Reduced CW episode orders prompted rumors that "The Originals" might be on its way out.Rumors started circulating that "The Originals" Season 4 may be the last series we will see the Mikaelson's, the original vampire family.

According to People (TV Watch), its parent program "The Vampire Diaries" (TVD) was announced earlier to be on its last and final season, wherein poor ratings were a contributing factor to the cancellation. The departure of Nina Dobrev, who played Elena Gilbert/Katherine Pierce, sent ratings to spiral down even further.

Deadline reported that The CW renewed "The Originals" Season 4 albeit reducing its episode order down to only 13 episodes, while all previous seasons had 22 episodes each. During its third season run from Oct. 8, 2015 to May 20, "The Originals" only reached a 0.39 rating in the 18-49 demographics, equivalent to 36.26 percent lower than season two or an average of only 0.93 million viewers.

However, there is hope for followers of "The Originals." There are reports that The CW and Netflix forged an agreement, which may suggest that the latter may pick up the spinoff after it airs Season 4 on The CW. This bit of news would be welcome as the series won't go the way as that of "Limitless" on CBN, which Netflix did not pick up.

Fans are suggesting a crossover of TVD characters to incite renewed interest in the show. There are also rumors to reunite Klaus with Caroline to probably prop the series up. Caroline is with Stefan in TVD while Elena is nowhere in the picture. There are rumors that Dobrev will reprise her Elena role in "TVD" Season 8, and if this pushes through, then Caroline can migrate back into Klaus' arms or fangs - whichever suits a vampire's fancy.

"The Originals" Season 4 is expected to premiere on Jan. 29, 2017.

Tags The Originals, The Vampire Diaries Season 8, The CW, Netflix, Joseph Morgan