After four seasons, The Originals, lasted for five seasons, and the second, Legacies, survived for four.
Now, as Legacies season 4 reaches its end, it has been confirmed that this season will be the show's last. However, this also means that The Vampire Diaries universe will be coming to a long-delayed end unless the franchise spawns another spinoff soon. While the CW series outlasted its theatrical rival, the Twilight Saga movie adaptations, by almost a decade, this news still came as a surprise for viewers who didn't expect to see the television institution come to an end after so long on the air.
Now that Legacies has been canceled, once season 4 ends, there will be no The Vampire Diaries show airing on The CW for the first time since the original series started in 2007. However, there is still speculation over whether this is really the end of the franchise’s fictional universe. There have not been many online rumors regarding Legacies prompting another spinoff, and the fact that series creator Julie Plec is currently working on an adaptation of the (unrelated) Legacies was less popular than The Originals (which, in turn, was not as successful as The Vampire Diaries) that the show will spawn a spinoff, which means The Vampire Diaries universe is finally at an end for now.
Plec co-created the original The Vampire Diaries alongside Kevin Williamson in addition to creating both The Originals and Legacies, meaning she would be the behind-the-camera talent most likely to stick around if the franchise were to produce another show. Yet as proven by True Blood being rebooted even though that series began airing after The Vampire Diaries, it is likely that it will not be too long before nostalgia for the CW’s fictional universe results in the franchise returning in some form or other.
However, a direct continuation of the story covered by The Vampire Diaries, The Originals, and Legacies is unlikely for several reasons. Much of the action of Legacies took place in the Salvatore School for the Young and Gifted, and once the cast ages out of playing students; it would be difficult to justify all of their characters being in one setting at the same time later in life. For another, the latter two shows largely revolved around Hope Mikaelson (Danielle Rose Russell), whose story will likely come to an end with Legacies season 4. Even if The Vampire Diaries does spawn a new show, it is unlikely to cover the ground left behind by Legacies.