Where Does it Go From Here?

Fans nervously wait to see how their beloved show will pan out without two of their favorite characters. 
Photo courtesy of playbuzz.com

The Vampire Diaries, a pop culture phenomenon airing on the CW, is still going strong and has been renewed for a seventh season, even though two beloved characters have decided to leave the show. Michael Trevino's Tyler Lockwood and Nina Dobrev's Elena Gilbert have said goodbye to their fans on a video posted on both of their Instagram accounts on Wednesday, April 15. 

The long-running series centers around a complicated love triangle between a normal teenage girl, Elena Gilbert, and two rival vampire brothers, Damon and Stefan Salvatore. It premiered on the CW television network in 2009. From the mysterious past of the town to its own people, it just seemed there is always something going on in this mystery-packed little town of Mystic Falls, Virginia. 

Elena fell in love with Stefan throughout the first three seasons then started to become attracted to Damon later. From the aggressive and vengeful vampire doppelganger, Katerina Petrova, who is hungry for blood and love from the Salvatore brothers, to Elena’s closest friends and family who later turn out to possess supernatural powers, the show boasts a plethora of supernatural characters. The drama also brings back the most powerful family from a past program, The Originals. The Mikaelson vampire siblings wreak havoc in Mystic Falls in season three to produce an army of vampire-werewolf hybrids for even more fast-paced supernatural action.

In the latest episode of season six, Caroline and Stefan have forgone their humanity and terrorized townspeople. Damon and Elena talked about life and how Elena misses being human and she was sad because of the fact that she is a vampire and she will never be able to create a family. "Wrestling with whether or not to tell Elena about the cure, Damon brings up their future together and what life would be like if they weren’t vampires. Meanwhile, it’s all hands on deck when attempts to stop a humanity-free Caroline doesn’t go as planned," reads The CW's official synopsis for the most recent episode, "Because."

Dobrev, who portrays main character Elena, confirmed through a heartbreaking Instagram message earlier this month that she will be exiting series by the end of the sixth season, which devastated thousands of the series’ fans. According to International Business Times, the 26-year-old actress had always believed that Elena’s journey would have only been a six-season adventure and for her, she got the journey of her life time.

According to Just Jared, the show’s Executive Producer Julie Plec unknowingly predicted the future of losing one of its main trio last summer during 2014 San Diego Comic-Con, “I think the show will go as long as the actors want the show to go. I know that we’ve got plans for season six, we’ve got plans for season seven. I know that our bosses have plans for seasons eight, nine, and ten.” 

The drama is based on a series of books by L.J. Smith and is produced by Williamson’s Outerbanks Entertainment, Alloy Entertainment, CBS Television Studios and Warner Bros. Television. According to a U.S. Nielsen Ratings Report (TVbythenumbers.com), the pilot episode attracted the largest audience for The CW of any series premiere since the network began in 2006. The first season averaged 3.60 million viewers and following seasons have maintained an audience of over 2 million viewers and remained the most-watched series on the network.

The future of the series in uncertain. Dobrev's leaving will make or break the entire show. Perhaps it will give other characters a chance to step up to the plate and show their stuff. In the meantime, tune in to The CW every Thursday at 8/7c to watch the last four episodes of season six.