‘The Vampire Diaries’ season 6 spoilers: Former ‘Castle’ guest to play doctor

Remember the days when “The Vampire Diaries” had a dedicated doctor among its cast? That doctor was Meredith Fell, played by Paul Wesley’s then-wife Torrey DeVitto for multiple episodes. It’s been a while since we have seen that character, and the show is now moving on to someone new.

According to Entertainment Weekly, Jodi Lyn O’Keefe of “Hit the Floor” (though we remember her more for trying to romance Rick as a spunky reporter in an episode of “Castle“) has signed on to play the role of Jo, an “accomplished” doctor with an edge at a university hospital. What is it with doctors named Jo on TV? We had one over on “Grey’s Anatomy,”

O’Keefe is just the latest addition to what is already an expansive guest cast, with Colin Ferguson likely leading the way for many as a challenger for Sheriff Forbes in Mystic Falls. The reason that we are getting such a flurry of casting news now stems mostly from the fact that filming for the series has just begun in Atlanta. The show will be working hard to get scenes done over the next week or so, but then they will have a brief little break in the action for most of the main cast to attend San Diego Comic-Con as they do every year. Then, it’ll be mostly non-stop work for the rest of the summer and fall until we come closer to the holidays.

Hopefully, all of these new characters will provide a spark, and some buzz-worthy moments for a show that really needed some during its fifth season at times.

What’s your reaction to the overall casting process for the show as of late? Let us know below! Also, click here if you’re interested in biting into some further news and scoop via our newsletter.

Photo: The CW