Warning: this article contains major spoilers for the last episode of The Originals, 'When the Saints Go Marching In'.
The Originals ended last night (August 1) with a shocking twist that saw main characters Klaus (Joseph Morgan) and brother Elijah (Daniel Gillies) killed off.
While sad enough in the fact that they are dead, it's especially heartbreaking for fans as it also means the end of Klaus and Caroline's (Candice King) – or Klaroline – love story from The Vampire Diaries.
However, it turns out that it could have played out differently, at least going by a deleted scene from the finale.
In the original ending, Caroline visits New Orleans to pay her final goodbyes and say that she will never forget Klaus, though that was not always the planned ending.
In the deleted scene, Caroline and Klaus are together in New Orleans as they watch a street artist paint – watch it here.
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"Early on if you would've asked me, 'Where does Klaus go when this is all over?' I'd say, 'He goes to Paris with Caroline Forbes,'" Originals showrunner Julie Plec told Entertainment Weekly.
However, the change came about because of The Vampire Diaries' ending, which saw Caroline marry Stefan only to lose him after he also sacrificed himself.
"This is the right way to have honoured Stefan," Plec added of the Originals finale. "Because once Caroline and Stefan found love and got married and she lost him, it never really felt right to have Caroline move past Stefan's memory to go travel the world for all eternity with Klaus Mikaelson, as much as they have a connection and a powerful bond.
"I really felt like Stefan's memory was important to protect."
Speaking about killing off Klaus and Elijah, Plec told TVLine: "I figured one of them would go, for sure, when we started this show. My feeling was that it probably would have been Klaus, and we'd let Elijah live a life unencumbered without his brother.
"But then we got to tell that story for Elijah in the final season. We let him live that unencumbered life, and he found his way back to his brother because, ultimately, for better or for worse, in all its co-dependent glory, that is the legacy of Klaus and Elijah. Much like The Notebook, I feel like it was only right that they should go together."
The Originals airs on The CW in the US and on Netflix in the UK.
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Sam is a freelance reporter and sub-editor who has a particular interest in movies, TV and music. After completing a journalism Masters at City University, London, Sam joined Digital Spy as a reporter, and has also freelanced for publications such as NME and Screen International. Sam, who also has a degree in Film, can wax lyrical about everything from Lord of the Rings to Love Is Blind, and is equally in his element crossing every 't' and dotting every 'i' as a sub-editor.
