Legacies is the second spinoff to come out of The Vampire Diaries and, sure, on a surface level I can see similarities in the two leads. Both TVD's Elena Gilbert (played by Nina Dobrev) and Legacies' Hope Mikaelson (Danielle Rose Russell) are brunette teens navigating love triangles (and squares) in the supernatural world in Mystic Falls. But they have many other differences, including their personalities, backgrounds, and powers -- and also their sexual preferences.
For example, Legacies has casually added sexual fluidity to the storyline of several characters, including the main character of Hope herself. Sexual fluidity has been normalized since the very beginning of the series, which is something that The Vampire Diaries probably wouldn't have dared do when it started back in 2009. It just shows how much the culture has evolved in the past 10 years, and how much that is not only accepted by embraced by The CW fandom.
Danielle Rose Russell recently commented on the latest update in Hope's love life -- her confession that she used to have a crush on Josie Saltzman (Kaylee Bryant). Josie had already revealed a previous crush on Hope. The two characters don't seem to be headed toward a relationship in Legacies Season 2 -- in fact they are both attracted to the same guy in Landon Kirby -- but it gave "Hosie" shippers hope that maybe later in the series Hope and Josie will return to each other.
It was a casual mention that highlighted to Danielle Rose Russell one of the many differences between Legacies' main character Hope and The Vampire Diaries' main character Elena.
We’re unafraid to be super progressive and very current with our show, and that makes me really proud to be a part of it. Sometimes people compare Hope and Elena, and I’m like, 'They’re so beyond different.' And it just shows how 10 years of progression can really shape characters and protagonists.
Yeah, and as TVLine noted in its interview with Danielle Rose Russell, can you imagine Elena Gilbert casually saying she used to have a crush on Caroline Forbes? They never would've done that. It's great to see attitudes change organically and see that reflected in the next generation of these Vampire Diaries characters.
When Legacies fans aren't shipping Josie with Hope, they're often shipping Josie with Penelope Park, who is currently in Europe after leaving in Legacies Season 1. Josie is currently dating Landon, and Landon is trying to decide what he wants now that he remembers his love story with Hope from Season 1. Meanwhile, Hope has a connection with Landon's BFF Rafael -- which Raf stepped back from out of respect for his buddy -- and the new sheriff's son and daughter both have crushes on Hope. Hope also had chemistry with evil Ryan Clarke.
Like Elena, Hope just has a lot of suitors. (But does she have an evil doppelganger like Katherine? We already saw some of dark Hope in the alternate timeline episode, but more of that would be FUN.)
Even though we haven't seen Elena on Legacies, she is in the background of the story. She was mentioned in Legacies Season 1 when Josie talked about Damon and Elena Salvatore's kids. The Originals also showed that "Dr. Elena Salvatore" has a medical practice in Mystic Falls. It would be great to bring the whole franchise full circle to have Elena run into Hope on the streets or something, but that's probably not going to happen anytime soon, if it happens at all.
All The Vampire Diaries And The Originals Characters Who've Been On Legacies So Far
Legacies Season 2 continues Thursdays at 9 p.m. on The CW. The 2019 TV season is winding down, but keep up with everything premiering in early 2020 with our handy TV schedule.
