‘Vampire Diaries’ Star Ian Somerhalder Retires From Acting

Ian Somerhalder’s acting days may be in the past. The actor, best known for his role as Damon Salvatore on The Vampire Diaries on The CW, told People that he thinks acting is “in the rearview mirror.” He continued, “Well, I dunno, we got the rights back for V Wars, but I just don’t know how the hell we would ever make a TV show. We’re building three companies at the same time, raising kids.”

The Lost alum is married to Twilight star Nikki Reed, with whom he shares two kids. The couple left Hollywood a few years ago to live on a farm to give their then 4-year-old daughter Bodhi “the most normal life possible.” They’re also parents to a 1-year-old son. Their farming life hasn’t stopped them from still focusing on other work, such as The Absorption Company that they co-founded last year, which is a tech-powered supplement brand.

“I say this in all humility, in all respect, but I would much rather do this than go spend two months in some city, shooting a TV show away from my family or transporting my family back and forth,” Somerhalder shared. “Once you reach a certain level, you’re like, ‘Okay, I want to focus on family and the future of farming and food and energy and the big things. I don’t need to chase awards and anything that would make me feel better about myself.”

Short-lived Netflix sci-fi series V Wars was Ian Somerhalder’s final role, playing Luther Swann in 2019. It was the first and only series he did after The Vampire Diaries ended in 2017. It’s always possible that Somerhalder could return to acting at some point in the future, and it’s not like he’s not still thinking about his acting days. He still frequently attends fan conventions, especially Vampire Diaries-themed conventions. However, it sounds like both he and Nikki Reed are pretty content with their lives right now.

Somerhalder is not the only celebrity to quit acting. 13 Reasons Why star Dylan Minnette decided to take a break from acting to focus on his alt-rock band, The Wallows. Model Emily Ratajkowski decided to quit acting after feeling like a “piece of meat” to Hollywood. Meanwhile, plenty of other stars nearly quit the profession, such as Matthew McConaughey, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Kerry Washington, Anna Faris, and Freddie Prinze Jr., among others.