Legacies Finally Mentioned Caroline's Absence, But Where Is She Really?

The Vampire Diaries, The CW

UPDATE: Legacies had another Caroline update in Episode 6, with Alaric on the phone with the twins' other mother, angry that she wasn't going to be there for the girls' 16th birthday. It's clear the twins don't know what Caroline is really doing, but Kaylee Bryant (Josie Saltzman) hinted that there is indeed a connection to The Merge of the Gemini Coven.

Original post: A clue, a clue! Legacies finally gave fans a spoken hint on the whereabouts of The Vampire Diaries character Caroline Forbes. But don't buy the hint wholesale, 'cause it's not quite the whole truth.

In Episode 3, Legacies gave us a brief update on Caroline via her twin daughters, Josie and Lizzie Saltzman. Josie told Hope Mikaelson that Lizzie had such an attitude because she's missing Caroline, who has been conspicuously absent from the school she co-founded with the twins' father, Alaric Saltzman. According to Josie:

Our mom is going on these really long recruitment missions recently. It's why she's extra testy. She just really misses her.

That may be what Josie thinks, but the Legacies stars revealed in a new TV Guide video interview that the "recruitment missions" idea is just a cover for what Caroline is really doing. As Josie's portrayer Kaylee Bryant noted, Caroline's absence affects Lizzie more than Josie, because Lizzie takes after Caroline in so many ways. Josie, meanwhile, is more like both Alaric and the twins' biological mother Jo.

You can watch the video below to get a few more hints about Caroline's whereabouts.

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Executive Producer Julie Plec previously said that Alaric knows the truth about Caroline's location. She's not entirely recruiting for the school, she's off doing things that are tied to the long-term survival of their daughters. What kinds of things? Well, here's where we put on our speculation hats and dig into The Vampire Diaries backstory on the Gemini Coven.

Julie Plec recently dragged Kai Parker's name into the Caroline mystery, reminding fans that the twins are related to nasty Uncle Kai by blood, since he's their biological mother's twin brother. The Vampire Diaries fans should remember the Gemini Coven, which now includes Jozie and Lizzie as members, since Uncle Kai failed to kill them when he killed his pregnant sister. Putting the pieces together, it sounds like the twins may be forced to undergo The Merge, a Gemini coven tradition used to select the new leader.

Per The Vampire Diaries, we know twins born into the Gemini Coven go through The Merge at age 22. In that ceremony, the stronger twin basically absorbs the power of the weaker twin, who ends up dying. The victorious twin ends up becoming the new leader of the Gemini Coven.

This suggests teens Josie and Lizzie may have to face-off within a few years, with the "weaker twin" dying. That's not good, clearly. Some fans have speculated that Caroline may be out looking for a way to help the twins avoid this fate, since Julie Plec mentioned her mission is tied to the twins' long-term survival. Mama vamp to the rescue?

It's not clear when or even if actress Candice King has plans to show up as Caroline Forbes in Legacies Season 1. The CW gave The Originals/TVD spinoff a few extra episodes this season, so there's plenty of time to build anticipation for her big entrance, should it come sooner rather than later.

Legacies airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. on The CW. Be sure to check out our fall TV schedule to find all the other new and returning shows heading to primetime.

Gina Carbone

Gina grew up in Massachusetts and California in her own version of The Parent Trap. She went to three different middle schools, four high schools, and three universities -- including half a year in Perth, Western Australia. She currently lives in a small town in Maine, the kind Stephen King regularly sets terrible things in, so this may be the last you hear from her.