Candice Accola Gets Candid About Caroline’s ‘Vampire Diaries’ Trials
Warning: This episode may contain spoilers for The Vampire Diaries.
As fans of The Vampire Diaries know, Candice Accola’s character, Caroline Forbes, has been through more than her share of drama in recent episodes and, in a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Ms. Accola explored what so much heartbreak means for the future of Caroline as well as how it has affected her as an actress.
Jumping right in to the greatest heartbreak for her Vampire Diaries character, Candice explored the death of her onscreen mother and the funeral that would follow, assuring readers that, for once, the scene in the church would involve a funeral and nothing else. In the past, church scenes have usually involved supernatural occurrences, damsels in distress, and almost always ended with more deaths, but not this time.
“What is really beautiful about the episode is that it’s a funeral. No one is going to the funeral to save anyone from anything. No one’s trying to destroy anyone at the funeral. It’s just a funeral and it will be a tearjerker, that’s for sure.”
Ms. Accola realizes that her Vampire Diaries character will get something few people on either The Vampire Diaries or its spinoff hit, The Originals, ever get: the chance to say good-bye. More than that, Caroline will also have the benefit of an immense support system, as the entire town of Mystic Falls mourns the loss of Sheriff Forbes. She will have her BFF beside her, as well. Elena steps forward, after giving Caroline time to explore her feelings for Stefan in past episodes of The Vampire Diaries, to be there for her in her time of loss and the ensuing pain that Caroline will have to endure.
Candice acknowledges that the struggle for Caroline will only grow harder in future episodes of The Vampire Diaries, as she begins to come to grips with what has happened and with what it means for her future. Ms. Accola also hinted that the death of Caroline’s mother will change the friend dynamic in unexpected ways for many of The Vampire Diaries characters.
“The event of her mother dying will definitely change Caroline as a person moving forward,” Accola said.
“We’re going to see what she can handle and what she can’t handle. We’re going to see how much she needs the people around her and who she’s really not comfortable being around anymore. And we’re going to see her really grow as a character and challenge herself in new ways and just accept the chaos that comes with the death of a parent.”
So what does the future hold for Caroline Forbes? Ms. Accola acknowledges that the first concern for many fans is the inevitable talk between Stefan and Caroline, and she assures fans that “the talk” will happen, according to TV Guide. Candice kept the results of that talk to herself, saying only that the discussion between Caroline and Stefan would define their relationship as The Vampire Diaries moves forward.
Ms. Accola also confessed that she would like to see a less ideal Caroline. She would prefer to see a messier version of her character, perhaps seeing her flounder and learn from the mistakes she could make in a world without her mother.
Candice Accola and Marguerite MacIntyre shared nearly as many mother-daughter moments as any true to life families, and the departure of Ms. MacIntyre must have affected Candice.
“It was so heartbreaking in season one when Sheriff Forbes comes in and tries to talk with Caroline and she says, ‘Go away mom, if I want to talk about boys, I’ll talk about it with dad.’ And she’s just so mean to her mom but I think it really set up how far they’ve come in their mother-daughter relationship. And I think it’s really honest. There are ups and downs to every single mother-daughter relationship. It’s such a sacred bond when it’s good so seeing how beautifully their bond has grown over the seasons is so special, from the time when Caroline came out with blood all over her face and revealed to her mother that she was a vampire saying, ‘Hi mom’ and how much they grew from that moment as well. It’s a powerful mother-daughter relationship and it’s really sad to see it go.”
Candice Accola shared her gifted singing voice in a past episode of The Vampire Diaries. While musical talents are difficult to explore, it seemed that a funeral would be the perfect opportunity for Candice Accola to again explore her talent for singing on screen.
“[It’s] so funny because for years everyone was like, ‘Is Caroline going to sing again?’ That’s been the running joke. That [scene in Season 2] was fun, but it was never [going to] happen again because finding a natural place for someone to belt out singing on a vampire show isn’t really an easy task. But I did sing and it’s a sweet moment, she pays tribute, and it’s a really tender moment in a very sad funeral.”
Changing roles abound all across The Vampire Diaries, both in front of and behind the camera. Recently, Paul Wesley took on a new role, stepping behind the camera to direct his second episode of The Vampire Diaries.
