Ian Somerhalder knows his way around a vampire thanks to eight seasons on The Vampire Diaries and now starring in, directing, and executive producing Netflix's new vampire series V Wars. That said, V Wars is certainly no Vampire Diaries 2.0, and Somerhalder shared his thoughts on why V Wars is more grounded than typical vampire TV shows. Here's how he puts it:
It deals with the things we’re dealing with in our own world right now: borders, racism, disease, fear, politics — the politics of fear. These things aren’t just happening in our echo chambers, they’re happening around the world. And [the vampire virus] comes about as a result of rampant glacial deterioration. Ice is melting and exposing pathogens, viruses and bacteria that could make the bubonic plague look like a chickenpox party.
Sure, V Wars may feature blood-sucking monsters like every vampire TV show before, but nobody who watches V Wars on Netflix will confuse Ian Somerhalder's new character with Damon Salvatore any time soon, and not just because the odds are pretty good that there won't be a love triangle involving two vampire brothers this time around.
Ian Somerhalder's comparison to TVLine of V Wars making the bubonic plague "look like a chicken pox party" certainly paints a vivid picture for those who haven't checked V Wars out yet! If anything, V Wars sounds more like Fox's cancelled vampire series The Passage than anything that has ever aired on The CW, including The Vampire Diaries' two spinoffs.
The Passage also dealt with vampirism more as a disease to be studied and treated than anything else, although it sounds like V Wars leans a lot more into real-world issues with a vampiric twist than go as full-scale supernatural -- no, not that kind of Supernatural -- as The Passage did. Does that mean V Wars is destined for a longer future than The Passage was, as the Fox series got the axe after only one season?
One V Wars star shared thoughts on the potential future for the series, so the ball may be in Netflix's court to determine whether enough subscribers tuned in to warrant at least one more season. A lot of shows have been cancelled pretty quickly on Netflix, but then Netflix could also use another Stranger Things-esque hit.
V Wars has Ian Somerhalder on board as a vampire TV alum (who may have been able to pull some of the Vampire Diaries fandom on board), and I would argue that The Witcher is the only high-profile show with equal or more potential to become Netflix's next big hit.
Of course, Netflix could use more than just two big hits, so there's no need to start pitting V Wars up against The Witcher or any other show. It should just be interesting to see if this more grounded take on a world with vampires is what genre fans have been looking for.
You can catch the full first season of V Wars streaming on Netflix now, along with plenty of other series that hit the streamer over the past year. If you're already looking ahead to next year, our 2020 Netflix premiere schedule is worth a look, as is our 2020 winter and spring TV premiere guide.
