Photo: Bob Mahoney/The CW

The Originals wrapped up its fourth season on CW on Friday night, and fans will have a long wait for the return of the series.

Why the long wait for the return of this series?

CW did not add The Originals to its fall schedule. The network is holding back the series, which started as a spin-off of The Vampire Diaries, to midseason. That means at least a late 2016 start, but more than likely the series will return to CW in January.

The decision to hold the series for midseason was discussed by Mark Pedowitz at the CW Upfronts earlier this week. According to TV Line, he said:

“We have a very strong schedule. We still believe quite a bit in The Originals. We only have 10 hours, so we made a choice to [hold it] to further boost our schedule at midseason.”

As a fan of this series, this writer was confused by the announcement of the delay to midseason. In a recent interview, Julie Plec talked about future crossovers between The Vampire Diaries and The Originals for next season, but the creator wants to have those opportunities come up organically.

A delay for one of the series cuts off the opportunities for those moments. The two shows have different casts and stories, but even after three years on the air, The Originals has shown that it is still very much connected to the world of The Vampire Diaries.

SPOILER ALERT. On the finale, Klaus sacrificed himself in order for all of his siblings to live. Freya created a spell that would put her siblings to sleep after Marcel had her poisoned and bit Elijah and Kol. Klaus was daggered, and the final moments saw Marcel hiding him away behind bricks. Hayley drove off and left New Orleans with four caskets and Hope. Her mission is to find cures for the Mikaelsons.

Right now, it looks like she will be looking for that cure for nine months. That is a one very long wait. Are you surprised that CW did not put The Originals on their fall schedule? Tell us what you think.