Ian Somerhalder was a little wary of starring on another vampire show.
The 39-year-old actor told Wonderwall.com that he was apprehensive about accepting a role on Netflix's "V-Wars" — which centers around a vampire-virus outbreak — after starring on the hit vamp show "The Vampire Diaries."
Luckily for his fans, Ian's fears were calmed by the amazing writing on the show.
"Absolutely I was [apprehensive]. I have no disillusions that this is indeed a genre show, because it is," he shared on Aug. 20. "But the world that Jonathan Mayberry has created along with Brad Turner and our amazing creators and writers is truly a unique and socially relevant one, while simultaneously living within a very fun genre that we all love."
While "V-Wars" and "The Vampire Diaries" may both focus on vampires, the two shows couldn't be more different, according to the "Lost" alum. The Netflix series will "explore much darker and more controversial material," said Ian, who will star as Dr. Luther Swann, a human doctor who works to combat the mysterious vampire disease.
"While Damon was such a fun character to play and fortunately resonated with so many, Luther is equally enjoyable to play. One interesting thing is that he lives with the constraints of a mortal man. Something Damon did not. Because of this, the stakes are always so high," said Ian.
Continued the actor, "He has to stay alive to make sure that he comes home to his son. His priority is to take care of his child. Now entering into this new chapter of my life being a father, it's been interesting to play a character that has such similar parallels. I can relate to him in such a deeply profound and real way."
The Louisiana native welcomed daughter Bodhi Soleil with his wife, "Twilight" actress Nikki Reed, in July 2017. The happy family lives at home with several dogs and cats — an experience that led Ian to support Royal Canin's Take Your Cat to the Vet Day campaign.
"After speaking with the Royal Canin team and running the numbers, I realized that there was a disproportionate amount of cats that were not going to the vet annually," he shared. "Don't get me wrong, I am a dog lover as well! I've got a ton of them! But I think that people who really love cats are a special breed, pun intended. And I just want to encourage more men to actually be proud of being cat lovers!"