Vampire Diaries star Nathaniel Buzolic calls an unnamed co-star a “coward” over a fan event ban

If you follow The Vampire Diaries or any of its spinoffs, you might have clocked some drama this week that goes well beyond the usual convention gossip. Nathaniel Buzolic — the Aussie actor behind original vampire Kol Mikaelson — has publicly accused a former castmate of blocking him from fan events because of Buzolic’s political views. And no, he didn’t drop any names, but it’s clear this one’s more personal than your standard on-set spat.

Buzolic, in a video on Instagram, claimed: 'I’ma spill some tea for you right now if you’re a Vampire Diaries or Originals fan. There’s an actor that I worked with who has had me banned from attending fan events if he’s there quietly.'

The claim and the context

Buzolic, now 43, got straight to the point in his Instagram video, first labelling the unnamed co-star a 'coward', and then saying the person 'won’t publicly share their support, but they want to stop people like me from earning an income and getting work.' For clarity, he’s specifically linking the alleged backstage ban to differences over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

It’s not as if Buzolic’s opinions are a secret — he’s been very vocal in siding with Israel since October 2023’s attacks, and has landed himself in controversy before for some pretty offensive comments about Palestinian culture. In the new video, he turns the focus towards the co-star: accusing him of staying silent on Palestine 'probably because he wants to protect his career', but then allegedly working behind the scenes to block Buzolic from conventions and fan events.

At one point, he adds in the video: 'He doesn’t share his solidarity with the Palestinian people on his social media, but that’s probably because he wants to protect his career. But he also wanted to stop me from getting work and meeting with fans at fan events. So if you’ve noticed my absence, that’s why.'

For anyone wondering why Kol Mikaelson’s been scarce at fan conventions lately, that’s the explanation Buzolic’s giving. No names, but he teases followers in his caption, writing, 'I remember when he didn’t want to do fan events cause he thought he was above that. Can you guess who?'

Series history in brief

• Buzolic played Kol Mikaelson in The Vampire Diaries (2009–2017)
• Reprised the role for The Originals (2013–2018)
• Also appeared in Legacies (2018–2022)

The Vampire Diaries ran from 2009 to 2017 and sparked multiple spinoffs featuring Buzolic.