Days Of Our Lives
Jen Lilley Issues Statement And Confirms Her Exit From Days of our Lives!
On Monday morning, Jen Lilley took to her Instagram account to offer up her side of the story and confirm she is no longer with NBC’s Days of our Lives. Here is what Jen offered up in her statement below on how DAYS and her parted company, and the reasons why.
Jen Lilley statement: “It is with bittersweet sentiment that I find myself making this statement 6 months too soon. First, I would like to say your comments, support, and well wishes regarding my recent departure from the iconic daytime drama, Days of Our Lives, have melted my heart. Second, I have never enjoyed playing a character so much. I absolutely love Theresa, and the idea of not playing her pains me. I once found a quote that perfectly describes her, ‘She’s a mess of gorgeous chaos, you can see it in her eyes.’ Exploring Theresa, from her insecurities to her strengths, from her tendency to deflect emotional anguish with comedy to her firecracker spirit has been pure joy.
I hate to dissatisfy our love for black and white explanations, but there’s no one to point your finger at here. Days of Our Lives and I are parting company on the best of terms. It came down to time and the sacrifices required to keep Theresa on the front burner. Given the demanding production schedule a soap requires, that just wasn’t possible with the other commitments and opportunities I wanted to pursue. As we all know in the world of soaps, good bye for now isn’t always good bye forever, who knows what the future has in store for Theresa.
I am taking time right now to be with my family, advance the charitable causes I believe in, and pursue additional career opportunities. While I’ve missed so many moments in my family’s lives back east, I have built a west coast family at Days of Our Lives, and they haven’t seen the last of me! I’ll be stopping by the set from time to time with baked goods and bear hugs.
Lastly, cheer up! There are 6 more wonderful months of Theresa to enjoy. And I can honestly say that each month, the storyline gets better! My exit will have you on the edge of your seat, laughing, crying, cheering, screaming, clapping, and bewildered. And to the Theresa’s out there: I love you, I love you, I love you. You are not alone. You are beautiful and worthy of love and happiness and joy and success! May my storyline over the next six months inspire you.”
So, what did you think of Jen’s statement? Sad to see her go? What do you think Theresa’s exit storyline will be? Share your thoughts in the comment section below!
Good luck to her, she made Theresa an interesting character. However, I found her relationship with Brady to be a bit unbelievable at times. It seemed highly unlikely that Theresa could wack John over the head with a fireplace poker landing him in the hospital and then Brady married her anyway even though John is his father. Then again, of course, it IS a soap.
Will they re-cast the character of Theresa or just write her out somehow? What about the baby that she and Brady share?
So sad to see her go, I wish her luck on her future projects
She’s a beautiful and talented actress–loved her singing also. Hope she gets to fulfill her dreams and goals.
I am sorry but< I have never read anything like this before. The girl is full of herself. I think she reads her own press.And believes it. Sorry.
Seriously? Jen Lilley is one of the best actors on DOOL. What she has brought to the show has for the most part kept it going. I’m not sure she is 100% truthful in why she has chosen to leave because I believe she is smart enough to see a sinking ship. Watching Theresa grow has been fun and Jen brought her to life. She may be many things but “full of herself” is not one. I suspect you are confused with reel and real.
I know, really!
I don’t mean to sound like suzy skeptical, but if you have to point out that there’s no one to blame, there’s probably someone to blame. Given that Theresa is a Brady and a legacy character and not a Hernandez, I’m going to guess the person to blame’s name rhymes with Pena Piglely.
🙂
For all the people predicting the death of Theresa…The statement from Jen Lilley indicates something different. Theresa will most likely move away. I predict Theresa will be recast unless JL agrees to a return.
If there is a more ‘nefarious’ reason (lol), Jen is being very diplomatic. I sooo admire that in a person. Obviously, she does not want to burn any bridges.
Good fortune to you, Jen. I will miss you so!!!! Follow your brain, girl!!
I really dont know what to think at the moment…sounds like she wanted to leave and it also sounds like she didnt…would have liked to had seen her with Chad…well, she could come back but will the show be with us a year from now?…show needs better lighting, taping 6 months in advance is absurd…brighten up the stories a bit…characters like Deimos, Philip and Summer should leave not Shaun and Belle…i have no problem with Rafe’s family but the show should never loose focus on the Hortons…Bill and Laura or Jen and Jack shouldve been the shows Matriarch and patriarch…Lucas is a Horton and should be featured if we are not going to ever again see Mike…Kayla and the Aussie doc-feels like Jen and Danial all over again-ugh!!!
Basically it’s the same as any other actor/actress. They want to be able to do other outside projects, and the PTB don’t want to give them the time off. So that’s where the no one to blame comes from.
I’m certain that some soap fans being how some soap fans can be, were looking for someone to blame on social media, which necessitated the statement. I didn’t see anything wrong with the statement at all, it was straight and to the point that they are parting on good terms, but there are always going to be people that look for a problem where there is none.
I wish her lots of luck, and if the character is needed that much that she couldn’t be given the time off that she needs, then I expect it will be recast.
Good Luck to Jen, wish her the best.
To me it says a lot when talented actors leave a show. There is chaos happening at DAYS as far as the writing and production of the show. The stories are either lost in the 80’s or so boring that no one cares WHAT happens. Theresa Donovan was a spark in this show. She was catty, bitchy, funny and tender all at the same time. She added life but when they paired her with Brady they killed all of the spark. Then she became a sap. The whole story with her competing against Summer was a joke because the character of Summer was awful and ridiculous. Exactly how many babies did Maggie have that she forgot about? Next thing we know we will hear about how Maggie was a teenager and kidnapped by the Manson family and forced to be impregnated with all of his family’s future children. They already have the commune with Joey there. Watch him bring back half a dozen of Maggie’s forgotten “children”. I will miss Theresa as a good character with a lot of talent from Jen Lilley. I hope she finds work somewhere that she can show off her acting chops. DAYS is shooting straight towards cancellation with their current stories. They can bring back all the old characters they want and try to make Jack come back from the dead and have Bo whisper in ghost form to Hope and Patch ride a motorcycle to take Kayla to the Flock Of Seagulls concert at the club but it will still be a bad experience. This show is proof positive that you can not live in the past. I don’t know anything about Ms Higley’s direction for story but I do know that what she is sending forth now is embarrassing. If I hear John mumble any more about how rough his upbringing was I will puke. He is nearly seventy, time to move on and drink his metamucil.
My thought of the article and Jen was ” What a beautiful Soul.” There have been rumors since last year that JL wanted to leave DOOL to pursue other projects. Thus her leaving was no surprise to me. Did the Head Writer hasten the exit? Maybe so. I don’t watch the show with regularity so I am not invested.
I’m a fan of JL from her filling in for Kirsten Storms on GH. I wish she was available to do the same this time around. However, I can understand if JL needs downtime with her real family back east. Good luck to Jen Lilley. She is truly talented.
Too bad! She made a great Teresa, and a great Maxie on GH! If the GH production team waited one more day, she would have return as Maxie. Meanwhile, Molly will do a good job!
I’m sorry to see her go. She should pursue a career in comedies. She was hilarious on the old MTV series, Disaster Date.
I am going to miss Theresa. Jen made the character a blast to watch so I will miss the actress as well. I hope to see her in something else soon.
good lucky jen Lilly theresa was the best part of days if it wasn’t for you i would of stop watching long ago you did a great job i will miss you where every you go i wish you well many will follow you were ever you go next come back and see us know and then you had more fans following you then you know bye bye !
Perhaps she could be the temporary replacement “Maxie Jones” on GH, she’s done it before and quite successfully I might add.
I am very sorry to see Jen Lilley leave DOOL. She has been a solid bright spot in her role since day 1. My favorite dynamic was her interactions with Anne Milbauer. There haven’t been enough of them. They are terrific together!
Best of luck to you, Jen!
Oh, I agree, James. Those two should be on stage as a comedic duo. Anne and Jen are magic together.
Thanks, Celia! You’re right about them being on stage as a comedic duo. At least we have their rap video…
You can’t blame Jen Lilley, like so many beloved actors she’s leaving for greener pastures. Days is back to being a mess again, they hired Dena Higley back, and she is a disaster. And Days’ ratings are at an ALL TIME LOW, the future of Days is not looking good.
Best of luck to one of daytime’s most beautiful performers.
GH needs to quietly maintain some form of a relationship with JL in case KS ever decides to leave in a few years. JL was a very good as Temp Maxie for a full year on GH, despite fan outrage that she sadly decided to read, and honestly I was sad to see JL leave. I have always loved KS as Maxie and was happy to see her back but it was bittersweet feeling. JL did a solid job on the show as Temp Maxie so I never understood the insane amount hate on the internet that she said lead to to crying herself to sleep.
I am so going to miss Jen Lilley. Loved her character in her scenes with Ann Milbauer or Jennifer Horton most of all. Theresa and Chad would have been a great duo. Hope she returns at some point.
Wishing you all the best, Jen. You have a bright future ahead of you!
Lovely actress who is a joy to watch. She’s a shining light in the noir village of Salem these days. I hope the exit storyline is everything Jen believes it to be. And hope beyond hope that the writing team finds some sort of solid footing – and soon!
I never saw any chemistry between Brady and Theresa and IMO, Theresa ruined Brady. But, I do want to wish Jen Lilley the best!
Breaking News
(WATCH) 2024 Daytime Emmy Nominations Special Live!
After exciting morning for your favorite daytime stars when they were revealed to be nominees for the 51st annual Daytime Emmy Awards comes tonight 10th annual Daytime Emmy Nominations Special.
Beginning at 8 pm ET/5 pm PT, several of the nominees will talk with Michael Fairman on their reactions to the news they have been nominated for a Daytime Emmy, share what scenes they submitted that landed in the top five or six in their respective performer acting categories and much more.
Scheduled to appear are: Days of our Lives nominees, Tamara Braun (Ava), Eric Martsolf (Brady) and Linsey Godfrey (Sarah), The Young and the Restless nominees: Allison Lanier (Summer), Michelle Stafford (Phyllis), Courtney Hope (Sally), Bryton James (Devon), The Bold and the Beautiful’s John McCook (Eric), General Hospital nominees, Finola Hughes (Anna) and Alley Mills (Heather), and The Bay’s Mike Manning (Caleb).
The 51st annual Daytime Emmy Awards will be broadcast live on CBS and streamed on Paramount+ on Friday night, June 7th and emanating, once again this year from the Bonaventure Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.
For a full list of this year’s nominations click here.
Now, watch below as the stars chat it up as we celebrate their Daytime Emmy Nominations. If you have a potential question you might want posed to any of our guests, drop it in the comment section below and we just might ask it on air.
Breaking News
51st Annual Daytime Emmy Award Nominations: CBS Soaps Score Most, Eric Braeden, Dick Van Dyke, Guy Pearce Receive Nods
The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) have officially announced on Friday, the full list of nominees for the 51st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards.
While Thursday brought with it four reveals of the nominees in the Outstanding Daytime Drama, Talk Show Host, Lead Actor and Actress categories (as presented by various entertainment news programs), today’s nominations include all the other categories not previously announced.
The Daytime Emmy Awards telecast is set to be presented live on Friday night, June 7, at 8 PM EDT /delayed PT, on the CBS Television Network, and available to stream live and on-demand on Paramount+. This will mark the 18th time that CBS has broadcast the Daytime Emmys.
In addition, The Daytime Creative Arts & Lifestyle Emmy Awards will be presented on Saturday, June 8 at t9 PM ET/6 PM PT and streamed on The Emmys apps and at watch.TheEmmys.tv. The ceremonies will take place at the Westin Bonaventure Los Angeles.
Television icon, Dick Van Dyke has received his first-ever Daytime Emmy nomination in the Outstanding Guest Performer category for his touching portrayal of Timothy Robicheaux on Peacock’s Days of our Lives. The nomination makes Van Dyke the oldest Daytime Emmy nominee in history at 98-years-old. In addition, motion picture and TV star, Guy Pearce, is also nominated as Guest Performer for his longtime role as Mike Young in the reboot of Neighbours.
Speaking of Neighbours, the Australian soap opera also received its first ever Daytime Emmy nomination for Daytime Drama Series now that its a revival can be streamed on Amazon Freevee. In addition, The Young and the Restless iconic, Eric Braeden (Victor Newman) received his first Daytime Emmy nomination in more than 20 years in the Lead Actor in a Drama Series category.
In the Daytime Drama series categories, CBS’ The Bold and the Beautiful and The Young and the Restless each scored 12 nominations more than any other show. Leading the acting nominations was B&B, who landed 7 performers in the various categories, a first in its 37-year history.
In a statement, Adam Sharp, President & CEO, NATAS expressed, “We are happy to once again honor the creative talent both in front of and behind the camera of America’s favorite Daytime programs. We look forward to celebrating the icons who enliven the days of audiences across the country.”
Brent Stanton, Head of Daytime, NATAS added, “Producing the Daytime Emmys is a labor of love for all of us at NATAS. The huge popularity of these shows continues to be must-see viewing for their fans.” NATAS also revealed that Lifetime Achievement Honorees, Hosts, Presenters, and Silver and Gold Circle honorees will be revealed at a later date.
The Daytime Emmy Awards recognize outstanding achievement in television programming honoring work in a variety of categories, including daytime dramas, talk shows, instructional programming, hosting, culinary, and legal/courtroom programs. In 2021, NATAS and the Television Academy jointly announced plans to realign the Daytime and Primetime Emmy Awards to be organized by content genre, as opposed to program airtime.
The 51st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards will be produced once again by NATAS and Associated Television International (ATI). Adam Sharp and Lisa Armstrong are executive producers from NATAS, while David McKenzie executive produces from ATI.
Congratulations to all the men and women in front of the camera and behind the scenes for their recognition as we take a look at who will be going for gold come June. Here are the nominees below starting with the Daytime Drama Categories.
OUTSTANDING DAYTIME DRAMA SERIES
The Bay
The Bold and the Beautiful
Days of our Lives
General Hospital
Neighbours
The Young and the Restless
OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A DAYTIME DRAMA SERIES: ACTRESS
Tamara Braun, Days of our Lives
Finola Hughes, General Hospital
Katherine Kelly Lang, The Bold and the Beautiful
Annika Noelle, The Bold and the Beautiful
Michelle Stafford, The Young and the Restless
Cynthia Watros, General Hospital
OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE IN A DAYTIME DRAMA SERIES: ACTOR
Eric Braeden, The Young and the Restless
Scott Clifton, The Bold and the Beautiful
Thorsten Kaye, The Bold and the Beautiful
Eric Martsolf, Days of our Lives
John McCook, The Bold and the Beautiful
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE IN A DAYTIME DRAMA SERIES: ACTRESS
Jennifer Gareis, The Bold and the Beautiful
Linsey Godfrey, Days of our Lives
Courtney Hope, The Young and the Restless
Allison Lanier, The Young and the Restless
Emily O’Brien, Days of our Lives
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE IN A DAYTIME DRAMA SERIES: ACTOR
Robert Gossett, General Hospital
Bryton James, The Young and the Restless
Wally Kurth, Days of our Lives
A Martinez, The Bay
Mike Manning, The Bay
OUTSTANDING GUEST PERFORMANCE IN A DAYTIME DRAMA SERIES
Linden Ashby, The Young and the Restless
Ashley Jones, The Bold and the Beautiful
Alley Mills, General Hospital
Guy Pearce, Neighbours
Dick Van Dyke, Days of our Lives
OUTSTANDING WRITING TEAM FOR A DAYTIME DRAMA SERIES
The Bay
The Bold and the Beautiful
Days of our Lives
General Hospital
The Young and the Restless
OUTSTANDING DIRECTING TEAM FOR A DAYTIME DRAMA SERIES
The Bay
The Bold and the Beautiful
Days of our Lives
General Hospital
The Young and the Restless
OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DIRECTION
General Hospital
The Jennifer Hudson Show
The Kelly Clarkson Show
The View
OUTSTANDING TECHNICAL DIRECTION, CAMERAWORK, VIDEO
The Bold and the Beautiful
Days of our Lives
Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade
The Kelly Clarkson Show
OUTSTANDING CASTING
African Queens: Njinga
Days of our Lives
General Hospital
Start Up
The Young and the Restless
OUTSTANDING ART DIRECTION/SET DECORATION/SCENIC DESIGN
African Queens: Njinga
The Drew Barrymore Show
General Hospital
The Kelly Clarkson Show
The View
The Young and the Restless
OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN/STYLING
African Queens: Njinga
The Bold and the Beautiful
The Jennifer Hudson Show
Sherri
OUTSTANDING HAIRSTYLING AND MAKEUP
African Queens: Njinga
The Drew Barrymore Show
Sherri
The View
The Young and the Restless
OUTSTANDING ORIGINAL SONG
“Shine” General Hospital
“Unexpected Truth”Unexpected
“We’re Home” Reconnecting Roots
OUTSTANDING DAYTIME TALK SERIES
The Jennifer Hudson Show
The Kelly Clarkson Show
Tamron Hall
Turning The Tables with Robin Roberts
The View
OUTSTANDING ENTERTAINMENT NEWS SERIES
Access Hollywood
Entertainment Tonight
Extra
OUTSTANDING CULINARY SERIES
Be My Guest with Ina Garten
Family Dinner
Selena + Chef: Home for the Holidays
Valerie’s Home Cooking
What Am I Eating? with Zooey Deschanel
OUTSTANDING LEGAL/COURTROOM PROGRAM
Hot Bench
Judy Justice
Justice For The People with Judge Milian
The People’s Court
We The People with Judge Lauren Lake
DAYTIME TALK SERIES HOST
Joy Behar, Whoopi Goldberg, Alyssa Farah Griffin, Sara Haines, Sunny Hostin, Ana Navarro, The View
Kelly Clarkson, The Kelly Clarkson Show
Mark Consuelos, Kelly Ripa, Live with Kelly and Mark
Akbar Gbajabiamila, Amanda Kloots, Natalie Morales, Jerry O’Connell, Sheryl Underwood, The Talk
Tamron Hall, Tamron Hall
OUTSTANDING CULINARY HOST
Lidia Bastianich, 25 Years with Lidia: A Culinary Jubilee
Valerie Bertinelli, Valerie’s Home Cooking
Eduardo Garcia, Big Sky Kitchen with Eduardo Garcia
Emeril Lagasse, Emeril Cooks
Sophia Roe, Counter Space
Buddy Valastro, Legends of the Fork
OUTSTANDING DAYTIME PERSONALITY – DAILY
Frank Caprio, Caught in Providence
Kevin Frazier, Nischelle Turner , Matt Cohen, Cassie DiLaura, Denny Directo, Will Marfuggi, Rachel Smith, Entertainment Tonight
Deborah Norville, Steven Fabian, Lisa Guerrero, Ann Mercogliano, Jim Moret, Les Trent. Inside Edition
Robert Hernandez, Star Jones, Divorce Court
Judge Judy Sheindlin, Whitney Kumar, Kevin Rasco, Sarah Rose, Judy Justice
What do you think about the nominations for the 51st annual Daytime Emmy Awards? Who do you think deserved to get in that did? Who do you think got snubbed? Who are you happiest to see receive a nomination? Let us know via the comment section below.
Make sure to be with us live starting tonight Friday, April 19th at 8pm ET/5pm PT for the Michael Fairman Channel’s 10th anniversary edition of its Daytime Emmy Nomination Special 2024, featuring some of the just announced daytime drama nominees.
Days Of Our Lives
Stephen Schnetzer Talks On His Return to Days of our Lives and Working with Susan Seaforth Hayes In Emotional Episodes
Who says you can’t go home again? In the case of Another World favorite, Stephen Schnetzer (ex-Cass Winthrop), he has proven that it is true, and you can go back to your soap roots and where it all started for you.
Last week on April 11th, Schnetzer, along with several other key returns were on set at Days of our Lives taping all-new episodes of the Peacock streaming soap opera, centering on the funeral of Doug Williams (the late Bill Hayes), and as part of the iconic soap opera’s 15,000th episode.
Stephen is reprising his first daytime role as Steve Olson, the brother of Julie Williams (Susan Seaforth Hayes). The last time Schnetzer appeared on a DAYS set was during his one and only run on the show from 1978 to 1980. Clearly, viewers will be in for some very emotional scenes when Steve returns to Salem to be there for his sister, Julie in her time of need. In real-life, Susan has been going through her own grief, having just lost Bill back on January 12th at the age of 98.
Michael Fairman TV caught up with Stephen during the 15K episode celebration ceremony, and during a break from taping the gut-wrenching funeral scenes, to get his thoughts on being part of these highly-anticipated moments that will air later this year in December. Here’s what he shared with us below.
What has this been like for you to work with Susan Seaforth Hayes after all of these years?
STEPHEN: She’s a dream and she’s so bright. We ran lines yesterday and we ended up just visiting for about 45 minutes and just catching up and telling tales about each other’s career. She even dropped off the autobiography that she and Bill did. And being back here at DAYS, every time I turn a corner, there’s another familiar face. When I was on the show 40 more years ago, a bunch of the guys, played softball on a team together. This is really a trip down memory lane as I knew it would be.
Taping Doug’s funeral must be a hard day for Susan. Are you checking in with her to help hold her up through this?
STEPHEN: I am and I’m checking in with Amy Shaughnessy (Susan’s assistant), and she’s holding her up more than anybody. We’re there for each other.
There will obviously be some major hankie-inducing moments when Steve comes back to Salem to console his sister.
STEPHEN: Oh, wait till you see it in December. It’s going to be great.
Were you surprised you got this call to come back to the show decades later?
STEPHEN: It was out of the blue! I was completely surprised. They should have called me decades ago! That’s what surprised me. When Another World went down, I thought I’d land somewhere else and it never happened. That was more of a surprise.
Cass is such an identifiable character for you. As well, you and Linda Dano (ex-Felicia Gallant) are so synonymous together as best friends Cass and Felicia from Another World. When fans heard you were reprising your role as Steve Olson on DAYS, they are now hoping there will be more of you on the show to come.
STEPHEN: Steven Olson is a real “Cassian “character. I cut my teeth on Steve Olson and that’s how Cass was introduced. He was kind of a roguish charmer. And then when the character stuck for Another World, they rehabilitated me, and turned me into one of the shows heroes. And that’s what would’ve happened if I stayed as Steve Olson probably. So, Steve is the ‘pre-Cass’, Cass.
As the story goes, you originally decided to leave Days of our Lives?
STEPHEN: I was never on contract. I was doing a day and a half a week and I got a Broadway play directed by Franco Zeffirelli starring Joan Plowright and Frank Finlay. I was able to it as I didn’t have to break a contract or anything. I cut loose and went back to New York for that.
How well did you get to know Bill Hayes during your first time around on DAYS?
STEPHEN: My first episode was with Bill and Susan, as her long lost brother coming into Salem. They were so good to me. They were so kind. I had been doing eight years of classical repertory theater, never been in front of a camera. I tell everybody, it took me longer than any other actor I’ve ever seen to get comfortable in front of a camera. And they were very supportive at that time in my career. Coming back to honor Bill now in 2024, and to be see Susan, I am just so happy to be here.
Looking forward to seeing the scenes between Stephen and Susan Seaforth Hayes come December and Doug’s funeral and surrounding episodes? Do you hope that DAYS might bring the character of Steve Olson back for a longer stay? Comment below.
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