Vampire Diaries’ Michael Malarkey Almost Left the Show During Christmas Break — What Made Him Stay?

Season 5 of The Vampire Diaries has been a wild ride, to say the least. FromKatherine becoming a passenger in Elena’s body to the doppelganger drama, viewers have been bombarded with a lot this year, but perhaps our favorite addition this season has been that  of Enzo, played by Michael Malarkey.

Enzo was revealed to be a dark figure fromDamon’s (Ian Somerhalder) past. The two went through a rough time in the ‘50s when they were imprisoned and experimented upon by the  Augustine Society. They’ve had a rocky relationship — thanks to Damon leaving Enzo to die a fiery death — but we’ve really loved the Denzo dynamic so far.

At the ATV Festival panel discussion in Atlanta on February 8, we learned that Michael had almost gone over to another show during the Christmas break, but he elected to stay with TVD — but what made him stay?

“A lot of it was because of the character you guys had given me. Enzo — he’s a really interesting guy and I wanted to explore him more,” Michael revealed. “I also would have been really upset about not coming back because I told everyone I was coming back and if I was to just not turn up and turned up on another show, they’d be like, ‘That guy’s a dick, man.’ It was mostly because I’m drawn to playing interesting characters and the fact that Enzo is so interesting was a really heavy reason for me wanting to stay, but also all these guys are lovely. I’ve had a fantastic time working here and didn’t wanna not come back.“

Phew, we’re glad Michael decided to stick it out! Not only have we fallen in love with Enzo on the show, but we’ve also been swooned many times by Michael, thanks to his amazing singing voice. Apparently this dude has a storied music past.

“I used to play in a hardcore punk band,” Michael revealed. “And my hair used to be down to here [his waist]. I had a goatee, I had dreadlocks, I was a bit of a crazy cat for a bit, and that’s all before I decided to embrace this insane profession.”

We don’t want to imagine a world without Enzo, so we’re thrilled Michael found his way onto TV.