons starring as the titular Dawson on Dawson’s Creek. Given his success in that role, he was one of the actors considered to play history teacher and vampire hunter Alaric Saltzman in the series. The role ultimately went to Matthew Davis while Van Der Beek went on to appear in a number of other series, notably including Don’t Trust the B—— in Apartment 23 alongside future Marvel star Krysten Ritter.

5) Sarah Michelle Gellar as Rose

Given that Sarah Michelle Gellar brought to life one of the most iconic vampire hunters in television history as Buffy Summers in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, it would have been a wild turn seeing her go from fighting vampires to playing one but it almost happened. Gellar was offered the role of the vampire Rose in the second season of The Vampire Diaries, but the actress declined. Instead, Lauren Cohan was cast in the role. She would herself later go on to star in another iconic television series: The Walking Dead.

4) Jason Momoa as Alaric Saltzman

Another actor who almost played history teacher and vampire hunter Alaric Saltzman was none other than DC’s Aquaman himself, Jason Momoa. As revealed in the book I Was Feeling Epic: An Oral History of The Vampire Diaries, Momoa was one of a few actors considered for the role. Joe Manganiello was also considered for the role and while in retrospect it’s hard to see anyone but Davis as the character, The Vampire Diaries would have looked very different with Momoa as the vampire hunter who, in the spinoff series Legacies, went on to run a school for supernaturally gifted children.

3) Taylor Swift as an unnamed vampire

No, it’s not Tayvoodoo; Taylor Swift really was almost cast on The Vampire Diaries. While Swift is among the most popular and successful musicians in the world, she’s also no stranger to the world of film and television — and she was also a big fan of The Vampire Diaries. When Williamson found out, a new role was written specifically for Swift. Much to the disappointment of vampire fans and Swifties everywhere, according to Dobrev, they were simply never able to make the schedule work. Of course, that account of Swift’s near casting is a little bit disputed: Plec reveals in I Was Feeling Epic that it was actually the network that wanted Swift to cameo, not that a character was written for her.

2) Sebastian Stan as Damon Salvatore

While we can’t imagine anyone else as Damon Salvatore now, the role almost went to Sebastian Stan. Plec explained that Stan was the “dream cast” for Stefan at one point, but the actor was already committed to NBC’s drama Kings. That series ended up being cancelled after just one season. But while we missed out on getting Stan as Damon, which certainly would have changed everything about The Vampire Diaries, there is a silver lining: Stan went on to play Bucky Barnes in Captain America: The First Avenger and quickly became a huge Marvel Cinematic Universe favorite.

1) Pedro Pascal as Marcel Gerard on The Originals

Okay, so technically this isn’t The Vampire Diaries, but it’s part of The Vampire Diaries Universe so it counts. And it’s also a big one. Thanks to his roles on The Mandalorian and The Last of Us and his recent turn as Reed Richards in Fantastic Four: First Steps, Pedro Pascal is one of the most popular and beloved actors in the world. But was also almost a major player in The Vampire Diaries Universe. Pascal notably auditioned for the role of Marcel Gerard for The Originals. Pascal’s audition was apparently very good, but ultimately Charles Michael Davis was the better fit for the role.

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