For those of you who saw last night’s episode of The Originals, you know it ended with a… surprise. For those of you wondering if the change is permanent, we have the answer.
The Originals season 1, episode 16 “Farewell to Storyville” saw the departure of Original vampire Rebekah Mikaelson, and in turn Claire Holt’s departure from the show as a series regular.
According to BuzzFeed it was Holt’s decision to leave the show, and not a creative one. Although she will not be a series regular anymore there are hopes that she will return for future guest appearances.
Rebekah is a fan favorite on The Originals, so we definitely did not see this coming. Ever since her appearance in The Vampire Diaries in 2011 we fell in love with her character, and when the producers saw that they decided to give us an entire show based on her and her family.
Sources close to the actress claim that Holt never intended to play Rebekah for as long as she did, since her character was originally planned for a three-episode arc in The Vampire Diaries. We’re curious how this will change the dynamics of The Originals without Rebekah as the kick-ass Original sister and friend to Haley.
So, if you were hoping that the ending of The Originals was some clever way to get Rebekah out to Mystic Falls or just a temporary move, we’re sad to tell you that this is likely not the case.
This change is especially interesting given that The Originals has been renewed for a second season and now only has two Originals. We’re curious if they plan on introducing The Other Side to this show, like it’s relevant on The Vampire Diaries, and bring back Kol or Finn. It would be odd to have a show all about the Original family with only two of them left to tell the story.