More scoop on 'The Originals'

All excited about the potential "Vampire Diaries" spin-off? So is "TVD" executive producer Julie Plec, who shared some scoop about "The Originals" with Entertainment Weekly.

Bing: More on "The Originals" | "The Vampire Diaries"

So what can we expect? Definitely something decadent and delicious -- after all, they've been working on this thing for quite a while now. "It's actually something we've been talking about for two years, that we contemplated trying to get off its feet last year, but there was just too much work to do in too little time," said Plec, who'll be the showrunner on the spin-off if it goes to series next fall. "So that gave us an opportunity this year to spend a lot more time putting it together -- seeing if, obviously, our actors had any interest whatsoever in continuing the life these characters and if there was a story to tell. It all came together in a way that we finally felt it would not detract from our most important baby right now, 'The Vampire Diaries,' and would give us a chance to expand the universe with characters that we've had another year to get to know."

 

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Joseph Morgan, who plays original vampire Klaus, is, of course, on board, and will be the centerpiece of the new show. "The idea is that a turn of events sends Klaus to New Orleans to solve a mystery -- he gets word that some people are making a move against him," Plec explained. "So he heads to New Orleans to try to figure out who's plotting against him and what they're up to. And in unfolding that mystery, it takes him back to a town that, several hundred years ago, he was actually one of the original settlers of and helped build."

Once there, naturally, he runs into some pals from his past. Said Plec: "He reacquaints himself with a vampire that he actually turned back in the day, Marcel, who has created a whole set of rules and a whole society for the supernatural community that he's in charge of -- sort of tipping his hat to Klaus and saying, 'You taught me everything I know.'"

Marcel is expected to be quite the counterpoint to calm, collected and often cold Klaus. "He's the life of the party," says Plec. "He's diabolical, and dangerous, and he's a rock star. If anything, he's that kind of hard-partying, hard-living vampire who knows how to enjoy the most out of life in the French Quarter."

But will modern-day Marcel -- who has yet to be cast -- be a friend? Or turn foe? That remains to be seen. And the future of the original vampires, Rebekah (Claire Holt) and Elijah (Daniel Gillies) also remains undetermined. 

What is known: "TVD" addition Phoebe Tonkin will be moving on to New Orleans, continuing her role as backstabbing werewolf Hayley -- although it's unclear what brings her there. "That's all part of the big mystery," Plec said. "I will say that no one should assume anything about the way this is going to play out, because with luck, it will be a nice surprise for everybody!"