The Vampire Diaries is a series.
Nina Dobrev . She portrayed Mia Jones on the drama series Degrassi : The Next Generation ( 2006 -- 2009 ) , and then played the role of Elena Gilbert/Katherine Pierce/Amara/Tatia on The CW 's supernatural drama series The Vampire Diaries ( 2009 -- 2015 , 2017 ) . The Vampire Diaries . On April 6 , 2015 , lead actress Nina Dobrev confirmed via Instagram that she and co-star Michael Trevino ( who plays Tyler Lockwood ) would be leaving the show after its sixth season .