‘The Vampire Diaries’: Ian Somerhalder Once Said He Related to Damon’s Loneliness
When it comes to vampires, you’re talking about the lesser of two evils, literally. When The Vampire Diaries began, Damon (Ian Somerhalder) was presumably the bad boy to Stefan (Paul Wesley). Still, they were both vampires. Embodying the darker side of the equation, Somerhalder said at the time that he found a way to relate to Damon.
Somerhalder was on a Television Critics Panel for The Vampire Diaries’ first season in January 2010. He said tapping into Damon’s loneliness helped him play the character.
Damon was just lonely on ‘The Vampire Diaries’
Damon was feuding with his brother and the love of his life, Katherine (Nina Dobrev), died. Fortunately, Katherine would come back and Stefan would remain entangled in his life. But, eternal life gave Damon a lot of down time.
“Well, to preface it, which is always probably generally a good idea to preface it, that I am not a maniacal killer,” Somerhalder said. “I find some similarities and things I have in common with Damon. Look, the reality of it is, I think this guy, Damon, is a very lonely guy. We all know what it’s like to feel lonely.”
Ian Somerhalder drew on real life for his ‘Vampire Diaries’ conflicts
Somerhalder was only 30 when The Vampire Diaries began. He didn’t know what it was like to live for hundreds of years, drink blood or kill people, but he had experienced some forms of the feelings Damon had.
“There are two relationships that he wants back, his brother and his girl,” Somerhalder said. “And I know what it’s like to fight with my brother, and I know what it’s like to not have my girl. So I think there’s a lot of common denominators between me and him.”
The differences made Damon fun for Ian Somerhalder
All actors say they can’t judge their characters, even actors playing real life historical monsters. So, Somerhalder didn’t judge Damon for his evil deeds.
“And I appreciate him,” Somerhalder said. “I find that I can’t judge him, even though sometimes that’s a bit difficult due to his actions. But I think, to sum it all up, I think he’s doing all of this for love, strangely enough, and he’s just completely justified. And it makes this such a great experience and such a fun thing to do.”
Somerhalder would keep having fun for eight seasons. He thanked Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec, who adapted the L.J. Smith books for the series, for giving him such a fun role.
“More fun than I could ever possibly imagine, the most fun I’ve ever had in my entire run of my career,” Somerhalder said. “And it just continues to be more and more fun every day.”
