Ian Somerhalder, best known for his role as Damon Salvatore in the hit series ‘The Vampire Diaries,’ has bid farewell to his acting career and Hollywood with no regrets. In a recent joint interview with his wife Nikki Reed, Somerhalder opened up about his decision to leave the entertainment industry behind and embark on a new chapter of life.
“I love what I did for a really long time. I love making films, I just did it for so long. We had an amazing run,” Somerhalder, now 45 years old, revealed during the interview with E! News. “But this is our 2.0 version — about to be 3.0 version.”
Somerhalder’s decision to step away from acting may come as a surprise to some fans. He had previously hinted at his career shift while discussing his and Nikki Reed’s move to a farm outside of Los Angeles. The couple, who are parents to two children, expressed their excitement about creating a new home filled with 18 pets, including farm animals and domestic pets, after selling their previous property.
“[I love] walking through the farm with kids and dogs and family,” Somerhalder shared in November 2023. “Every stop, you’re pulling off of trees or off of bushes, pulling up out of the ground and feeding everyone as you’re moving through the farm.”
Since exchanging vows with Reed in 2015, Somerhalder has transitioned into producing documentaries related to climate change, such as 2020’s ‘Kiss the Ground.’ Additionally, he partnered with his former ‘The Vampire Diaries‘ co-star Paul Wesley in 2020 to launch Brother’s Bond Bourbon, a venture inspired by their fictional characters.
Somerhalder explained his career shift, stating, “I stepped away from acting a little over four years ago to raise my kids, build my companies, and get these films launched.”
Despite his departure from acting, Somerhalder remains dedicated to various projects that align with his new life path. He emphasized, “I will be a rancher and building legacy brands, whether it’s my bourbon or my health and wellness company, and the regenerative agriculture and healthy soil management practices that I live by and our family lives by. That’s where my life was going. So when people say ‘Why do you care?’ That’s why I care. Because that’s who I am, that’s what I’m going to become.”
