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The Vampire Diaries: Julie Plec on CW Hit's Saddest Death and Best Twist!

Exclusive! The executive producer reveals why she misses Matt Davis' character the most and spills on what she wanted to accomplish when writing the landmark ep, airing tonight at 8 p.m.

By Tierney Bricker Jan 23, 2014 4:00 PMTags
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Happy 100th!

After five seasons of shocking twists, sad deaths, epic romances and quippy one-liners, The Vampire Diaries is hitting its milestone 100th episode. And while we've been treating you all week long to interviews with castmembers such as Nina Dobrev, Ian Somerhalder and Paul Wesley, we've saved the best for last: executive producer Julie Plec, the creative (and sometimes evil!) genius behind all of Mystic Falls' mayhem.

We chatted with Plec, who is also busy running The Originals, TVD's breakout hit of a spinoff, at the big 100th Episode Party in Atlanta after production on the landmark episode wrapped, and we got her to reveal which of the CW hit's (many) deaths still hurts her soul and which of the series' (many) twists is her personal favorite. Plus, she teases what she wanted to accomplish with the 100th episode. (Hint: It's a total family reunion!)

Saddest Death: "Oh my god. For me, personally and on the show emotionally, it's Alaric. Matt [Davis] is one of my favorites and it was really sad to see him go. It was really emotional for everyone to shoot as well because it felt like they were all standing there in that cemetery saying goodbye to him. It's something no one really wanted to do, no one wanted to say goodbye to Alaric. It was right for the story, right for the character, and that one is always going to hurt my heart a little bit. But I love all my deaths equally."

Favorite Twist: "My favorite twist without a doubt is Katherine in the kitchen with Uncle John and the fingers. Kevin [Williamson] pitched that about halfway through season one and we all just fell out of our chairs. I don't know how anybody in television could ever really top that twist, but we've had some doozies."

As for what Plec was hoping to accomplish when she sat down to write the milestone episode, she spilled that two things were on her mind.

"It was a combo platter in writing it. We wanted to be true to the story and what it was in the development of the season, but we also really wanted to find really beautiful clever ways to not just service the audience, who've been so committed and dedicated to us, but the people who have worked so hard with us over the years," she said "There are some friendly faces that maybe we found a way to work into the episode. We kind of had a family celebration, shooting it, writing it, being here [at the 100th episode party]."

Two of those friendly faces? We can reveal Joseph Morgan makes an appearance as Klaus (and will share screen time with Caroline only) and Michael Trevino as Tyler, who was last seen in New Orleans on The Originals.

For more scoop on The Vampire Diaries' 100th episode, check out our weeklong celebration, which featured interviews with the cast!

Nina Dobrev revealed her true feeling on the show's epic love triangle and why Damon and Elena's breakup made her laugh, while Ian Somerhalder talked about why he enjoyed the first season the most. Paul Wesley shared his two favorite scenes of the series (One is a major Stelena moment!) and Steven R. McQueen, Zach Roerig and Michael Trevino told us why they were surprised to see their characters make it to 100 episodes. Plus, Kat Graham and Candice Accola looked back on filming the pilot six years ago.

After you watch (and cry over) the 100th episode, check back with us for exclusive scoop from Julie Plec on what's ahead!

The Vampire Diaries airs tonight at 8 p.m. on the CW.