Jessica Jones returns in Daredevil: Born Again season 2 — Charlie Cox previews the war for New Yo...

&34;A lot of dark moments and tragic events&34; are in Matt Murdock's future, according to star Charlie Cox and Marvel TV's Brad Winderbaum. Jessica Jones returns in Daredevil: Born Again season 2 — Charlie Cox previews the war for New York (exclusive) &34;A lot of dark moments and tragic events&34; are in Matt Murdock's future, according to star Charlie Cox and Marvel TV's Brad Winderbaum. By Nick Romano :maxbytes(150000):stripicc()/NicholasRomanoauthorphotoadc9b60763e34711935cbf7b3d768d24.jpg) Nick Romano is a senior editor at with 15 years of journalism experience covering entertainment.

"A lot of dark moments and tragic events" are in Matt Murdock's future, according to star Charlie Cox and Marvel TV's Brad Winderbaum.

Jessica Jones returns in Daredevil: Born Again season 2 — Charlie Cox previews the war for New York (exclusive)

"A lot of dark moments and tragic events" are in Matt Murdock's future, according to star Charlie Cox and Marvel TV's Brad Winderbaum.

By Nick Romano

Nick Romano is a senior editor at ** with 15 years of journalism experience covering entertainment. His work previously appeared in *Vanity Fair*, Vulture, IGN, and more.

EW's editorial guidelines

December 18, 2025 12:00 p.m. ET

Leave a Comment

Krysten Ritter and Charlie Cox on 'Daredevil: Born Again'. Credit:

Jojo Whilden/MARVEL

- Krysten Ritter's Jessica Jones is back in EW's exclusive sneak peek at *Daredevil: Born Again *season 2.

- Matthew Lillard's Mr. Charles and Lili Taylor's Governor Marge McCaffrey debut in first-look photos.

- Charlie Cox and Marvel TV head Brad Winderbaum preview the war for the soul of New York City.

It was only in the aftermath of *The Defenders*, that miniseries event on Netflix in 2017, that Charlie Cox realized how much Marvel fans were responding to the dynamic between his character, Matt Murdock, and Krysten Ritter's Jessica Jones.

"Just by the nature of who Jessica is and who Matt is, they both give as much as they get," the actor tells **. "I'm not sure we were aware of it when we were shooting it. So we've been really waiting for this opportunity for so long now to put these two on screen together and have more fun with them."

The time is now. Ritter's Jessica Jones is officially back in Mr. Murdock's orbit, as revealed in EW's exclusive first look at the character on next year's *Daredevil: Born Again* season 2.

Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock, Deborah Ann Woll as Karen Page on 'Daredevil: Born Again' season 2.

Jojo Whilden/MARVEL

In the season 1 finale, Mayor Wilson Fisk (Vincent D'Onofrio) took over New York City, outlawed vigilantism, and painted the Man Without Fear as America's Most Wanted. Now Matt is in Nick Fury mode, assembling his own team capable of overthrowing this tyrant — hence the arrival of Ritter's wise-ass strongwoman sleuth who can drink all of Manhattan under the table.

Specifics of Ritter's role remain under wraps, but Brad Winderbaum, the head of Marvel Television, confirms it's comparable to the presence of Jon Bernthal's Punisher in season 1. Cox adds, "We both talked about it being important to play some of the hits, as it were, make sure that we have that same dynamic. Tongue in cheek, take the piss out of each other, but also get down to business and make sure that we're serving the story appropriately."

Jessica Jones returns in 'Daredevil: Born Again' season 2 footage at New York Comic Con

'Wonder Man,' 'Daredevil: Born Again' season 2, 'X-Men '97' previewed by Marvel (exclusive)

If season 1 chronicled Fisk's rise to power, season 2 becomes about what it takes to maintain that power. A small amount of time has passed since that last finale, but the city remains under lockdown. Winderbaum teases "a lot of heavy themes," and "a lot of dark moments and tragic events" are on the way. "Daredevil is a revolutionary in this season," the Marvel boss says. "He's a rebel and it's fun to see him go up against the power of the city."

Governor Marge McCaffrey (Lili Taylor), Wilson Fisk (Vincent D'Onofrio), and Vanessa Fisk (Ayelet Zurer) on 'Daredevil: Born Again' season 2.

Jojo Whilden/MARVEL

Showrunner Dario Scardapane used the French Revolution as a common reference during filming, though the rebellion takes longer than the audience (and Matt himself) might expect. "It feels like one misstep and loved ones disappear. You are taken, there's no way out," Cox describes of this new reality. "It's a very claustrophobic world."

Deborah Ann Woll's Karen Page takes a more prominent part than her season 1 turn. It's a lot of conversations in secret hideouts and incognito disguises. (Note her wig work!) In Cox's eyes, "Her role is the best it's ever been. She is a badass in season 2. We get to see a side of Karen Page which I think Charlie and also Matt Murdock have always known is beneath that surface."

Elden Henson also returns as Foggy Nelson. Though the character remains six feet under, the loss continues to cast a shadow over the masked Daredevil. And what about Punisher? Last time we saw him, Frank Castle escaped Fisk's secret prison and set off into the unknown.

Wilson Fisk (Vincent D'Onofrio), Vanessa Fisk (Ayelet Zurer), Mr. Charles (Matthew Lillard) on 'Daredevil: Born Again' season 2.

Jojo Whilden/MARVEL

***Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our EW Dispatch newsletter.***

"The less I say the better," Winderbaum says. However, he does divulge, "The Punisher TV special really does connect into the time and place that *Daredevil: Born Again* season 2 takes place." Bernthal is currently at work developing a one-off Punisher TV event with *We Own This City* director Reinaldo Marcus Green for Disney+.**

Among the new players on the chessboard are Matthew Lillard and Lili Taylor (both shown in EW's photo reveals). Lillard's Mr. Charles, another power player in Fisk's orbit, is a "delicious" part, Cox describes, though the actor admittedly doesn't share scenes with him. Taylor, meanwhile, portrays New York's Governor Marge McCaffrey.

According to Winderbaum, seasons 1 and 2 are two sides of the same coin flip. The team is also well underway developing season 3, "It all feels like one story," he says. "It is one giant, amazing tapestry that Dario is weaving together here in this New York landscape."

*Daredevil: Born Again* returns in March on Disney+.

- Film Worlds & Fandoms

- Marvel Universe

Original Article on Source

Source: "EW Marvel"

Read More

---

Source: Marvel

Published: December 19, 2025 at 07:38AM on Source: RED MAG

#ShowBiz#Sports#Celebrities#Lifestyle

byRed Roads Media

in

10:00 PM

Jessica Jones returns in Daredevil: Born Again season 2 — Charlie Cox previews the war for New Yo...

&34;A lot of dark moments and tragic events&34; are in Matt Murdock's future, according to star Charlie Cox and M...

Read More

The filmmaker calls Jack Champion's liveaction character the glue between Jake (Sam Worthington) and Quaritch (Stephen Lang). James Cameron tried writing Avatar sequels without Spider — why 'it all fell apart' The filmmaker calls Jack Champion's liveaction character the glue between Jake (Sam Worthington) and Quaritch (Stephen Lang). By Nick Romano :maxbytes(150000):stripicc()/NicholasRomanoauthorphotoadc9b60763e34711935cbf7b3d768d24.jpg) Nick Romano is a senior editor at with 15 years of journalism experience covering entertainment.

The filmmaker calls Jack Champion's live-action character the glue between Jake (Sam Worthington) and Quaritch (Stephen Lang).

James Cameron tried writing Avatar sequels without Spider — why 'it all fell apart'

The filmmaker calls Jack Champion's live-action character the glue between Jake (Sam Worthington) and Quaritch (Stephen Lang).

By Nick Romano

Nick Romano is a senior editor at ** with 15 years of journalism experience covering entertainment. His work previously appeared in *Vanity Fair*, Vulture, IGN, and more.

EW's editorial guidelines

December 17, 2025 5:30 p.m. ET

Leave a Comment

Jack Champion's Spider in 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'. Credit:

- James Cameron explains why he tried writing the *Avatar* sequels without Jack Champion's Spider, the only live-action character.

- The filmmaker says 'it all fell apart,' citing Spider as the glue between Jake (Sam Worthington) and Quaritch (Stephen Lang).

- Cameron originally had other plans for Spider's transformation that would allow him to breathe the air of Pandora.

Can you imagine *Avatar* without Spider? Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña) sure can, but it could've been a reality.

James Cameron, the Oscar-winning writer-director behind the blockbuster film franchise, recalls to ** how he attempted to write the story of 2022's *Avatar: The Way of Water*, this month's *Avatar: Fire and Ash*, and the two future sequels without Jack Champion's character.

"We knew it was gonna be hard to shoot an actor in live action and surround that character with all these people that are twice his size [in performance-capture suits]," Cameron remembers. "I knew it was gonna be all kinds of scale stuff and it was gonna be horrific to do, which it was. I tried to write him out, and it didn't work. It all fell apart because now Jake and Quaritch are only just two guys trying to kill each other. It's too simple."

Sam Worthington's Jake Sully and Stephen Lang's General Quaritch have been archenemies since the first *Avatar* of 2009. Champion's Spider came along in the second film as the human child Quaritch conceived before his human body died and his previously digitized consciousness was uploaded into a new synthetic Na'vi form. Spider is also the unofficial fifth child of the Sully family, though Neytiri despises all Sky People, a.k.a. humans.

Quaritch (Stephen Lang) in 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'.

"If they are entangled through this kid that Jake has raised, as Quaritch tries to define his identity as this reincarnation of a former person whose memories he's imprinted with, part of his identity is as the father of this boy," Cameron explains. "So it becomes important to him in his own identity quest to try to be that father. Now, Spider doesn't want the enemy of the people that he loves to be his father. In movie 3, we see that dance, that father-son relationship continuing, but that puts Jake and Quaritch into an odd alliance."

*Avatar: Fire and Ash*, in theaters this Friday, picks up shortly after the events of *Avatar: The Way of Water*. The Sullys are still in the traditional Na'vi mourning period after the loss of Neteyam (Jamie Flatters), their eldest son who died during the events of the last film. Though, neither Jake nor Neytiri are processing it well.

James Cameron and 'Avatar: Fire and Ash' cast and crew break down the voyage of the Wind Traders

'Avatar: Fire and Ash' star Oona Chaplin shares villainous Varang's backstory

Quaritch and the RDA continue their onslaughts against the Na'vi people, but now a new threat is introduced: the Ash People, a volcanic Na'vi clan led by the relentless Varang (Oona Chaplin), who accepts the destructive power of fire as her new deity.

Spider's role becomes even more important. Certain events transpire that allow him to breathe the air of Pandora, which is typically toxic to humans, in addition to growing his own "queue" that allows him to connect with other creatures and the environment the way Na'vi do. This makes him exceptionally valuable to the RDA, which is trying to make the planet habitable for themselves.

When it comes to that story breakthrough, Cameron says, "It just seemed like you want to see hope for humans. They just can't all be tarred with a broad brush as being evil. It's a movie made by humans for a human audience, let's face it."

Spider (Jack Champion) gains the ability to breathe Pandoran air in 'Avatar: Fire and Ash'.

***Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our EW Dispatch newsletter.***

Spider's evolution stems from how *Avatar* 2 and 3 were originally designed as one movie.

Cameron spent a year trying to crack the first act of the story, while two other scribes tackled acts 2 and 3. "Spider's transformation that takes place now in *Fire and Ash* was in the first act, and it never worked," he says, "because I was stuck in this paradigm that everything that happens in the forest has to play out in the forest. It only occurred to me later, 'Well, they can fly over a forest anytime they want to and wind up back in the forest.'"

The filmmaker sees it as "this crazy hat trick" of getting an audience to root against humankind by telling the story through Na'vi eyes. He now sees this development with Spider as "an invitation for us to reconnect with nature right here in our own world."

"It allows us, as a human audience, to step outside ourselves and look at us from that perspective of nature and what we are doing in the collective," he explains. "That's interesting, but we've gotta also embed hope and aspiration within that. Wouldn't we all love to be Spider and be able to connect with Pandora and be able to connect with those creatures?"**

- Movie Reviews & Recommendations

- Sci-Fi & Fantasy Movies

Original Article on Source

Source: "EW Sci-Fi"

Read More

---

Source: Sci-Fi

Published: December 19, 2025 at 07:38AM on Source: RED MAG

#ShowBiz#Sports#Celebrities#Lifestyle

byRed Roads Media

in

10:00 PM

James Cameron tried writing Avatar sequels without Spider — why 'it all fell apart'

The filmmaker calls Jack Champion's liveaction character the glue between Jake (Sam Worthington) and Quaritch (Stephen Lan...

Read More

Also, Julie Plec reveals why Bamon never happened. Vampire Diaries boss reveals the real reason they killed Katherine in season 5 Also, Julie Plec reveals why Bamon never happened. By Samantha Highfill :maxbytes(150000):stripicc()/SamanthaHighfillauthorphoto0917254112e875604542d49744a27de908d183.jpg) Samantha Highfill Samantha Highfill is an executive editor at , where she's worked for more than 12 years covering television. EW's editorial guidelines August 18, 2021 9:00 a.m. ET Katherine Pierce was a staple of the Vampire Diaries universe.

Also, Julie Plec reveals why Bamon never happened.

Vampire Diaries boss reveals the real reason they killed Katherine in season 5

Also, Julie Plec reveals why Bamon never happened.

By Samantha Highfill

Samantha Highfill

Samantha Highfill is an executive editor at **, where she's worked for more than 12 years covering television.

EW's editorial guidelines

August 18, 2021 9:00 a.m. ET

Katherine Pierce was a staple of the *Vampire Diaries* universe. But at one point in the series, the writers had to fight to tell more of her story.

"We had to negotiate for the right to let Nina [Dobrev] play Katherine again because the season 2 Katherine [story] had really taken everything out of her and the network was being very protective," executive producer Julie Plec says about the show's fifth season during episode 5 of *EW's Binge: The Vampire Diaries*. "[The network] and studio were being very protective and they were like, 'You can't do that anymore, you can't have Katherine.'"

On an earlier episode of the podcast, Dobrev spoke about how exhausted she was at the end of season 2, the first season in which she played both Elena and Katherine in the present day. So when it came time to make Katherine human and even introduce a third Petrova doppelgänger, the writers had to get creative. "We had to basically beg the network to let us even write story for Katherine," Plec says, noting that "the triplegänger made the whole thing worth it."

Nina Dobrev as Katherine Pierce on 'The Vampire Diaries'. Tina Rowden/The CW

Fans will remember that season 5 featured Katherine taking over Elena's body, which meant that for a good chunk of the season, Dobrev only had one character to play. And then, eventually, Katherine met her demise, a decision that also came about following those negotiations. "I literally think we had to say we'll kill her in order to get permission to use her," Plec recalls.

Additionally, during the podcast, Plec discusses the choice to have Bonnie (Kat Graham) and Damon (Ian Somerhalder) be the two characters who "die" together at the end of season 5, which led to a discussion about Bamon, the popular ship. "Bonnie and Damon had a thing in the books we had sort of always said, 'We don't buy a romantic connection between Bonnie and Damon because Damon's just done too many terrible things and Bonnie just has more integrity than that,'" Plec says. "But we wanted to service that relationship in the canon a little bit."

For more about season 5—and the series overall—listen to the full episode below:

**To listen, subscribe to *EW's Binge: The Vampire Diaries* feed via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also subscribe to EW's YouTube page to catch all the video interviews and stay tuned to EW.com.**

**Related content:**

- *Vampire Diaries* bosses on the 'controversial' sire bond and the role Pedro Pascal auditioned for

- *Vampire Diaries* boss Julie Plec explains why Klaroline could never happen today

- *Vampire Diaries* star Paul Wesley on Stelena's season 2 split: I was 'dealing with my own stuff' on screen

- *Vampire Diaries* creators talk season 1 Katherine twist, the fan response that left them 'aghast'

- Sci-Fi & Fantasy Shows

Original Article on Source

Source: "EW Sci-Fi"

Read More

---

Source: Sci-Fi

Published: December 19, 2025 at 04:19AM on Source: RED MAG

#ShowBiz#Sports#Celebrities#Lifestyle

byRed Roads Media

in

7:01 PM

Vampire Diaries boss reveals the real reason they killed Katherine in season 5

Also, Julie Plec reveals why Bamon never happened. Vampire Diaries boss reveals the real reason they killed Katherine...

Read More

Vampire Diaries star Ian Somerhalder reveals why he was jealous of Chris Wood's Kai By Samantha Highfill :maxbytes(150000):stripicc()/SamanthaHighfillauthorphoto0917254112e875604542d49744a27de908d183.jpg) Samantha Highfill Samantha Highfill is an executive editor at , where she's worked for more than 12 years covering television. EW's editorial guidelines August 20, 2021 9:00 a.m. ET The Vampire Diaries creators have talked a lot about the importance of a great villain for the series, and in its later seasons, there was one villain that stood out among the rest: Kai Parker (Chris Wood).

Vampire Diaries star Ian Somerhalder reveals why he was jealous of Chris Wood's Kai

By Samantha Highfill

Samantha Highfill

Samantha Highfill is an executive editor at **, where she's worked for more than 12 years covering television.

EW's editorial guidelines

August 20, 2021 9:00 a.m. ET

The* Vampire Diaries* creators have talked a lot about the importance of a great villain for the series, and in its later seasons, there was one villain that stood out among the rest: Kai Parker (Chris Wood). Introduced in season 6, the sociopathic siphoner quickly became a favorite in the *TVD* fandom, and for Ian Somerhalder, whose Damon Salvatore was the series' first villain, Kai marked a significant shift for the show.

In episode 6 of *EW's Binge: The Vampire Diaries*, Somerhalder recalls his hesitation about Damon becoming a good — or at least better — guy in the show's third season. "I was so upset about the trajectory of Damon," Somerhalder says. "So much so that at one point I was sitting across from [executive producer] Julie [Plec] in her office in Atlanta almost in tears so angry about this."

Plec, along with her co-creator Kevin Williamson, explained that Damon couldn't be what they called a "one trick pony," that he was going to be the villain at times and the hero at others. But that's precisely why Somerhalder says he was jealous of what Chris Wood got to do as Kai in season 6. "That's why I was always so in love with what Chris Wood was doing on screen, because up until that moment, there was never a character in the show, other than Stefan in the Ripper age, that actually had the ability to not be so serious, to do horrific things but do it with a smile," Somerhalder says.

As far as Wood's inspiration for Kai, Wood, who's also on the podcast, says, "We talked about Ted Bundy if he was really funny. It was the worst person in the world who's also like maybe a good hang if you can get him to shut up for a second. That was sort of what I was always going for."

For more listen to the full podcast episode, featuring Somerhalder, Wood and executive producer Julie Plec, below:

**To listen, subscribe to *EW's Binge: The Vampire Diaries* feed via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also subscribe to EW's YouTube page to catch all the video interviews, and stay tuned to EW.com.**

**Related content:**

- *Vampire Diaries* boss reveals the real reason they killed Katherine in season 5

- *Vampire Diaries* bosses on the 'controversial' sire bond and the role Pedro Pascal auditioned for

- *Vampire Diaries* boss Julie Plec explains why Klaroline could never happen today

- *Vampire Diaries* star Paul Wesley on Stelena's season 2 split: I was 'dealing with my own stuff' on screen

- Sci-Fi & Fantasy Shows

Original Article on Source

Source: "EW Sci-Fi"

Read More

---

Source: Sci-Fi

Published: December 19, 2025 at 04:19AM on Source: RED MAG

#ShowBiz#Sports#Celebrities#Lifestyle

byRed Roads Media

in

7:01 PM

Vampire Diaries star Ian Somerhalder reveals why he was jealous of Chris Wood's Kai

Vampire Diaries star Ian Somerhalder reveals why he was jealous of Chris Wood's Kai By Samantha Highfill :maxbytes...

Read More

Vampire Diaries writers and Candice King discuss the 'most bananas' season 7 twist By Samantha Highfill :maxbytes(150000):stripicc()/SamanthaHighfillauthorphoto0917254112e875604542d49744a27de908d183.jpg) Samantha Highfill Samantha Highfill is an executive editor at , where she's worked for more than 12 years covering television. EW's editorial guidelines August 25, 2021 9:00 a.m. ET Over the course of its eight seasons, The Vampire Diaries' mythology changed every now and then to fit a certain story.

Vampire Diaries writers and Candice King discuss the 'most bananas' season 7 twist

By Samantha Highfill

Samantha Highfill

Samantha Highfill is an executive editor at **, where she's worked for more than 12 years covering television.

EW's editorial guidelines

August 25, 2021 9:00 a.m. ET

Over the course of its eight seasons, *The Vampire Diaries*' mythology changed every now and then to fit a certain story. But in its seventh season, the show delivered its biggest change from its established mythology when, suddenly, Caroline (Candice King) became pregnant via a magical transfer. Even though she was a vampire, she was somehow carrying Alaric (Matthew Davis) and Jo's (Jodi Lyn O'Keefe) twins.

The twist was something the writers thought up as a way to soften the tragedy at the end of season 6 when Kai (Chris Wood) killed Jo and her unborn children—on her wedding day, no less. "We had always left that [story thread] hanging on instinct," writer Neil Reynolds says during episode 7 of *EW's Binge: The Vampire Diaries*.

Executive producer Julie Plec adds, "Because of the tragedy of the twins and Jo dying and looking for story for Alaric for the season, we had separately come up with the story of the woman who knocks on his door and is like, 'I think I'm pregnant with your babies.'" But the writers weren't sure if that twist was *too* crazy, so they didn't originally plan to go there. Until star Candice King called to let them know she was pregnant. "I was very nervous to make that call," King says on the podcast.

Candice King on 'The Vampire Diaries'. Bob Mahoney/The CW

Ultimately, the writers decided to work in King's pregnancy and use the aforementioned story, only instead of a random woman showing up pregnant, Caroline would carry Ric's kids. Plec remembers warning CW president Mark Pedowitz about "the most bananas thing" she was ever going to pitch him at the time, but surprisingly, he wasn't fazed. And thus Caroline's pregnancy became part of the series and will always go down as one of the show's most unexpected turns.

For more about season 7, listen to the full episode of the podcast below:

**To listen, subscribe to *EW's Binge: The Vampire Diaries* feed via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also subscribe to EW's YouTube page to catch all the video interviews, and stay tuned to EW.com.**

**Related content:**

- *Vampire Diaries* star Ian Somerhalder reveals why he was jealous of Chris Wood's Kai

- *Vampire Diaries* boss reveals the real reason they killed Katherine in season 5

- *Vampire Diaries* bosses on the 'controversial' sire bond and the role Pedro Pascal auditioned for

- *Vampire Diaries* boss Julie Plec explains why Klaroline could never happen today

Original Article on Source

Source: "EW Teen"

Read More

---

Source: Teen

Published: December 19, 2025 at 04:19AM on Source: RED MAG

#ShowBiz#Sports#Celebrities#Lifestyle

byRed Roads Media

in

7:01 PM

Vampire Diaries writers and Candice King discuss the 'most bananas' season 7 twist

Vampire Diaries writers and Candice King discuss the 'most bananas' season 7 twist By Samantha Highfill :maxby...

Read More

Listen to the final episode of EW's Binge: Vampire Diaries podcast. Vampire Diaries bosses on casting Enzo as a Salvatore brother and Damon's fate in the finale Listen to the final episode of EW's Binge: Vampire Diaries podcast. By Samantha Highfill :maxbytes(150000):stripicc()/SamanthaHighfillauthorphoto0917254112e875604542d49744a27de908d183.jpg) Samantha Highfill Samantha Highfill is an executive editor at , where she's worked for more than 12 years covering television. EW's editorial guidelines August 27, 2021 9:00 a.m.

Listen to the final episode of EW's Binge: Vampire Diaries podcast.

Vampire Diaries bosses on casting Enzo as a Salvatore brother and Damon's fate in the finale

Listen to the final episode of EW's Binge: Vampire Diaries podcast.

By Samantha Highfill

Samantha Highfill

Samantha Highfill is an executive editor at **, where she's worked for more than 12 years covering television.

EW's editorial guidelines

August 27, 2021 9:00 a.m. ET

For *The Vampire Diaries* creatives, casting Enzo was a particularly difficult task. Because originally, the role was going to be very different.

"You were supposed to be the third Salvatore brother," executive producer Julie Plec tells star Michael Malarkey in episode 8 of *EW's Binge: The Vampire Diaries*. Writer Brett Matthews adds, "That was always the plan, and then it went a different direction, but that's why it was so hard to find the person. We thought it was going to be a Salvatore brother, so we cast a very wide net [and] looked very hard." Ultimately, they scrapped that plan and made it so Enzo didn't share Salvatore blood, but he was a brother figure for Damon (Ian Somerhalder) for many years (and he was sired by Lily Salvatore).

But that wasn't the only plan that changed in the writers' room over the years. In discussing the *Vampire Diaries*' final season, Plec and Matthews recall the final major debate: Which Salvatore were they going to kill in the series finale? "We went back and forth in the writers' room all season long," Plec says. "We finally landed on: We're killing Damon. That's the right thing to do. He is the one with the consequence to pay. Stefan was morally a bit stronger of a character."

Michael Malarkey as Enzo and Ian Somerhalder as Damon on 'The Vampire Diaries'. Annette Brown/The CW; Bob Mahoney/The CW

Matthews adds, "Damon's a fairly obvious choice," noting that the writers really fell in love with the idea of Damon compelling Stefan (Paul Wesley) to let him die. But when executive producer Kevin Williamson proposed that it should be Stefan that dies, they started to rethink their plan. "It felt like dying for Stefan freed him from a lot of weight, whereas it felt like living for Damon freed him to go and be the man that he was always supposed to be," Plec says.

Of course, both Salvatores were meant to die in the original ending Plec and Williamson came up with during the show's second season. In that ending, "The boys would sacrifice themselves to save Elena so that Elena could go and have a life and be human and live," Plec recalls during the podcast. "To save her, they would die together, and that was always the pitch. And then when Nina [Dobrev] left, it felt like the show can't be as much about protecting Elena's happiness, although that's important to us, but we want to protect the bothers' happiness, we want them to get something out of this. Then it shifted to: We can't kill both of them for her because that feels somehow like nobody got what they wanted. Let's find a different way to give one of these brothers the happiness that they need and the other brother the closure that they need."

(One other way Dobrev leaving changed the plan? Plec says, "I thought that by the time we came back to the end of the series, whenever it was, that Elena would've found her way back to Stefan and Damon would've found a different path.")

For more about the final season, listen to the full podcast episode below:

**To listen, subscribe to *EW's Binge: The Vampire Diaries* feed via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also subscribe to EW's YouTube page to catch all the video interviews, and stay tuned to EW.com.**

**Related content:**

- *Vampire Diaries* star Ian Somerhaldher reveals why he was jealous of Chris Wood's Kai

- *Vampire Diaries* boss reveals the real reason they killed Katherine in season 5

- *Vampire Diaries* bosses on the 'controversial' sire bond and the role Pedro Pascal auditioned for

- *Vampire Diaries* boss Julie Plec explains why Klaroline could never happen today

- Sci-Fi & Fantasy Shows

Original Article on Source

Source: "EW Sci-Fi"

Read More

---

Source: Sci-Fi

Published: December 19, 2025 at 04:19AM on Source: RED MAG

#ShowBiz#Sports#Celebrities#Lifestyle

byRed Roads Media

in

7:01 PM

Vampire Diaries bosses on casting Enzo as a Salvatore brother and Damon's fate in the finale

Listen to the final episode of EW's Binge: Vampire Diaries podcast. Vampire Diaries bosses on casting Enzo as a Sal...

Read More

Left-hander Caleb Ferguson and Reds finalize $4.5 million, 1-year contract

Lefthander Caleb Ferguson and Reds finalize $4.5 million, 1year contract December 19, 2025 at 4:45 AM 0 FILE Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Caleb Ferguson throws against the San Diego Padres during the sixth inning of a baseball game Aug. 26, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File) () CINCINNATI (AP) — Lefthander Caleb Ferguson and the Cincinnati Reds finalized a $4.5 million, oneyear contract on Thursday. The 29yearold was 54 with a 3.58 ERA in a careerhigh 70 games last season for Pittsburgh and Seattle, which acquired him on July 30 for minor league righthander Jeter Martinez.

- - Left-hander Caleb Ferguson and Reds finalize $4.5 million, 1-year contract

December 19, 2025 at 4:45 AM

0

FILE - Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Caleb Ferguson throws against the San Diego Padres during the sixth inning of a baseball game Aug. 26, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File) ()

CINCINNATI (AP) — Left-hander Caleb Ferguson and the Cincinnati Reds finalized a $4.5 million, one-year contract on Thursday.

The 29-year-old was 5-4 with a 3.58 ERA in a career-high 70 games last season for Pittsburgh and Seattle, which acquired him on July 30 for minor league right-hander Jeter Martinez. His strikeouts per nine innings dropped from 11.1 to 7.0.

Ferguson is 24-17 with a 3.66 ERA and six saves over seven seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers (2018-23), New York Yankees (2024), Houston (2024), the Pirates and Mariners.

He had Tommy John surgery in 2014 and again in September 2020.

Ferguson did not allow a hit in his first 10 postseason appearances.

He had a $3 million, one-year contract this season.

___

AP MLB: https://ift.tt/eXiavlT

Original Article on Source

Source: "AOL Sports"

Read More

---

Source: Sports

Published: December 19, 2025 at 01:27AM on Source: RED MAG

#ShowBiz#Sports#Celebrities#Lifestyle

byRed Roads Media

in

4:28 PM

Left-hander Caleb Ferguson and Reds finalize $4.5 million, 1-year contract

Lefthander Caleb Ferguson and Reds finalize $4.5 million, 1year contract December 19, 2025 at 4:45 AM 0 FILE Seattle Mari...

Read More