Both shows would attract rabid fanbases that would sustain them until they aired their final episodes in 2017.
EW asked King and Plec to talk about their experiences saying goodbye.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: When it came to ending your shows, what were you most nervous about?I.
Credit: Ricky Middlesworth; D Dipasupil/FilmMagic)
So that really surprised me.
But I also decided I didnt care.
I decided I wasnt making the finale for anybody who still had anything invested in the love triangle.
Annette Brown/The CW
I was making it for people who were invested in the relationship between the brothers.
What were the biggest debates when crafting your endings?KING:We had so many different endings.
PLEC:I wanted flash-forwards.
Eric McCandless/Freeform
And then she dies of natural causes because I just thought that Bonnie deserved a rich and full life.
We debated that so much because we could make a really strong case for either.
And we finally settled on Damon was going to die.
And then Kevin walked into the room and hes like, Whats Stefans life going to be like?
I said, Hes going to be happy with Caroline and uh uh… uh, I dont know.
[Laughs]Im like, Youre right, it needs to go the other way.
And so we switched it.
He gets all the credit for that.
Marlene, did you ever consider killing a main character like Julie did?KING:No.
Im a total happy-ever-after person.
I felt like the fans deserved to see the girls happy and the characters deserved to be happy.
Im a big believer in shows that make that choice.
KING:I still want Walter White to be alive.
I think Julie probably would feel the same way but you might tell me if Im wrong.
PLEC:Everything you just said is exactly how I would sum that up.
KING:Im sure you found this experience too where it was such a group effort.
It was such a family affair.
PLEC:Yeah, the overall experience was so profoundly beautiful.
It felt like we were graduating high school.
PLEC:Thats such a great gift.
I know both your fandoms loved to talk about certain couples being endgame.
KING:I would say that too.
I totally agree with that, 100 percent.
I never expected to have such extreme feelings at the same time.
So I thought when I finally wrote the script that I would just be sobbing, and I didnt.
I thought, Oh god, Ive lost my ability to be in touch with my soul.
KING:I finished the script, except for that scene where the girls say goodbye.
I didnt write that until the day before the table read.
I just couldnt get it out.
KING:I might change my mind but I want to say no.
This was so special that if I ever get it again, Ill be shocked.
PLEC:Yeah, me too.
Im incredibly grateful to have gotten to feel as much as I felt.
