THE VAMPIRE DIARIES: Julie Plec Talks Fallout From Jeremy’s Memory Wipe, Damon-Elena-Stefan and More

There’s a brand new episode of THE VAMPIRE DIARIES tonight, and between the fallout from Jeremy leaving and Damon and Elena’s kiss, there will be a lot of things going down.

To try and get some scoop on what’s to come, I tracked down TVD executive producer Julie Plec to see what she could tease…

In last week’s episode, Elena had Damon wipe Jeremy’s memory away and then she sent him off to presumably live a safe life. What’s next for that storyline?
Julie Plec: One of the things that happen when we air [Thursday] night is Elena has to break the news to Bonnie. In the spirit of honesty, she tells her. Bonnie’s reaction is actually not as supportive as she thought it would be. And there’s a concern — that Bonnie expresses — that what Elena has done is not the best thing for Jeremy. And Elena has to think about, “Did I make the right decision?” And then she has to kind defend that decision. So by the end of [Thursday] night, we’ll kind of know what Jeremy’s fate is as far as where he’s going to be and for how long. But it’s not an easy decision for Elena to make. And then there’s everything else that’s going on in town.

Things are never calm in Mystic Falls.
JP: Things are never calm in Mystic Falls and [Thursday] night, things are heated way up. Stefan takes his frustration out on Klaus in a pretty extreme way, and he uses Elena as a little bit of a bargaining chip. Certainly in the context of their relationship, which was always about support and respect, is not a good thing and it really cuts her deep. And it brings up a lot of stuff, [including] a moment that they haven’t really had in a long time, which is they have it out a little bit: about what he’s been doing and how he’s been acting and what’s become of him. And it’s a really powerful moment, for her especially, and for the two of them.

They’ve both been hiding behind their individual relationships with Damon, in a way, rather than confronting each other.
JP: I think what happened is a result of Stefan’s predicament and Stefan’s sacrifice, and the fallout of that is that he wasn’t there. And…Elena was able to develop an intimacy and a friendship and get a support structure that Stefan used to provide her. And I think it took Elena by surprise to suddenly find herself trusting this person, and wanting to rely on Damon in ways that she’s not usually willing to rely on other people for. So it’s a nice feeling for her to start looking at Damon that way, and also, it certainly doesn’t come without a fallout.

This is nerdy, but the way you’re describing the Damon/Elena/Stefan triangle reminds me a bit of DAWSON’S CREEK season 3, when Pacey and Joey really formed a friendship because Dawson pushed her away.
JP: Yes, that’s true. That’s true! Somebody tweeted at me, “Pacey and Joey’s been done already, don’t be a hack that repeats yourself.” Or something like that. Something horrible. [Laughs] I was just like, all right, everybody simmer down. It’s not the same. There’s no rule in the love triangle paradigm that says the first guy is not the last guy, or the second guy is the end game. There’s no rules…you see it, you let these relationships play out the way that the story leads them. You don’t force the story anywhere. And I think that’s one of the reasons this particular love triangle has so many levels — as Elena grows up, who she loves and why she loves them and how she feels about it is part of her journey.

And technically, you could argue the best thing for Elena would be for her to end up with neither brother and to have a “normal” life away from them.
JP: There’s definitely an argument to be made for her to end up with neither. There’s plenty of arguments for each brother. We have to see how she keeps growing up and what these relationships keep meaning for her.

Speaking of those relationships, what’s the fallout going to be from last week’s big kiss between Damon and Elena?
JP: The fallout from the kiss is going to be interesting to see…how Elena feels about it versus how Damon feels about it. And we will know their feelings pretty clearly as of the first 30 seconds of the episode. And then we’ll go from there.

Aside from Jeremy’s departure, what is Bonnie up to?
JP: Bonnie is on a journey of her own. She’s been getting some messages through her dreams, and those messages are going to lead her to a surprising person, which is her mother, who she actually hasn’t seen in 15 years. She left her a long time ago. And that’s played by the actress, Persia White, who is stunning and talented. And it’s fun to see us dig into Bonnie’s personal life and really explore other sides of her character and her character’s past. Kat [Graham (Bonnie)]’s doing a great job.

Caroline and Tyler aren’t in a great place right now, and Tyler particularly is pretty much a pawn in Klaus’ game…
JP: Tyler’s not in a good place. Things are not going well for Tyler. Things are certainly not going well for Caroline and Tyler. And whether they get better, how they get better, and when they get better is to be seen.

Before I let you go, will Klaus be doing anything else that is deliciously evil?
JP: Klaus is always evil. And he’s also kind of tragic, too. I think we’re going to be seeing both sides of that character a lot in the coming episodes. In fact, we’re really going to see Joseph Morgan as Klaus do some pretty awesome stuff.

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Will you be tuning in tonight?

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