Ian Somerhalder Cast in ‘Vampire Diaries’ Series

Since “Twilight” proved, beyond any trace of doubt, that vampire stories were hip again and, what’s most important, performed wonderfully at the box-office and with the public, CW is bringing one such story to television as well. “Vampire Diaries” will not star teen heartthrob Robert Pattinson, but it will get a male lead just as talented and good looking in Ian Somerhalder.

Ian, who played Boone on the ABC hit show “Lost,” has just been attached to the new project that will target a much younger segment of the audience, Variety informs. His good looks and seemingly innocent expression will be exploited in the new series not only as an audience magnet, it has been revealed, but also to confuse viewers and play upon the character’s duality.

“Somerhalder is set to play Damon, a smug vampire who can go from playful to evil in a split second.” Variety reports. “Also joining the cast are Zach Roerig (‘Friday Night Lights’), who will play the jock Matt, and Kayla Ewell (‘Entourage’), who will play Matt’s sister. Previously announced cast includes Nina Dobrev and Steven R. McQueen. ‘Vampire Diaries,’ based on a series of books from Alloy Entertainment, centers on a woman who falls for two vampire brothers – one good and one evil. Warner Bros. TV is behind the project, along with Alloy and Outerbanks Ent.” the aforementioned publication further reveals.

With Ian most likely taking up the part of the evil vampire brother, movie bloggers are already beginning to compare him with Pattinson, whom he would closely resemble, the only difference being that one will be famous on TV, while the other one on the silver screen. However, before anyone jumps to any comparisons, one might as well add that CW has not yet announced a release date for the vampire series, and the production is not even certain to have started.

In other vampire-related news, “New Moon,” the sequel to “Twilight,” is now shooting, with small hindrances like Pattinson’s head injury. While nothing of great concern, the British actor was injured on set, as a piece of metal became loose and hit the star in the back of the head, sending him to the ground. Pattinson was carried to his hotel room and told to rest for a couple of hours, and is now supposedly back up and running, working on the film.