Paul Wesley Reveals Surprising Teenage Ties to “Jersey Shore” Star Before “The Vampire Diaries” Fame
The actor opened up about his gym-obsessed, spray-tanned teenage years on the Jersey Shore, long before he became a household name playing a vampire.
NEED TO KNOW
- Paul Wesley says he ran in the same friend group as Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino years before either of them became famous.
- The actor grew up near the beach in Belmar, New Jersey, and described himself as being deep into the “gym, tan, laundry” lifestyle as a teen.
- Wesley only realized the connection years later, after “The Vampire Diaries” took off and Sorrentino recognized him at an event.
Paul Wesley is opening up about an unexpected chapter of his life that predates his breakout role on “The Vampire Diaries” one that ties him directly to “Jersey Shore” star Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino.
The actor, known for playing Stefan Salvatore on the hit CW supernatural drama, shared the story during a recent appearance on the podcast “Call Her Daddy.” Long before vampires and Twilight-era teen stardom entered the picture, Wesley says he spent his adolescence living the beach-town lifestyle that would later define MTV’s reality hit tanning, gym sessions, and a tight circle of friends who happened to overlap with Sorrentino’s.
Wesley grew up in Belmar, New Jersey, a shore town roughly 20 minutes from the beach, and didn’t hold back describing how seriously he took the look at the time. He admitted the whole scene now strikes him as more embarrassing than cool.
“Of course I got a spray tan,” he said, going on to describe how central appearance was to that phase of his life bigger muscles, constant tanning, and making sure there wasn’t a stray chest hair in sight.
It wasn’t until years later, once “The Vampire Diaries” had turned him into one of the CW’s biggest young stars, that Wesley discovered just how close he’d actually come to the “Jersey Shore” cast. At an industry event, Sorrentino approached him and revealed they’d crossed paths long before either had a TV show to their name, recalling their shared social circle from back home.
The two have since confirmed through mutual friends that they moved in overlapping groups on the Jersey Shore scene well before reality TV or network dramas entered the picture. Wesley has jokingly described himself as having basically been “part of the Jersey Shore” in spirit, even getting into the occasional scuffle with friends the way many shore-town teens did back then.
The revelation adds an unexpected footnote to Wesley’s career arc. He broke through in 2009 as one of the leads of “The Vampire Diaries,” a series adapted from L.J. Smith’s novel franchise that rode the same wave of vampire-romance mania that “Twilight” had ignited in theaters. The show ran for eight seasons and helped launch Wesley, along with co-stars like Nina Dobrev and Ian Somerhalder, into mainstream recognition. “Jersey Shore,” meanwhile, premiered that same year on MTV and turned Sorrentino, Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi, and the rest of the cast into reality TV icons almost overnight — meaning both properties were quietly taking shape in overlapping New Jersey circles at nearly the same cultural moment.
It’s a detail that speaks to how small certain regional entertainment scenes can be before fame reshuffles everyone’s paths two future TV names, unaware of what was coming, crossing paths on the same stretch of Jersey coastline.
For now, Wesley hasn’t indicated whether he and Sorrentino have stayed in touch beyond that chance reunion, but the story has already resonated with fans amused by the idea of a future vampire heartthrob once chasing the same “gym, tan, laundry” ideal that defined “Jersey Shore.” Whether the two ever cross paths on screen remains to be seen, but the anecdote has given both fan bases something new to talk about.
