Nina Dobrev

Nina Dobrev (born Nikolina Kamenova Dobreva) is an actress best known for playing Elena Gilbert and Katherine Pierce on The Vampire Diaries. Dobrev was born in Sofia, Bulgaria, and moved to Toronto, Canada, with her family as a child. She grew up doing dance and studied at Wexford Collegiate School for the Arts, later attending Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University). She briefly studied sociology in college before leaving to pursue acting full time.

Dobrev began her acting career with minor roles in television and film, including in Away From Her (2006) and How She Move (2007) before landing the part of Mia Jones on Degrassi: The Next Generation in 2006. Her breakthrough came in 2009 when she was cast as Elena Gilbert on The Vampire Diaries. The CW drama became a major hit and established Dobrev as one of television’s most recognizable young stars. Her performance earned multiple Teen Choice Awards and People’s Choice Awards during the show’s run. She remained a cast member until the show’s end in 2017.

Following her success on The Vampire Diaries, Dobrev starred in films including The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012), Let’s Be Cops (2014), The Final Girls (2015), Then Came You (2018), Love Hard (2021) and Reunion (2024). She also led the CBS sitcom Fam in 2019.

Dobrev dated her The Vampire Diaries costar Ian Somerhalder from 2010 to 2013. She later began a relationship with Olympic snowboarder Shaun White in 2020. The couple announced their engagement in October 2024 but called it off the following year.