Hypable attended the fan panel of The Originals where Julie Plec, Joseph Morgan, and the rest of the cast previewed the new CW series. Beware of spoilers reading on.

The panel was composed of executive producer Julie Plec, Joseph Morgan (Klaus), Daniel Gillies (Elijah), Claire Holt (Rebekah), Charles Michael Davis (Marcel), and Phoebe Tonkin (Hayley).

When asked about the idea for the spinoff and the feeling when it was picked off, Plec pointed to her desire to do so due to the love of Daniel Gillis, Joseph Morgan, and Claire Holt. “Half of the magic of television…is the power of the actors. We had to give them the opportunity to tell their own story.”

Morgan on the spinoff stated, “It was tremendously exciting. It was incredibly exciting and rewarding.” He pointed to the fans guessing and wanting the spinoff before the actors knew. Holt warmly stated, “I feel like these people are my family.”

Gillis on the show stated, “I was thrilled when I found out we were doing the show. I can’t believe that Julie can shoulder the burden of both two shows. It’s incredible. It’s a tribute to her…I just feel like the luckiest knucklehead in the world.”

On the first episode, Plec previewed that the first episode was difficult to figure out a concept for as the original pilot was made for The Vampire Diaries. They wanted to retell the pilot as it had been awhile since it originally aired. They are retelling the same series of events as the pilot, where Klaus tries to find out who is conspiring against him with Elijah there to see what he’s up to. It will be from Elijah’s point of view. Plec thinks it will set up the series for people who have not yet seen but also harken back to the pilot.

Rebekah will be in Mystic Falls during the first episode and will appear in The Vampire Diaries to continue her journey. She will head to New Orleans in the second episode of The Originals.

“In our heads Marcel was this glorious larger than life charming strong sexy actor.” Plec praises Davis as fitting the role perfectly and inspiring her. Davis said he was a fan of The Vampire Diaries beforehand and loved its style. He said he wanted to be on The Vampire Diaries beforehand. His weakness, “Women. I wouldn’t say it’s a weakness but rather a guilty pleasure. Any weaknesses? I don’t know. I want to leave that to you to discover.” Morgan said Marcel was too confident.

Plec promised that fans will find out more about Marcel’s backstory and that they will “delve very deeply into them. Plec joked that in one of the flashbacks Morgan is like Captain Morgan and joked about vampirates.

Tonkin said Hayley came to town to look for her family and doesn’t think that Hayley and Klaus intended for the one-night stand to last past one night. Morgan joked that Klaus was lonely and had had “two and a half seasons of celibacy.” Tonkin said that was the first scene that Morgan had his shirt off during the series. “We’re going to explore these two characters who don’t know each other very well. They’re going to have to work together…and look after this child and protect each other and the child.”

Plec pointed to both characters not liking each other but both having not been loved in their lives. Hayley was adopted and then shunned by her adopted parents once she became a werewolf. Klaus, as Vampire Diaries fans know craves love.

Gillies on the importance of family in The Originals pointed to Plec’s common theme on the importance of family “I feel honored that Elijah is quite central to things that are dear to Julie. He holds some place in their collective history together…He wants them to function in the modern world.” In regards to Katherine and Elijah, Gillies said, “He 100% still has feelings for Katherine” but pointed to the importance of family.

Plec noted that there is some unfinished business between The Originals and The Vampire Diaries and looks forward to possible appearances of the actors on both shows.

On Caroline (Candice Accola) and Klaus continuing their relationship Plec said, “Candice as an actress has this magnificent chemistry with everyone.” Plec thought that the two actors just popped together. “If anything, she’s a little like a Buffy to his Angel. She’s made an impact on him.” Morgan thought that the scenes with Candice got to show a different side of Klaus which he was grateful for.

Holt would love to explore Rebekah’s past in New Orleans and her love interests in the past, promising fun wigs during flashbacks.

Davina (Danielle Campbell) is a witch on the shown who serves as one of the main mysteries. Davina is locked in an attic and is extremely powerful. Campbell is a recent high school graduate and Plec praised her as special and beautiful, reminding her of Katie Holmes of Dawson’s Creek.

When asked if Marcel or Klaus was smarter, the two actors agreed to see and wait. Morgan said, “I have to root for Klaus. He has 900 years on Marcel…I don’t know, it depends on what type of smarts you’re talking about.” Davis said Marcel had smarts in “social engineering” while Klaus had smarts in “menacing.” Plec thought both characters were smart and that both shared the Achilles heel of ego and temper.

Plec said that not having books as source material was both scary and exciting as it is the unknown. She said she was lucky as some of the characters on The Originals had a history due to The Vampire Diaries and a built in fan base.

Phoebe said she and Claire made a pact at sixteen that they were always going to work together. They share a trailer on the set of The Originals. Morgan would love to go back to Montreal when asked where else he would like to film, citing the music scene there.

The Originals siblings admitted that they will miss The Vampire Diaries due to the relationships that they have formed with the cast members. Morgan jokingly said he would not miss Ian Somerhalder goosing him all the time.

One fan asked about Elijah’s job and pointed to their wealth. Plec joked that Klaus and Elijah brought in slave labor and built a city with Davis jokingly getting up after Gillies pointed to Plec “already creating tension.” Plec said they didn’t necessarily need jobs due to compulsion.

One fan asked if Hayley and Klaus’ kid would be a hybrid, werewolf, or a whole new creature. Plec pointed to looking at both Klaus and Hayley’s background and that “everyone will have their own opinion on what this baby means.” The actors joked that they just wanted to know if it was a boy or girl.

When asked what they were looking forward to on The Originals that they weren’t allowed to do on The Vampire Diaries, Plec joked that Klaus would be naked all the time while Morgan and Holt pointed to more flashbacks.

The Originals stars Joseph Morgan, Daniel Gillies, Claire Holt, Phoebe Tonkin, Daniella Pineda, Charles Michael Davis, Danielle Campbell, and Leah Pipes.

The Originals airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. EST on the CW starting this fall.