The Netflix Disaster That Broke Ian Somerhalder—and Ended His Career

Ian Somerhalder retired from acting after his last project turned out much different from what he expected. 

The 47-year-old is best known for his roles as Damon Salvatore in The Vampire Diaries (2009) and Boone Carlyle in Lost (2004). His final and most recent project, V Wars, was his final straw. In a recent interview on the Haley on the Go podcast, Somerhalder explained why the 2019 Netflix series pushed him to retire from Hollywood. 

“We shot the show, moved my whole family to northern Ontario, worked really hard on this thing for almost a year, and then the show that got turned in wasn’t even watchable,” he said. 

The actor was shocked by the final product. He told Netflix he would return his paycheck, sharing, “I don’t want to put my name on this.” The streamer wouldn’t accept the offer. 

Somerhalder was both an actor and producer for V Wars. He and his producing partner, JamesGibb, tried to salvage the show. Netflix let them have creative control but wouldn’t provide any additional financing. 

The duo raised over $6 million and filmed “10 or 12 days of footage in about six days” to try and save the project. The actor shared that this process was so draining that he ended up in the hospital from overworking.  

V Man saw some success after its release, but it was canceled after one season. 

Somerhalder believes that “someone quietly canceled the show,” even though it could have been a hit. He revealed that Netflix executives knew “it shouldn’t have happened,” but refused to reverse the decision “because it would set a precedent that would be terrible.”

After this difficult experience, the actor knew he needed a change. He and his wife, actress NikkiReed, run a regenerative agriculture farm in Southern California. 

“I am not here for my career and livelihood to be dictated by someone who has mommy or daddy issues, or they weren’t popular in school,” he said. “I’m not going to base my life on having television or streaming executives dictate what and how I can make a living. And so, I pulled the plug.”