FRIENDSGIVING AT WHITMORE COLLEGE / FLASHBACKS TO KAI'S MURDEROUS PAST - As Caroline (Candice Accola) and Elena (Nina Dobrev) prepare to host Friendsgiving at the dorm, they receive some hopeful news from Alaric (Matt Davis) and Stefan (Paul Wesley), who have traveled to Portland to gather some information regarding the Gemini Coven. Tyler (Michael Trevino) is determined to help Liv (guest star Penelope Mitchell) after she and Luke (guest star Chris Brochu) reveal some disturbing information about their witch lineage and the impending plans their coven has for them. Meanwhile, dinner takes a drastic turn when Jo (guest star Jodi Lyn O'Keefe), who has revealed some painful details about her past, finds herself fighting for her life, leaving Alaric scrambling to help from a distance. Finally, Kai (guest star Chris Wood) makes a dangerous discovery that brings him one step closer to his release. Ian Somerhalder and Kat Graham also star. Joshua Butler directed the episode written by Nina Fiore & John Herrera (#608).
After a big time jump, the premiere opens with Bonnie (Kat Graham) and Damon (Ian Somerhalder) still gone. While their whereabouts will be revealed quickly, the question of what happened while they were there will be a season-long arc. Elena (Nina Dobrev) will be grieving over the loss of Damon by making some surprising choices and bonding with Stefan (Paul Wesley) and Alaric (Matt Davis), who does some bonding of his own with a woman he meets. Get ready for a handful of new faces, including a militia leader (Colin Ferguson) and a tough doctor at the university hospital (Jodi Lyn O'Keefe). Matt (Zach Roerig) will be thriving as he gets involved in the new magic-less community, while Tyler (Michael Trevino), now back to a human with the werewolf gene, will return to his testosterone-filled, hard-headed personality. Will he reconnect with Caroline (Candice Accola), whom executive producer Julie Plec says will take the loss of Bonnie and Damon "in a weird way the hardest"?
The Vampire Diaries features:
Nina Dobrev as Elena Gilbert/Katherine Pierce
Paul Wesley as Stefan Salvatore
Ian Somerhalder as Damon Salvatore
Steven R. McQueen as Jeremy Gilbert
Kat Graham as Bonnie Bennett
Candice Accola as Caroline Forbes
Zach Roerig as Matt Donovan
Michael Trevino as Tyler Lockwood
Matt Davis as Alaric Saltzman
Michael Malarkey as Enzo
The Vampire Diaries returns November 20