Vampire Diaries: All 6 Of Damon’s Love Interests Besides Elena Explained

On The Vampire Diaries, Damon Salvatore had six love interests before finally getting the girl of his dreams, Elena Gilbert. The Vampire Diaries, created by Julie Plec and Kevin Williamson, was based on the book series by L.J. Smith. During its eight-season run, the show enjoyed immense popularity and spawned two spin-offs, The Originals, and Legacies. The show was a coming of age story with a supernatural twist as Elena and her friends navigated typical teen angst while trying to deal with creatures they believed only existed in horror movies. The cast was comprised primarily of attractive unknowns, and viewers grew to love the characters, heroes and villains alike. However, fans were most invested in the ongoing love triangle between Elena, Stefan Salvatore, and Damon.

During the pilot, Elena met and instantly fell for a mysterious new guy, Stefan. She eventually discovered Stefan was a vampire, but it didn’t diminish her feelings for him. Her early relationship with Damon was tumultuous, but they became closer as the series progressed. Throughout season 3, Elena was conflicted over her feelings for the brothers, but she eventually chose Stefan, telling Damon things might have been different if she’d met Damon first (A flashback revealed that Elena met Damon the night her parents died, but he compelled her to forget.) Following Elena’s season 4 transition into a vampire, Stefan struggled to accept the new Elena, which permanently fractured their relationship. During the season finale, Elena declared her love for Damon, and the two remained together. The series finale revealed they lived out their mortal lives together (Legacies has referenced Damon and Elena on multiple occasions.)

It’s hard for “Delena” fans to remember a time when the twosome wasn’t a couple. Damon had one epic love before Elena, and although he fell deeply for Elena by the end of season 1, she didn’t return his affections. Damon became involved with other women, using his charm and good looks (and sometimes compulsion) to seduce women either for personal gain, sexual gratification, revenge, or distraction. Elena continued her romance with Stefan.

Katherine Pierce

When Katherine Pierce, aka “Katerina Petrova,” arrived in Mystic Falls, VA, in 1864, she was a welcome guest of Giuseppe Salvatore. During the few months Katherine lived with the Salvatores, both Damon and Stefan fell in love with her. She became the second Petrova doppelganger to come between two brothers. The first was Tatia, who was the object of both Klaus and Elijah Mikaelson’s affections (The character of Tatia appeared on one episode of The Originals.)

Katherine used compulsion to control Stefan, but Damon never lost his free will. He was so in love; he was blind to her duplicity. He drank her blood in preparation to become a vampire, but once he believed she died in the church fire, he decided not to go through with the transition. During season 1, Damon revealed his resentment towards Stefan stemmed from the revelation that Katherine had planned to turn them both, guaranteeing their battle for her affections raged for eternity.

Damon spent 145 years pining for Katherine and planning on freeing her, only to discover she faked her death and never gave him a second thought. When Katherine finally returned to Mystic Falls during season 2, Damon’s feelings were briefly rekindled, but once Katherine made it clear Stefan was her number one choice, their relationship moving forward remained antagonistic until her death. (Katherine returned during the series finale, which marked the return of Nina Dobrev after her season 6 exit.)

Caroline Forbes

Caroline Forbes wound up becoming pregnant, giving birth to Alaric Saltzman’s babies, and marrying Stefan Salvatore, but there was a time during season 1 when she had a brief fling with the elder Salvatore. Caroline made a play for Stefan, who only had eyes for Elena, but after a fateful trip to the Grill, Caroline and Damon crossed paths. This was pre-vamp Caroline, who was insecure and jealous of Elena, so she was only too eager to flaunt her relationship with Damon, even though he was feeding her for information, exploiting her to gain access to non-vampire friendly town events, and drinking her blood at his leisure.

Damon tried to kill Caroline once he felt she outlived her usefulness, but Damon had no idea Caroline had vervain in her system. Due to the constant compulsion, once Damon became more distracted by his obsession with freeing Katherine from the tomb, Caroline viewed the end of their relationship as a bad breakup.

Rose

Rose made her debut in season 2. She kidnapped Elena to deliver the doppelganger to Klaus Mikaelson in exchange for forgiveness for her role in helping Katherine escape 500 years earlier. After the Salvatores rescued Elena, Rose decided her best hope for survival was to help Stefan and Damon learn more about the Originals, particularly Klaus and the Sun and Moon Curse, to save Elena’s life. During her time as a houseguest at the Salvatore’s, she and Damon began an affair. Rose knew Damon was in love with Elena, but she had recently suffered the loss of her companion of 500 years, and Damon was pining for his brother’s girl.

Their relationship was cut short after Rose (a role originally offered to Sarah Michelle Gellar) was bitten by a werewolf (one whose true target was Damon). As she slowly died, descending into madness, Damon showed her uncharacteristic kindness. He used his ability to enter her mind and transported her back to a time before she was a vampire, allowing her to revisit her old home and feel the sun on her face (even if it was nothing more than a dream). He staked her to put her out of her misery but was visibly distraught by the act. Rose’s death sent Damon into a tailspin, and in the aftermath, he revealed he missed being human but believed himself capable of being good. Damon mourned Rose for several episodes following her death.

Andie Star

Elena’s aunt Jenna Sommers (who never appeared on the Other Side following her death) introduced her friend newscaster Andie Star to Damon during season 2. She was immediately smitten, but Damon wasn’t in the mood for love so soon after Rose’s death. Deciding he needed a distraction, Damon began dating Andie anyway, and she became his living blood bag, therapist, and even his Girl Friday on occasion. Damon went so far as to refer to Andie as his girlfriend. Andie became immersed in Mystic Falls’ supernatural society. Although it appears she remained fearless because of Damon’s compulsion, it’s not entirely clear how clueless she remained as their romance wore on. Sadly, Andie met an untimely end when Stefan murdered her in front of his brother during the season 3 premiere. Damon was so distracted by Stefan’s lack of humanity and Elena’s fragile emotional state, Andie’s death barely registered on his radar.

Rebekah Mikaelson

Klaus Mikaelson’s young sister, Rebekah, first appeared during season 3. Rebekah had a romantic history with Stefan that dated back to the early 20th century, but after Klaus daggered Rebekah for 20 years, the former flames fizzled out. Damon’s habit of self-destructive behavior in the aftermath of Elena’s rejection led him to have a one-night stand with Rebekah. The two hooked up once more, but Damon had an agenda: he and Sage (one of Damon’s few friends) decide to seduce Rebekah to get information. When Rebekah found out Damon and Sage had manipulated her, she got her vengeance by torturing Damon. They put it behind them, and while never friends, they weren’t entirely enemies either. During her time on The Vampire Diaries, Rebekah had dalliances with Stefan, Damon, and Matt Donovan (one of the only characters to appear on all three Vampire Diaries franchise shows.)

Lexi Branson

Lexi Branson was Stefan’s best friend who served as a guardian angel to him both in life and death. It’s Lexi who met Stefan in the afterlife after Stefan spoke his final words to Elena. Lexi died after Damon staked her during season 1 but reappeared as a ghost throughout the show. Season 4 revealed that while Damon was living it up in NYC in the 1980s, he encountered Lexi who tried to facilitate a Ripper-like intervention. Damon played along, even convincing Lexi he had developed feelings towards her. The two had a one-night stand, and Damon abandoned Lexi on a rooftop in broad daylight without a ring to protect her.

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