It’s time for another The Vampire Diaries crossover with The Originals!
When Stefan (Paul Wesley) takes a trip to New Orleans in tonight’s two-hour crossover event, the time he spends with his former BFF/nemesis Klaus (Joseph Morgan) will forever change a few key The Vampire Diaries and The Originals relationships. From Steroline to Klaroline to even Klayley, nothing will be the same after Stefan heads back to Mystic Falls.
Nerdist got to talk with Wesley about the major crossover episodes. Check out his full Q&A below!
Nerdist: I know fans have been craving another crossover for a while, but it’s a good thing that the showrunners waited until now to do it. Stefan’s story felt truly organic throughout both of the episodes.
Paul Wesley: That was a prerequisite in terms of this happening. We didn’t want to do a crossover just for the sake of doing a crossover. We wanted it to be organic. But we knew everyone misses the Originals being on The Vampire Diaries and the relationship between Stefan and Klaus, so it turned out really good.
This is the first time you got to participate in the crossover, so what was it like getting to reunite with all your friends on The Originals?
I know Daniel [Gillies] and Joseph obviously extremely well because we worked together for a couple years on The Vampire Diaries, so I felt pretty at home with them. I knew what their vibe would be, I knew what their professionalism would be, and I knew what to expect going in.
Klaus and Stefan have an awkward first encounter when Stefan realizes he has to fill in Klaus all about his relationship with Caroline [Candice King]. What was it like filming that scene?
I am obviously very, very aware that people are super pro-Klaroline. I’m extremely aware of that. I wanted to service that and whatever relationship they had, I didn’t want to diminish that. But at the same time, I wanted to be sincere. Stefan really wanted Klaus to understand that he cares about this girl. What’s interesting is that Klaus says a few things that are insightful that Stefan probably hasn’t thought about, or maybe it was in his subconscious but he didn’t really want to come to terms with. Klaus calls him out on a few things in a very subtle way, which I thought was pretty cool.
I always loved the relationship between Klaus and Stefan, at least when it was positive, so I’m excited to see what Klaus has to say to Stefan.
If you really think about it, Klaus is much older than Stefan. In a weird way, he’s almost a bigger brother, in a sense, to Stefan. I liked those scenes a lot. I loved the 1920s flashback episode in season three of The Vampire Diaries, where we got a glimpse of Stefan and Klaus’ friendship. As sadistic and dark as it was, it was still a friendship. I’m glad they didn’t diminish that and I’m glad they allowed Klaus and Stefan to be friends for a moment. There’s obviously a little bit of hostility in there, too, for dramatic flair. But I do think they showed their friendship in the end, which I think is very important.
How will Stefan’s time with Klaus impact him going forward when it comes to Damon (Ian Somerhalder)?
Stefan and Damon have a similar relationship to Klaus and Elijah. It’s a little different, too, but it is quite similar. They’ve grown to be really close, Stefan and Damon, and I think their brotherly love for each other overshadows any other contentious disagreement that they have. So we’ll see how spending time with Klaus might influence Stefan.
How will Klaus influence Stefan’s relationship with Caroline going forward?
I think his words have a really, relatively deep affect on him. In a weird way, he definitely feels like he was affected by what Klaus says. He starts viewing his relationship with Caroline more objectively. He has this dream or hope that she’s going to come back [from her road trip with Alaric (Matt Davis)] and be his and they’re going to be happily together forever, but now he’s slowly coming around to the fact that there are some difficulties that he’s going to have to face. I think Klaus hints at that, much to Stefan’s disliking, but he, in a way, accepts it.
What was your favorite part of filming both of the crossover episodes?
I adore Joseph and Daniel and Phoebe [Tonkin] obviously, and Charles [Michael Davis] is one of my good buddies. I respect them and I think they’re all really great actors, so it was so fun to get to work with them again. And it was great to breathe some new life into the show. We bring in a lot of characters that serve as the big baddies of the season, and I’m not trying to undermine that but it’s nice to have these people back who have roots and history on our show. It’s a real treat for the audience and equally for the actors as well, since there is so much history there.
What are you most excited to see from the crossover? Tweet me your thoughts at @SydneyBucksbaum!
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Images: The CW
The two-hour crossover begins with The Vampire Diaries at 8 p.m. on continues with The Originals at 9 p.m. on The CW.