Phoebe Tonkin talks Hayley/Caroline/Tyler

The Secret Circle‘s Phoebe Tonkin shows up in Mystic Falls this Thursday (The CW, 8/7c) as Hayley, a werewolf who helped Tyler free himself from Klaus’ mental chains. As a result, she and the hybrid have shared quite the traumatic experience, which might spell trouble for Tyler’s current romance.

“Hayley is a little bit of a threat to that relationship because she has a history with Tyler,” says Tonkin. “She knew Tyler during a very emotional time when he was breaking his sire bond.” 

In tough situations like that, people tend to lean on each for support and… something more. So can viewers trust that the two kept things strictly platonic in the past? “All we know is that they were friends and that they went through something big together, so they have a special bond because of that,” 
replies the actress. “So they were just good friends. But I don’t know if, at the beginning, Caroline thinks that.” 

That doubt will cause “a bit of friction” between the girls as the blonde vamp is “a little threatened” — there’s that word again! — “by Hayley because she doesn’t know how close her relationship was with Tyler in the past,” Tonkin says. As for the hybrid himself, he’s “a little surprised” by the unexpected appearance from his pal “because she’s, obviously, someone from his past, a past that we don’t know that much about. But she’s a good friend of his, so he’s just excited to see her.”

Tonkin advises fans of the couple not to fret too much. “Caroline and Tyler have their own situations going on,” she says. “I don’t think Hayley is a huge priority for Caroline at the moment. They have a lot of bigger things” to worry about. And the werewolf, too, is on a mission, so starting a relationship (or breaking one up) isn’t on her agenda. 

“She’s hiding a secret, and she’s trying to find out something very important to her that we’re going to discover eventually,” teases the actress. 

Despite all the turmoil Hayley may stir up, Tonkin hopes the audience likes her character, who she believes is a departure from her Secret Circle witch Faye – “It was definitely going to go darker, a little bit more twisted,” she says of what the future held for the canceled CW drama – even though the two are both “confident and strong and independent,” she says. “Hayley has a little bit more empathy. Faye is quite manipulative.” 

But who has more fun: Werewolves, witches or the mermaids of her and Vampire Diaries co-star Claire Holt’s Australian series H20: Just Add Water? 

“They all have their different kind of fun,” she replies with a laugh. “But it’s definitely nice to play Hayley. She’s a free spirit. She’s kind of ballsy. She’s different from what I’ve played before.”

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