From executive producer Julie Plec (The Vampire Diaries, The Originals), The CW series Legacies tells the story of the next generation of supernatural beings. Set at The Salvatore Boarding School for the Young and Gifted, Alaric Saltzman (Matthew Davis) is in charge of helping to teach and nurture young vampires, werewolves and witches – including 17-year-old tri-brid Hope Mikaelson (Danielle Rose Russell), witch twins Lizzie (Jenny Boyd) and Josie Saltzman (Kaylee Bryant), vampire MG (Quincy Fouse), newly triggered werewolf Rafael Waithe (Peyton Alex Smith) and the mysterious Landon Kirby (Aria Shahghasemi) – to become the heroes they want to be, as opposed to something more nefarious.
During this 1-on-1 interview with Collider, actress Danielle Rose Russell talked about when and how she found about that she would be getting her own TV series with Legacies, once The Originals had ended, how leading a TV series has changed things for her, how Hope is dealing with her grief, how Hope views Alaric, the Saltzman twins, whether Hope could get her own epic love story, which The Vampire Diaries and The Originals cast members she’d love to see make an appearance, the likelihood that there will be less tears on this series, working with stunts and special effects, and what she’d like to see for her character.
Collider: When and how did you find out that Legacies was going to happen, and that your journey with this character wasn’t going to be over with The Originals?
DANIELLE ROSE RUSSELL: When I signed on to do The Originals, I knew that there was a possibility, at least, but I didn’t find out that we were a go until May, and I actually found out through Instagram. I love it. I think a lot of people think that because of Legacies, The Originals was the way it was, but I actually did not find out until several months after The Originals ended.
How has all of this changed things for you, both personally and professionally? What’s it like to be leading a TV show?
RUSSELL: Life is definitely a little crazier. This show has represented so much for me that I’ve wanted to accomplish in my career that I never thought I would, in such a short amount of time, or at least at this point in my life. I’ve very grateful for that, and I can’t wait to do more than just be the lead of the show. I can’t wait to represent a lot for myself and for other people. Personally, it’s represented a lot of milestones an a lot of life changes. I had to move and create my life around this now, but I can’t complain. I’m enjoying it.
Has the adjustment been harder than you expected, or has it been easier than you would have expected?
RUSSELL: Actually, it’s been easier than I’d have expected it to be. It wasn’t so drastic. I think because, doing The Originals, I had a very similar situation. I wasn’t just thrown into it. I had only ever done films that never had this huge fan base. I acted just to act. And so, coming into The Originals and Legacies and that fandom, for the first time, I didn’t know how to handle it, at first, but I have a better grip on it now. I’m excited to do good in the world with it, instead of just letting it eat me alive.
Now that you’re all over billboards and posters, have any of your friends or family just completely freaked out?
RUSSELL: A few did. I keep my circle pretty small, for that reason. I always have. It’s a little weird. My circle of people, they’re always sending me pictures and going, “Oh, my god, you’re so cool!” I have a very normal social group that I really feed off of. They ground me. They’re super supportive. I haven’t had any nightmarish experiences.
How is Hope dealing with her grief about her family?
RUSSELL: She had to deal with so much. Poor Hope, in her 15th year. That must have been rough. Those two years passed for a reason. We picked up when she’s 17, to get through that major grieving point, but Hope is very defensive of people. She deflects. She doesn’t get too close to people. She’s got this sassy, almost bitchy attitude to her, and I love it. I love playing her. It’s so much fun. It definitely has to do with the fact that she lost people who were very importantin her life, so she says, “Let me just be mean to all of the people around me, so that no one has to get close. I don’t want to have to go through this heartbreak, ever again.” But of course, she’ll have to. What’s a character arc without that? But I’m really enjoying playing her, two years later.
Is she someone who wants to forget about her feelings, or does she want to find a way to embrace them?
RUSSELL: Those two years were definitely the catalyst for her to be like, “I need get out of New Orleans. I need to go to school. I need to have my own life. I need to not be reminded, every step of the way, of my parents.” But, that’s unavoidable. She still wears her Mikaelson necklace, and we have a couple of moments where she remembers. It’s definitely there in the episodes, and it’s in her personality. If anything, she just wants to do the absolute best she can, by her family’s name.
Does Hope look at Alaric as a parental figure?
RUSSELL: Yeah, I think so. There’s definitely a little bit of a fun dynamic between Alaric, Josie, Lizzie and Hope. They have this fun banter going on. They’re like partners in crime. He definitely represents a lot more than he gives himself credit for, with her.
How are things with Josie and Lizzie Saltzman?
RUSSELL: Competitive. There’s definitely a little competition there. Josie, Lizzie and Hope are all so different. Hope is a little bit of a bitch to the people around her, in effort to not get too close to people and to not make friends. She doesn’t have a whole lot of friends. They think Hope is stuck up, but Hope is just going through so much. They’re just very different. We’ll see those relationships start to evolve into something very different, but as of right now, it’s a little tense.
There wouldn’t be a TV show in this world, if there wasn’t some drama and an epic love story. Where are the seeds of the epic love story coming from, in this?
RUSSELL: Seeds of the epic love are definitely being planted. There’s a little bit of a love triangle that’s not really in full force yet, but I’m sure it will be there. Landon has come into Hope’s life and planted little seeds that could be something, but we’re all gonna to have to wait and see. I’m waiting to see. I’ve been asking the writers, all the time, about what happens with Hope, but they won’t tell me, so I don’t even know, myself. But there are definitely seeds being planted, for sure. Hope will definitely have an epic love.
What kind of guy do you think it would take to get through to her, past all of her defenses?
RUSSELL: Someone just as broken as she is. Right now, at this point in her life, the only person that’s really gonna get through to her is someone equally as damaged and equally as broken, who’s gone through a lot in his life, too. I think it would have to be someone equally on her level of tragedy in life. Right now, I don’t think Hope needs the good guy to fix her up ‘cause she’s not a victim, and she never will be. I think that Hope just wants to marinate in her own head and in her own darkness.
Hope does have some family and allies left, so is there anyone that you would like to see show up, at some point?
RUSSELL: Yeah. Of course, I’m hoping for the ghost form of Klaus. I just want Joseph Morgan back to work with again. I would really like to see Hope and her Aunt Freya. I always loved that dynamic, which was explored a bit in Season 5 (of The Originals). I thought that was so sweet, so I would like to see Hope and Freya again. I know that all of these actors have moved on to do other things, so we’d be grateful for anyone who comes in.
Is there anybody from The Vampire Diaries that you would like to see on the show?
RUSSELL: Yeah, and we have a couple of people already. Zach Roerig is in a couple of episodes as Matt Donovan. And Steven R. McQueen, who plays Jeremy Gilbert, is coming back. Paul Wesley is directing an episode. So, we definitely have people there. But the show is so new. It needs to be its own things. You will have the history from The Vampire Diaries and The Originals, if you know those shows, but if you don’t know those shows, you don’t need to have watched them. It needs to take its own independence as a show, if that makes sense.
How does Hope like this new environment that she’s in, in Mystic Falls?
RUSSELL: I think she knows. I think she’s very well aware of all that’s gone on in both New Orleans and Mystic Falls. As far as the school is concerned, I definitely know that Hope looks at the school like a home where she fits in. Even in her own family, she felt like she didn’t fit in. She felt like she was a freak. But the Salvatore School is the closest that she can get to feeling like, “Okay, I’m at home. I can be me and not feel so ashamed.” I think that those two years from her father, mother and uncle passing away, she learned how to be the fullest person that she can be. In Season 5, we saw her hide her identity a little bit and feel like a freak, so I’m hoping that Hope finally owns who she is, and I think the school has allowed her to do that. Of course, there will be other things that come along that she’ll battle with, but I think she looks at it like a home.
This would not be a show in this world, if there weren’t villains, so where is the danger coming from?
RUSSELL: It’s nothing like The Vampire Diaries or The Originals, in that way. It’s more of an X-Men and Harry Potter vibe. The villains are more fun. It’s more light and funny. There’s a new danger that neither of those shows ever explored because they were so married to the vampire-werewolf-witch dynamic, but we explore so far beyond that. I’m excited about the villains in Legacies. I think it’s gonna open up so many new doors and a whole new fan base.
Are there less tears for Hope in Legacies than there were in The Originals?
RUSSELL: Yes, as of right now. As an actor, I love to play a good crying scene. Hope is very emotional, but I try to play her as humanly as possible. I really like the fact that she cries, she screams, she yells, and she makes mistakes. I really enjoyed playing that part of her, but this show is definitely much lighter and so much funnier. It has such like a youthful new energy to it, which I think is gonna draw a lot of people in.
What’s it like to be a supernatural teenager?
RUSSELL: I enjoy playing a very messy, raw teenager. That’s how I’ve played her, from day one. Fans were married to the concept of the sweet little girl Hope, but when I came into the mix, I played her like the bad-ass girl that she’s become. But we’re really a much lighter show than The Originals was.
How do you feel about doing stunts and working with special effects?
RUSSELL: It’s so much fun. I really enjoy doing stunts, especially. I had never done any stunt work, ever, in my life before, and in our first episode of Legacies, I was doing a bunch. And in episodes to come, I will be doing more, and I’m absolutely loving it. That was a new thing that I found I really enjoy. I actually kickbox in my own real life, so it came naturally to me. Effects are always fun, too. When you’re on set, you feel ridiculous, but it always turns out so cool and so good. We have an amazing effects team. It’s fun, but it’s all new. It’s opened a bunch of doors to me, and I’ve actually been really enjoying.
What would you like to see happen with Hope, in the future?
RUSSELL: Yes. Remember how I said that the show is more light-hearted? I would so want Hope to not be that. I don’t want her to find any peace. I think it would be so much fun for Hope to not only fully become a tri-bred, but I also want her to fall in love and get her heart broken, so badly. I want it in the worst way. I want to see her just go insane. I definitely want to see her have a moment of happiness, but it’s always more fun for actors to play characters who are going through something. That’s what I’ve been trying to push for with (showrunner) Julie [Plec] and our writers.
Legacies airs on Thursday nights on The CW.
