Dear Diary, can you believe it's been 12 years since The Vampire Diaries premiered?
It feels like just yesterday that we were immediately compelled by the love triangle between Elena (Nina Dobrev), Stefan (Paul Wesley) and Damon (Ian Somerhalder), but The CW hit series actually premiered on Sept. 10, 2009, transporting viewers to Mystic Falls.
Based on the book series by L.J. Smith and created by Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec, TVD ran for eight seasons, produced two successful spinoffs (The Originals and Legends) and delivered one of TV's most epic love triangles.
But can you believe Nina almost lost the role of Elena to a High School Musical star? Or that Ian was this close to starring in a different vampire show? Those are just two of the facts we're sharing about the series in honor of its anniversary.
Sink your teeth into these surprising secrets about TVD...
The Vampire Diaries is streaming on Netflix.