Ian Somerhalder is in a TV series about bloodsuckers and he’s not playing a vampire? It’s a new era for “Vampire Diaries” fans, and the actor who once played the troubled Damon Salvatore is seeing how the humans live in “V Wars.” The Nexflix addition to vampire lore is playing with the usual uninfected versus infected narrative.
Spanning ten episodes, the series focuses on two friends who find very different viewpoints when an infection spreads. This time, Somerhalder takes on the role of the “uninfected” of the two, Dr. Luther Swann. The friend with an appetite for human prey, Michael Fayne(Adrian Holmes), presents the other side and, of course, creates a moral dilemma for the doctor. Meanwhile, the entire world seems to be splitting into social groups as the new vampires spread their new addiction to others. While Swann is working to find a cure, Fayne is trying to control this new world.
If all of this sounds familiar, it should. The story itself comes from a popular series of books featuring Jonathan Mayberry along with other contributors. No word if Netflix will continue with the V Wars collection, but there are a few more volumes available that show the aftermath as time passes. With everything from “The Strain” to “True Blood,” combining the human and vamp connections, this series has to work even harder to make itself stand out from the rest.
In a nod to past franchises and Somerhalder’s own life, the series also teases an appearance by his wife, Nikki Reed. Since they’ve both been a part of their creature features with previous projects, seeing them together should interest fans — no word on which side Reed’s character will take in this supposed blood conflict. If her role is a brief cameo, the show’s fate also rests in a cast of Canadian actors in leading roles. Adrian Holmes, Laura Vandervoort, and Peter Outerbridge round out the lead roles this season. The three have been seen in a myriad of films and TV shows.
Find out if the series changes the genre or just plays by the usual rules when “V Wars” debuts on December 5 on Netflix.
