Ian Somerhalder: I Am Not Edward Cullen!

Ian Somerhalder understands the comparisons.

He's not offended by the comparisons.

But he has to set the record straight about the comparisons.

Even though Somerhalder plays one of the key role in The Vampire Diaries, he wants it to be clear: his character of Damon Salvatore is nothing like Edward Cullen!

The actor was asked by French publication Séries Mag if Damon was the anti-Edward. The former Lost star replied:

"Yes, absolutely. From the little I know about the character of Edward. I'll let you in on a secret, I've never seen Twilight... I've heard a lot about it and know the general story lines. And I know that Vampire Diaries will be different from Twilight. What we've shot so far is very intense, very physical, sometimes even brutal."

omerhald doesn't completely dismiss Robert Pattinson and the Twilight Saga, however.

He freely admits that his new show would never have been made if not for the popularity of that franchise.

"Twilight is a phenomenon the like of which we rarely see, and I'm not complaining about this because thanks to it, I could make a return on the small screen. So, thank you, Twilight!" he said. "However, to those who think that Vampire Diaries is but a pale copy of Twilight, I want to remind that L.J. Smith's books, from which the show is adapted, were written before Stephenie Meyer's."

Will you give The Vampire Diaries a chance? It premieres on The CW on September 10.