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DAYS Deidre Hall On The Killing Of Will Horton: "Seeing The Show On Air Brought Back The Terrible Sadness We All Felt When The Scenes Were Being Shot."

By Michael Fairman

Published

11 years ago

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Courtesy/DeidreHallFanPage

Courtesy/DeidreHallFanPage

Daytime icon, Deidre Hall (Marlena) took to her official facebook page to share her sentiments, and that of the DAYS cast as they watched the brutal murder scene of Will Horton on last Friday’s episode of Days of our Lives, which also marked the final episode of Guy Wilson (Will).

Deidre posted: “It was very difficult to see the killing of Will on air. We all stood paralyzed and fixed on the screen in the make up room. Guy was terrific in his portrayal. Seeing the show on air brought back the terrible sadness we all felt when the scenes were being shot. I have seen him a number of times since he left and am happy to say he is doing well.”

As fans of the long-running NBC soap opera know, the character of Marlena and the character of Will had a very special bond.  The powers-that-be connected the two as Marlena (Will’s grandmother) was the person that helped Will come to terms with his sexuality, and accepted and loved him fully, and unconditionally.

Share your thoughts on Deidre’s comments on the cast members sadness watching the final scenes of Guy Wilson in the comment section below, and if you will miss the on-screen relationship between Marlena and Will?

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I think it was a huge mistake. Soaps need the younger generation for its future. Meaning eventually all the old timers who were once the younger generation will be gone and the younger generation is needed to carry the stories and families I to the future.

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The scenes between Marlena and Will, especially when Chandler was playing Will, were some of my favorite scenes between two characters in all of the 35 years I’ve been watching DOOL. It’s a terrible shame that we will may never see again that strong connection between the older and younger generation of characters. Besides the love story of Will and Sonny -Marlena’s scenes with her grandson is what I will miss the most.

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agree 100%

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Ditto!

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yes, the ones with Chandler I loved.

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Especially ALL the scenes with Chandler yes.

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While Chandler Massey was a phenomenal actor, I truly believe that Guy Wilson was never given a good shot in the role. The writers intentionally set up Mr. Wilson to fail. The murder of Will Horton was their convenient way to get rid of a controversy that the powers at DAYS were afraid to follow through on. They already did the hard part. They showed a young gay couple in love. They showed the dislike of their lives by some residents in Salem. They showed them in love scenes. They got married and they had kids. So what was left? Living happy as a couple in love facing life challenges like the other “normal” couples do? They couldn’t write something good for Sonny and Will? Please. The message that ended up being conveyed is that gays are horrible people who don’t deserve anything other than scorn, shame and pain in their lives for their horrible “choice”. First we will screw up your marriage with adultery. Then we will destroy the marriage. Eliminate the child aspect. And then finally kill off the bad homo. Disgusting. I hope that all their endeavors to tell a good story blow up in their faces because what they portrayed in not real, accurate or good story. Guy Wilson didn’t deserve this. Freddie Smith, even though he left of his own volition, didn’t deserve that and most of all the people who supported the story didn’t deserve that. I understand that certain viewers were upset by having “all this gay stuff in our faces”. Life is like that. Stuff we may not be comfortable with is often all up in our business. But grownups deal with their fears by working through them and learning that no matter how different we are in life practices we are all the same as human beings. I don’t want to say that all I want for Sonny and Will is rainbows and butterflies, life is messy and crap happens BUT they deserve the same chances as all those other characters to live a life of love and happiness mixed with some human pain. In the end, we are all just human. I am just so disappointed that with all the progressive steps DAYS took we are left with this void. And it’s gaping. Guy Wilson, good luck in your future endeavors. You are a great young actor and I wish you lots more experience in the field you love. RANT OVER.

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Mateo you are so right!

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Why do people want non stop misery and adultery and remarriages and divorce for straight couples, but nothing but sunshine and rainbows for gay couples? Life is not like that.

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I never once said that is what I wanted for any couple, be they straight or gay. Life happens, pain, death, divorce, late rent payments, wandering eyes and the like…however watch how the gay population is portrayed in the mainstream media. If a gay person is portrayed they get three versions: sluts, diseased sluts or dead sluts. Period. There is never a successful gay couple portrayed because society still views a gay person as lesser than. I want to see life portrayed like I live life..with a little of everything thrown in for good measure but no penalty for being different in sexual orientation. We have so much work to do to present a positive role model of a gay life. As The World Turns managed to portray a good role model where being gay wasn’t the main focus, it was the life the character lived. DAYS sent a bad message out there to confirm the idea that all of the LGBT community are lesser than and deserve no permanent happiness. I am not speaking in the minority here…it’s time that people spoke up to say that a positive portrayal is necessary to build acceptance, knowledge and the idea that all deserve to live life in all it’s wonder and with some cloudy days. Dolly Parton once said, “if you want a rainbow, you’re gonna have to put up with a little rain”….I agree with this view.

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You’ve got to be kidding me. Ever since Sonny first appeared on the show, DAYS has been bending backwards to show gays in a positive light! And show people who disagree with it in a negative light! It’s been preach, preach, preach, from day 1! Culminating in a weeklong gay wedding extravaganza complete with yet another bigot for Victor to give a tongue-lashing to. Speeches, LONG, WINDED speeches, over and over again, they won GLAAD award after GLAAD award, because they showed gays in such a positve light. It was so heavy-handed that I was SURE Will & Sonny would never cheat on each other and they would be model parents.. of course, the downside was, they were written into a corner. Imagine my surprise when Will cheated with Paul! I was impressed. But now they had four gays in front-burner storylines, all tied to core families (you just know it was in the works for Derrick to be revealed as a Dimera or something) and it was beginning to feel like “Gays of Our Lives”. The show was top-heavy with men! However, I do not agree with killing Will. He and Sonny should have ridden off into the sunset.

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Your last sentence, maddie, is worth a million bucks. It covers everything.

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and God forbid they give the gay community any attention that they would give a straight couple. After all, gays don’t deserve any good things at all. They are morally reprehensible and all. Hatred and bigotry are powerful drugs. They leave stains on our country and especially on our youth. The reason “long winded” speeches are necessary is because people can’t seem to learn the basic lesson of all people being equal. I don’t care if you sleep with your best friend Margaret or her cute brother Marvin , there is no right way to portray bigotry and hate. Days was never top heavy with men for the record. Let’s see. Nicole and Daniel. Serena and Eric and Xander. John and Marlena. Sami and EJ, Eve and JJ, Victor and Maggie, Hope and Aiden and Bo, Brady and Theresa and Melanie. Kristen and Daniel, Eric, and Brady. Patch and Kayla. Julie and Doug. Gabi and Nick. Kate and Clyde. Lucas and Adrienne. I think I am getting the message across that four gay men which is really only three because Derek was never a main character. Just someone in the sidelines is hardly top heavy. And now there are zero. Which is something to be embarrassed about not proud of. Love is love and usually love is blind. It does not care about whether you are born with female parts or male parts. Love happens when love happens and to whom it happens. How about that message get conveyed instead of giving in to public pressure about being “offended” by an alternate lifestyle. I seem to remember that a marriage between a black man and a white woman was illegal only 50 years ago. Times have changed. Social mores and norms have changed and it’s time to actively portray that. DAYS for a small moment in time attempted to do it but , it is my belief any way, they chose to write it off like it never happened. Pretty soon Will and Sonny will be a distant memory. They went through a crap load of trouble to give John a son, who happened to be gay, all to have it tossed aside when the writers couldn’t have enough courage to give Paul a happy life. I am embarrassed for the people who see the negative in teaching love and acceptance.

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Thanks CeeCee, you know me, hopeless romantic, I believe most women in the audience would prefer happy endings for their couples.

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Mateo, you are forgetting that DAYS has done more for gays than ANY other soap EVER has. And yet you’re so bitter that it isn’t going to continue in the way you like. For now, anyway. Well, guess what? DAYS has other audience members who aren’t gay who would like to be represented, too! How about Christians/Catholics, who loved this soap because it was so reverent and family-oriented? Tom Horton read from the Bible every Christmas. How about African-Americans? The disabled? Not a one. I, for one, would like to see some male-female love stories and weddings. There hasn’t been one! They put all their “wedding money” into the gay wedding, which got 1.7 in ratings. I’ll bet if, instead, they had had a big “irony-free” wedding like that for, say, EJ and Sami, ratings would have been much higher. They gave the gay audience everything! WHEN is the last time there was a wedding like that on this show?! I reiterate my opinion that DAYS has given you everything you always wanted, but now, just because they’ve decided to take the focus off the gays for awhile, they are being vilified! It’s the 50th anniversary! Some of us have been watching the show for far longer than four years! We’d like to see some other characters besides Sonny and Paul.

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Oh, cry me a river! Will Horton was not the only murder victim in Salem and he was not murdered because he was gay. Will was murdered because he had figured out that Ben was the necktie serial killer and was therefore a threat to Ben.

The other murder victims in the Salem necktie murders were NOT gay. This is a bunch of crap, dogging out the show because they killed off Will Horton. If it had been left up to me Will would NEVER have been written to be gay in the first place.

I agree with maddiehayes. The show did bend over backwards to be nice and sensitive to the gay community. But the story was not a hit with enough fans to maintain it. So the show cut its losses just like it did with Paige and Serena. I liked Paige. I would have done a few things differently with Serena. I also liked Madison James who they killed off a few years ago. I liked Madison as Brady’s love interest. But they killed her off. I was not a happy camper, but I got over it.

What happened to Will Horton happens on soaps. It is all a part of the business of soap operas. If you don’t want to take the risk of that happening, don’t ask them to put a gay character in the story.

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Deidre Hall also complimented Guy Wilson’s performance. She also said Guy Wilson is doing fine. Not too many seem to be caring about that, just the gay storyline. WOW!

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“Don’t ASK for a gay character?” – oh, okay, so let’s see, 99% of the town of Salem in heterosexual (and white) but there can’t be SOME diversity? Then, the writers come up with a fleeting gay themed storyline, and kill off the character. I realize the actor portraying Sonny vacated the role and this left the character of Will adrift, but they COULD have re-cast Sonny. No, no it’s better to get rid of him (with no chance of returning) so that the new writers could avoid an “uncomfortable” storyline and concentrate on older, established characters. I’m not saying that Will was the only “necktie” victim, I realize that Serena and Paige also were killed-off, and I know this happens on soaps, but you must admit –
IT GAVE THE WRITERS AND “EASY OUT”.

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Those who can’t handle that there are gay people in this world all argue the point that DAYS spent too much time on “gay people”. As if gay people should be allotted only 3.5 minutes a week because they are less than any one else. The show didn’t have to bend over backwards to be nice to any one. Gay people are simply people. We don’t need you to be “nice” to us. We need to be treated like everyone else. I don’t owe DAYS a thank you because they “allowed” gay characters into the story line. They should represent the LGBT community into it’s story as a regular part of the community. There is no difference. The sheer hatred and bigotry just shines through the anger in which your letter was written. It’s shameful actually. For the record I will get over it, quite easily but what I stated is hard truth and perhaps a bitter pill to swallow when you stand in front of your mirror each day and see the tiny narrow minded and bigoted individual you portrayed yourself to be. “if it had been left up to me, Will would have never been written to be gay in the first place.” Why was that a bad thing? Are there not gay people , especially youth, who need positive role models and examples to look up to? Shame on people like you who believe that the less exposure the better. This is not something that will just go away if it’s not spoken of. This is life, this is reality. What’s the hard thing to get over is that DAYS showed major cowardice in backing away from any representation on their show. Sonny is gone. Will is gone. Paul will be gone and Derek was only a sideline character who was left behind even before he started. I love the story of the serial killer in Salem. I love a few of the stories on DAYS which is why I watch the show but don’t think for a moment that I will stand quietly by and allow the daytime industry to use the LGBT community as a ratings ploy. They won some awards from GLAAD but that doesn’t make it okay to wipe out an entire community of people from representation simply because some don’t agree with it. Hate all you want, may it disturb your sleep and drive you batty with disgust but as for me, I believe in setting an example of acceptance, responsibility and love.

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As Mateo said, it was “too much gay”. They went too far with it. All the preaching drove me batty! These weren’t characters, they were SYMBOLS, and DAYS was using them to preach a message. And I’m sorry, but most people are NEVER going to be convinced that being gay is “just the same as having brown or blue eyes” as Justin memorably said. It’s not a race! Speaking of which, if they want diversity, African-Americans like Abe and Theo should be the ones with the front-burner storyline. Maybe that’s what they’re going for now.

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Mateo: Great post! I agree 100%. This move by Days (the destruction of WilSon and now the murder of Will) is upsetting and devastating for many viewers. Now having Sonny decide to leave Salem again right after burying his husband, and by doing so ABANDONING Arianna is going to upset even more viewers. Granted Sonny was not her legal or biological father, but he was her step-father and Godfather, and he PROMISED Will last year at her Christening that he would take care of her and treat her AS IF SHE WERE HIS OWN CHILD, and with his departure to Paris this coming Thursday, he is effectively leaving her again. Thankfully she still has her mother, Gabi.

It is just so sad that the show thought it was a good idea to destroy this family and murder Will Horton at the same time.

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What about Paul? He is another gay character?

Guy did not fit the character. Maybe he should have been recast. Written off like Sonny? Similarly on OLTL, Fish and Oliver were written off without any story development. But on ATWT, Luke and Oliver did not have a happy ending.

I understand your positions but Guy was not a fan favorite. When he took over the role, fans who did not not like the gay storylines already expressed how gay Days became. Guy was not Chandler. I cringed when he was on, but I feel that way about Christine who plays Hope but I’m part of a silent minority when it comes to her. I think it may have been virtually impossible to strick lightning twice in the same place when the original characters were never coming back together; such was the case with the original Wilson characters.

A difficult decision was made. One in which many fans are once again disappointed.

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Good post I couldn’t have said it any better

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I enjoyed Will and Marlena’s relationship. It’s a shame it’s gone.

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I have been watching DOOL since I have been old enough to watch tv lol. I’m not too upset that Will is gone. I was never impressed with Guy playing Will. I will admit he went out with a bang, he acted his death scene perfectly. It is too bad that was his best acting since day one with the show (my opinion). I’m not just picking on Guy. I was not impressed when the “new” Chad and Eve started either but they really owned their characters and totally made me change my mind about them. Guy just never did that for me. In my opinion he is an “over”-actor. He just tried too hard but came out too fake. These new writers are spot on with their story lines and I know there are better ones to come in the future.

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Yeah Dollie when I watched his final episode I thought the same thing, that he was doing his best acting on his last day.

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Will’s portrayal as a loving father were flawless, and because he demonstrated weaknesses (as if often true in real life – ie: insecurities in his relationship and marriage) the fans now him gone, so that is what they got and now are crying it should not have happened – people just don’t think and often speak out at a given moment, not considering the overall character and what he contributed and could have continued to do – he was not given any credit due to him, but was faulted….too often the fans are the worse enemy of the soap and should let the writers do their job and remember this is a soap, I will certainly miss him and Ari together at the very least.

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The images of Will & Ari will always stay with me. Guy Wilson clearly worked to develop of loving rapport with the twins who played her, and I am really saddened that the show never gave us a “loving goodbye” scene with Arianna, but I fear it was all about not showing positive gay fatherhood under the new writers. Will dead, Sonny abandons Arianna and she will be raised by straights.

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I think it was brilliant as no other character on the show is related to so many families. He’s a Horton, Brady & Kiriakis. And tied to the Dimeras. Even though killing off a legacy is always hard. Because this one effects almost every family in Salem…..it is bringing about so many awesome scenes by the remaining “family” members. I know many are screaming and thinking its a slap to the LGBT community…I’ve never liked labeling people based on their sexual preference. To me,,,, I’ve watched the character grow up & it’s just as heartbreaking as it was when Robin was “killed” on GH. I see no difference. Heartbreaking & superb performances by all the actors/characters effected by the senseless loss.

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Exactly! Excellent articulate post!!

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Exactly?
Exactly right?

Other reactions are valid too!

I simply would have liked more Will Horton! Will Horton is one of my favourite characters ever, and I didn’t want him killed of. And that’s as valid a reaction as the one above.

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Exactly! The great thing about opinions Stephen…is that yours is exactly right too!

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Kates in the square talking business knowing her Gtandson was murdered and Teressa talking to Kate briefly about Will-her cousin-then discussing business takes the story down a notch to stupidity level…otherwise im enjoying the show again.

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Yeah it’s like when Paige died and we didn’t get to see Abby with her brother JJ, instead she was going back and forth between Chad and Ben because that’s all they do with her.

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That’s funny, blake….and so on point. Lol.

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I too thought that was pretty flip and insensitive. People cope in different ways but this was a brutal murder. Will didn’t just go on a cruise with Doug and Julie.

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I agree. They’re doing theses hugely impactful storylines and not showing the fallout! Paige or Will. I get that Serena had limited connections on the show, but Paige and especially Will!! WTF!!!! The other storylines can wait IMO. Geez he’s barely cold. <:(

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I understand, well it’s a soap but I thought the same thing too. Gee, Kate was so close to Will, but it’s right back to business as usual – leaving Theresa out of the loop regarding work.
Marlena too, seems rather detached and distant to me considering how close she was with Will. I have only been watching for a little over two years now but it seems to me a bigger production would have been over Will’s murder. On the other hand, they just can’t have a show with everyone crying at a Funeral service.

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Everyone thinking Chad’s the killer takes me out of the story every time. Because Chad’s not like that, and the characters know he’s not like that! So it’s stupid and unbelievable, and it discredits the whole story.

Not only did Chad saved Marlena’s life, but Chad was the guy who very publicly stepped in front of a bullet to save a man, his new-found brother EJ. That’s EJ, the then fiance of Sami Brady. Chad literally was willing to die to save his life! And now, Sami is shown trying to murder a defenceless comatose Chad, her brother-in-law and uncle to her kids, rather than question the whole, incomprehensible situation to really establish what has happened. And, as she come from a police family as well!

As the nice Will Horton said “I don’t know how to comprehend this!”

It’s stupid and unpleasant and ugly and not nice to watch.

What the world needs is characters who show skepticism and forbearance and who seek truth before rash action. And TV viewers deserve interesting character and event driven plotting that is sane and respects both the characters and what-has-gone-before.

The writing for Marlena and Rafe is ridiculous. One minute they sensibly don’t think it’s Chad, and the next minute they’re cheering the lynch mob! It’s awful, bad, bad, writing.

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LOL, I so don’t care about Will being gone. I fell in love with Chandler and Freddie’s interpretation of Will & Sonny. That ended when Chandler stopped airing. I’ve heard and read that they destroyed Will’s character. Who wants an LGBT character on a show if they are excruciating?

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Because there are no bitchy, whiny guys in the LGBT Community in real life, right? Come on now.

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thank you Dylan!

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Yes they are, but Will never was one of them and he didn’t need to become a bitchy, whiny asshole, especially since it was totally out of character. But we know the writers had a hard time with Guy WilSon as Will, as he was not in the least but likeable or charismatic. Good riddance I say. They destroyed the character of Will and there is no need to cry when people point this out. TPTB f*cked up, no point to deny it. They dug their own grave.

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I am still awfully sad by what TPTB did by killing off Will Horton and Leting go Guy Wilson. I am not taling anything away from Chandler Massey and heaven knows he has 3 Emmys to prove that he is a great actor. But, this time the Wedding and the Death is all about Guy and he has done a great job in using what the writers gave him. Really, DOOL could have let him continue with a new love interest more suited to him. But I believe that once Freddie Smith decided to vacate the role of Sonny, they were just lazy and didn’t want to correct their mistake by letting Will get help and turn things around and move on. I also think over zealous Guy Wilson haters help caused the demise of a beloved legacy character who also happened to be Gay. I use to praise Days on their Sonny , Will even Paul characters, but now I am just disappointed .

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Well said. Fans of Guy Wilson are coming out of the woodwork, so much so that Ms. Hall had to assure fans he’s all right. I think more people sympathized with what he went through at hands of Massey fans than anyone knew. No disrespect to Massey himself, but some of his fans were pretty vicious.

Everyone I know loved the Wilson wedding, and that got the show so much good publicity. The Will/Sonny/Paul triangle carried the show earlier this year, and that’s not nothing. I know it brought a lot of fans to the show.

Everyone also agrees trying to make Will “the new Sami” didn’t do the character any favors but compared to most characters on the canvas his crimes were mild. But I think it is clear that people didn’t want Will dead, they wanted him redeemed. Guy was already portraying Will as depressed and in need of help and there was so much they could have done with that.

I just can’t believe these writers.

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I also think it was a mistake. There’s so much sorrow and grief on DOOL that I find myself enjoying individual performances but the show is much too dark in tone right now and that is usually a turn-off for viewers. Paige, Will and Serena are dead. Caroline and Chad are fighting for their lives in the hospital. Bo is presumed dead by Steve and Victor. It’s the anniversary of EJ’s death and Sami’s still grieving. Marlena was almost killed and was having flashbacks to being attacked. Yeah, there are 3 engaged couples on the show right now, but I can’t get excited about Nicole and Daniel, or Hope and Aiden, or Ben and Abby (especially since we know that the grooms in the last two couples are criminals). I’m very surprised that DOOL couldn’t figure out that this much death and sorrow at one time is excessive. There’s a terrible lack of balance on the show right now. I hope that gets fixed soon but from what I’ve heard, that’s not going to be the case. I have a bad feeling DOOL will regret these life or death (and mostly death) scenes if the ratings fall due to too much doom and gloom.

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It is too much, I agree. Doom & gloom everywhere. Didn’t Adrienne just test positive for the breast cancer gene? So we have that darkness to look forward to. Even Anne & Theresa have cut back on their witty, biting banter! Sad days in Salem folks. Other odd things:
JJ seems to be over his grief from Paige’s death. He barely shed a tear.
Add Theresa. She wasn’t phased much at all over Paige. She’s even talking business today.
Did we even see Dr. Dan’s reaction to Paige’s murder? She was like a daughter to him.
Victor fawning over unconscious Carolyn in that hospital bed day and night while leaving Maggie alone. It’s been decades pal since your romance w/Carolyn. 2 visits a wk should suffice. You don’t even visit your own family in the hospital like that. Surely writers aren’t going for a Victor/Maggie reunion? A bit ridiculous at this time & place.
Biggest oddity of all: Clyde is still on this damn show!!! Will he ever go away??

Think Guy got axed due to Sonny being off canvas & the viewer complaints Guy received this past summer about hos character and acting. They really wrote him poorly. His acting wasn’t so bad it warranted axing. Many others would be gone as well otherwise.

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I meant surely writers aren’t going for a Victor/ Carolyn romance. (I typed Maggie).

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Despite the acting being flawless, Bryan R. Dattilo rocked it, killing off Will was a big mistake and in such a brutal nature. Will represented many things to the show, history, popular with the fans as well as the gay storyline. I will miss the scenes between Will and Marlena, Lucas and Kate.

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A BIG mistake. It’s pretty sad when a soap needs to bring back characters of years ago to save it. Killing Will Horton was the last straw for me. It made no sense. It was stupid. I’m finished with days.

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What gracious words from Deidre. I haven’t quite made up my mind if I think the killing of Will was worth losing his story potential but I wish Guy all the best.

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I’m so glad that Guy Wilson finally proved what a brilliant actor he was in those final weeks, even though he got scare few chances to show it thanks to the de-gaying of the show. He was good before, but people had blinders. Also, people forget how much hate Chandler and Freddie have weathered in the past. But that’s no longer relevant.

Guy certainly didn’t phone it in once he found out he was leaving. As for the Guy versus Chandler, well both of them are far better than most of the actors on the show. I loved the Will that Sonny proposed to and that was featured in the wedding, which remains my favorite memory of Days.

I despise the homophobic way Will was written out, as the lonely gay punished for bad behavior. It was straight out of a 1950s melodrama, and it was totally designed for maximum pleasure of those who hated Will and did nothing to service the large audience who loved Will. It sent the message that gays can only earn forgiveness when dead, and the moving image has been doing that forever.

I think the backlash has shown just how many fans Guy Wilson had and just how beloved Will was. The Will/Paul/Sonny triangle was the most popular storyline the show had since the end of Ejami – and cutting it was utterly stupid – unless they were looking for a “different” kind of viewer. I even think it brought in new viewers, who are now feeling totally alienated from the show. Stupid beyond words.

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I think they saturated the story with the Will/Sonny/Paul thing and had no where else to go … it was time for Will to go … Now Sonny can come back to Salem and be comforted by his 1st true love and we don’t have to deal with Will’s puppy dog whining anymore…The Gays still have the Gay storyline and the non-gay will have their characters … Win Win …. Will Horton is not the ONLY GAY IN SALEM!

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First of all, I don’t know for certain but I think Sonny (as portrayed by Freddie) is only returning to Salem for the Funeral of Will. I don’t know if it will be “implied” that now it’s clear sailing ahead for Paul, who’s hardly been on the canvas lately. Derrick, the Hotel clerk who wanted a chance with Paul, seems to have vanished from the canvas. So, obviously, the writers have gotten rid of the gay characters, allowing them more time to concentrate on the older, more established characters. Certainly, I realize some viewers felt the show was becoming “gays of our lives” but now it’s turning into “Grays of our Lives” as they seem to be concentrating on the much older characters, perhaps in preparation for the 50th Anniversary, and I sense, the final curtain for the show.

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Don’t count on getting Sonny & Paul pairing. These writers are not interested in writing for the LGBTQ characters. That ship has sailed. Paul is only there for John and his storyline. He will have no love story at all. We probably won’t even know anything about his sex life. Sonny is off to Paris. Derrick Is out of the picture. Will was murdered for no reason other than to spite the WilSon fans and please the Will haters (and those who opposed the actor portraying him).

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I so agree with you. I loved Will ( Guy Wilson ) when he first came on the show. There was nothing wrong with his interpretation of Will. His only crime was not being Chandler. Roles on Soaps are recast constantly and believe me they could have done far worse than Guy. I feel very badly the way he was treated and it was not warranted. Certainly they didn’t need to kill him off and devastate the whole town to prove a point. I started watching Days strictly for Will and Sonny . I certainly take issue with Will being characterized as Bitchy, Whiney , Etc. What he was written as was insecure, which he was as Chandler’s Will and immature which the writers turned him into. Like I said. A writer error was made and it could have been fixed by letting him learn from his therapy sessions and move on. Poor Lucas and Sami lost their first born son and they are grieving . But to even think that bringing back old stories and killing off someone who you could have done wonders with is an EPIC MISTAKE. I bet money I don’t even have that whomever made this call will regret it and it won’t be to long. Gay characters who have family’s and are successful and happy are apart of the landscape progressive TV and Movies . Tragic Gay stories should be in the past, we know they happen but really , we look toward a brighter future. As far as Guy Wilson is concerned , I give him props for hanging in. He did not deserve the hell he has endured for a role he was so excited to get. The bullying and nasty comments and humiliation was a travesty. He was new to the Genre and this is the way he was treated. His was much better than some old timers out there. At any rate, I wish him all the love and goodwill in the world . He has fans who love him and support him as well.

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I love your post, Stephania.

I really wish they had corrected the character, rather than killed him.

My own personal reaction to Guy’s performance has been mixed, but I would like to concentrate on the positive and say that he has done some stuff which I have really loved, and I am grateful to have seen it, and I am thrilled that there are people out there who wholeheartedly love what Guy brought.

They began to adjust and correct the character in the small number of scenes they gave him after Sonny’s departure, and I was loving Guy Wilson in that, and I was really excited to see more, and I still want more, damn it! Lately, he has been fantastic.

As to Guy himself, I love him, I love his enthusiasm, and I gladdened to have encountered him through the media of TV and the internet. I am holding out for an interview soon! (Any chance Michael? 🙂 )

Discovering Will Horton has been for me one of the best things to happen to me in my life. And I will celebrate and that, and my biggest desire in regards to this whole affair is that everyone celebrates the great good that came from this character, and fills their minds with that.

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Your posts are very well written, even though I don’t agree with much of the subject matter. And really, if the discovery of a fictional soap opera character is “one of the best things to happen in your life”…your life must be pretty empty. Not judging, we all have hobbies and such and we all feel passionate about our shows, that’s why we post. Maybe re-think what is important in your life, that’s all I’m saying. At the end of the day, I sincerely hope Will Horton, dead fictional soap character, is not high on your priority list.

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@ DYLAN

Thank you for the compliment which is very generous considering I have dissed one of your posts! And thanks for the free advice!!! 🙂

I realize that I did not express myself well enough in my post to not sound ridiculous, but no matter, it’s not important, I wanted to show appreciation for the character (when well-written) and the people behind it anyway.

Context would explain it, but I don’t wish to add more personal context to my posting here. So I’ll just say this: some times an unexpected thing can be the missing ingredient which makes the dish – the x-factor that changes everything! Sometimes there are log jams, and shifting one log can release the whole pack. And one small change for good can lead to huge achievements. The tiniest things can change the world. Actually, it is in the nature of life itself that one good thing builds on another. One good thing can be a catalyst for more good things to happen. And on and on … a small tumble of goodness can snowball to an avalanche!

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I’m still disgusted at the way Will was written off. There was no reason why Will couldn’t join Sonny in Paris and share custody with Arianna off screen. The whole thing was shoddily written and designed to de-gay the show in time for the olds returning for the 50th.

Guy Wilson was my Will, as Sonny’s proposal to Will sucked me in to the show. So, I’m not a long time viewer and they seem to have given me the finger and said I’m not welcome for their 50th Celebration.

Also, I found it totally in poor taste that they kept tweeting smiling pictures of the old cast members as fans seemed to be shocked an appalled by Will’s gruesome death.

However, I don’t blame any of the actors for not speaking out. The show is run by idiots, and I don’t doubt that even Deidre Hall could be fired if she opens her mouth. I mean, what but a spiteful idiot would think Will’s awful murder would be loved by fans?

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I totally agree with this post.

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That was nice of her to make that statement, but it was still wrong for them to kill Will/Guy off if they had sent him off with Sonny that would have been better than killing him and a lot of fans wanted Horita to happen. Will and Paul had great chemistry. But I guess the conservation Homophobic got to DOOL

I hope they really don’t think that bring back all the old timer is going to keep the fan interest is totally not going to happen. Young viewers are the ones that would have kept Days on air. I watched days back when Steve and Kayla was the couple. But what brought me back was that sex scene between Will and Paul. Some people haven’t progressed that much with same sex couples.

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A gay sex scene made you turn back to a soap? There’s a porn site for that.

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Mistake, but some great performances have come from it. Alison Sweeny has not missed a beat since coming back! Easily the best performed this week! I want her to stick around!

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I disagree.

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This Episode of Will Horton Murder and the whole Scene this week Broke My Heart seriously I’m Very Upset Regarding THE new writers why IN THE HELL WOULD THEY kILL HIM OFF .. I ‘M A GAY MALE HERE and I loved Will & SONNY LOVE STORY AND THESE NEW WRITERS COMES ABOARD AND ERASES IT OFF COMPLETELY … There was no need to kill Will off if they wanted they could of hve Will leave to Paris and be with Sonny …. These is a Sad Situation especially a Gay Character like Will being on the Show A LONGTIME … I’ve BEEN A #1 fan of DAYS OF OUR LIVES FOR OVER 30 LONG YRS.. please HERE OUR OUT CRY FOR WILL HORTON PLEASE LET THIS BE TOTALLY A DREAM REGARDING THE KILLINGS … WHEN THE BICENTENIAL STORY STARTS NOV 8TH PLEASE WHY CAN WHEN OR IF THE DOORS OPEN TO SHOW THE GLAMOROUS BICENTENIAL EVENT THAT THE VICTIMS WILL BE ALIVE AND BEN WILL SEE THEM AT THE EVENT … iN MY OPINION IF I WAS A NEW WRITER I WOULD DO THIS AND I KNOW THE RATINGS WOULD BE UP TO PLEASE THE ALL TIME INVESTED LOYAL LONGTIME FANS …. GOD BLESS ALWAYS

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I am repeating myself; here

to this day… of the new production… of all that is… behind the scenes… @DAYS

my three glaring gaping gouge my wounds

1. the firing of Kassie DePaiva
2. the firing of Daniel Cosgrove
3. the killing off of a legacy character that sets a backward tone of assasination of Will and Sonny… and Ariana Grace

they shuffled off Will so quickly in that body bag… that It crossed my mind that perhaps… in all things relevant… DAYS production will relent and make Will alive in order to bring closure to the serial murder

it’s definately a mystery and so well done and should be marqueed and featured how quickly Days of OUR Lives has turned

front row seat

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Will hasn’t been Will since Chandler left.

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Chandler, while very good, was only as good as the scripts that he was given by the writers. Guy Wilson like all others on Days of our Lives was at the mercy of the writers. The blame for what happened with what happened with Will’s character belongs with them.

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Uuuuuh, nope. If the writing sucks, ok but if the actor cannot deliver it’s double trouble. Can’t blame this solely on the writing or soaps would extinct for some time now!

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@ Me

This is where you and I disagree because I think the writing for Will, Sonny and Paul absolutely sucked for a long time. In my opinion, Guy Wilson had no trouble delivering the goods when the writing was there. Once the writers decided to kill Will off they only wrote what they had to in order to kill Will off.

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Kelly, I agree.

It was the writers that made Will into a jerk. They were doing that when Guy was off screen, with Will in California, and not communicating with Sonny. To a lesser extent they made Sonny into a jerk too. They made them both obsessed with working and not giving an eff about anything or anyone else. The writers did that! But the already established characters of Will and Sonny were simply not like that!

Then the writers made Will cheat. He was seduced by Paul, and, crucially, Will went with it. Considering his gigantic storm of outrage at his mother when she was unfaithful to Rafe, which, as Will feared, led to the break up of their family and the kids losing Rafe as a father-figure and the happiness they had with him (which was why Will was so very very angry), and considering that Sonny had stood by Will through hell and high-water, and that they both loved each other and Ariana truly, madly, deeply, I could not buy it that Will would ever ever cheat on Sonny. The writers tried to sell it by already having turned Will into a jerk, and thereby causing unhappiness in the marriage, but that itself was already against established character.

Now with the infidelity, out of the blue Will became someone who would not take responsibility for anything, and became someone who would do anything,however immoral, to get Paul out of their lives, even when he knew Paul was John’s long-lost son. It was absurdly and horribly unlike how Will’s character had previously been established.

Please note that when Will did bad things in Chandler’s era he was under the pressure of being black-mailed from EJ and Stefano, and resisting could have led to disaster for his whole family. And when he was expressing outrage at his mother’s infidelity, although he was over-the-top, the viewers could empathise with him (and laugh at Sami!), because, he wasn’t entirely wrong about her, and he was being a mouthpiece for the audience who have seen what she can be like! Also please note that it was Will who told Gabi that she shouldn’t attempt to split up Chad and Melanie, because people just shouldn’t do that! It was Will who stood up for Sonny when his best friend T was gay-bashing him! That was what Will was like! Troubled, yes, but a good soul underneath, who, if he did get angry, it came from a place of caring for other people. And also it was Sonny who helped him treat the people around him fairly, and whose love helped him to pull back from his over-the-topness. And then at the beginning of Guy’s era, Will was still good, and willing to go to prison to save Sonny.

So, that was Will: “a good boy”.

And then, with the villainous Nick out of the picture for good, Will was turned into the bad guy, and they trashed his character, so that he could fill the role of the villain.

For the record, here is Will, in November 2011, when he made a whole-hearted apology to Sonny (after Sonny had dumped him, after Will had pressed Sonny on his past hook-ups at his dad’s insistence) :

“It’s a hundred percent my fault. I can’t be mad at you for being angry, and I can’t be mad at my dad for what he said. HOW I ACT IS MY DECISION”

THAT is the real Will Horton.

(And Chandler did it with such whole-hearted honest passion and raw appeal and vulnerability, it showed you that that was the heart of the character).

THAT was Will. What the writers turned him into after the wedding was not Will at all in my opinion.

It’s a damn shame, but let’s celebrate the good stuff that we did get!

Here is some great words from Marlena Evans:
“We take what we’re given, and most of the time, what we’re given is better than anything we could have imagined for ourselves”

For most of the time Will Horton *was* better than anything I could have imagined for myself. Let’s celebrate that!

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“… but that itself was already against established character ”

the writing steered itself gone… with the character assasination of Will… and Sonny…. as a couple.. their wasn’t even any redeeming factors to uphold or care about

geez Louise ! well said : props

“… Will was like! Troubled, yes, but a good soul underneath, who, if he did get angry, it came from a place of caring for other people. And also it was Sonny who helped him treat the people around him fairly ”

ie: the one thing that I give credence to like mother like son… was .. when… Will strayed and had his affair…. infidelities… their was no rhyme or reason… but… reaching out… like alot of people will… and suffer the consequence

dang! you are slaying me….

“…And then, with the villainous Nick out of the picture for good, Will was turned”

it’s all right here… in your post.. the historical ramification and tread .. unwillingly

“…And Chandler did it with such whole-hearted honest passion ”

and that’s why this cuts to the core… a character reveal … that we took to heart… and fell in love his journey

it’s with token heart feel that I laud my belove ; this show featured my life… I love the Gramma / Will relationship…. that snowballed and elevated with real… lives in motion…

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as a casual viewer of days since the early 90 s i fell in n out of days thru sammie / austin/ carrie days and shawn and belle days but really got glued long term when i personally felt a connection to chandler early will when he was struggling with his sexuality.
as i was also going thru turmoil myself like will his angst and confusion uncannily mirrored mine! his situation with gabbi, his hate and frustation with sammi, him confiding with marlena, his infatuation with ej, then his crush on sonny are the remarkable points of the will character i was rivited by and the reason i am so bitter with how all that was thrown out the window for a short term ratings stunt!
long time will fans who grew with will as i did were shown no respect or consideration! will was important on the canvas for so many of the reasons i mentioned above and more!
if the character wasnt working under guys portrayal he could ve been given a rest like a move out of town.
days will come to regret this careless descision. im disapointed in my show. total b.s

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So true! Will in the beginning was charming and riveting and intense and raw and real. Then they recast him with an actor who couldn’t carry on the role in this way and he became hateful and unlikeable character. No respectable gay man would want to see so much offensive attitude of a character who once was a true role model, proud to be looked up to.

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Personally I don’t think that sexuality had anything to do with why the writers chose to kill off the character of Will. Ever since Chandler Massey left the role, I have read nothing but negative comments about Guy’s portrayal. Just about every day someone would comment that he was not right for the part and to get rid of him. I think that the new writers took all that negativity into consideration and the murder was a really good way to bring Sonny and Sami back onto the canvas for the anniversary and satisfy the apparent need to get rid of an unpopular actor. To be fair, putting him into the role that was held by such a popular actor was putting the writing on the wall for him right from the start. There is still an actor portraying a gay individual in Paul, who seems to have been embraced by a lot of viewers so it really can’t be said that the killing was just to squash the gay storyline.

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Yes, it CAN be said that “killing off Will” was a means to get rid of the gay storyline. I don’t think they killed him off because some fans were not smitten with Guy’s portrayal of Will – but rather, that the writers did not want to pursue dangerous waters that didn’t resonate that well with all the fans.
There were other ways they could have handled Will’s leaving – he could have flown to see Sonny and had his plane “missing” with no likely survivors. Then, somewhere down the road, Will could have re-surfaced. Unfortunately, we saw before our eyes that Will was murdered, unquestionably. Even the most imaginative writers cannot un-write that now…..unless the entire murder was a dream sequence and I really don’t think that is the case.
The gay storyline HAS been squashed, Paul is the only one left in town, and other than “appreciate the fact” that he has found his real father (John) there really isn’t anything for him to do. It’s just a matter of time before the sand runs out on the character of Paul.

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I think there is another issue no one is talking about but should. One Life to Live had a very open, very honest and well written love story between two male characters named Kyle Lewis and Oliver Fish. The storyline didn’t last long before ABC announced that it would be very quickly wrapped up as both Kyle and Oliver would be leaving town. ABC said that the storyline was axed “the too gay storyline did not “appeal” to the US daytime audience”.

Ken Corday and the writers may have decided that when they focused on the gay storyline ratings dropped. In other words, the gay storyline on DOOL did not appeal to middle America. Who Knows! What I do believe is that the former writing team wrote the character Will into a corner, but the new writing team could have written him out. That tells me that the new writing team didn’t want to go through the trouble of redeeming Will because they had decided to kill him off. And I think it’s sad that gay story lines do not last as long as the straight ones.

If ABC, Ken Corday and the writers had the courage they could have redeemed Will. Then they could have had Sonny and Will get back together again as a loving committed couple. Sonny and Will could have become another super couple proving that a gay couple can have a healthy relationship warts and all.

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I totally agree with that! The writers may not be the best, but if a recast actor sucks all the charisma and charm out of the character, there is little they can do (unless TPTB would finally admit they messed up with the Will recast) other than getting rid of the actor/character every previous fan (of Chandler’s Will) has begun to despise.

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Say what you want about Guy Wilson, you can tell this is a personal loss to his closest co-stars. I always loved his scenes with Marlene. (He was especially wonderful with the little ones who play Ari).

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Happy to see his whining butt gone. I couldn’t stand watching him. He whined in every scene! Not entertaining to watch at all. Brutal death scene though … Looking forward to Ben going to jail with his hillbilly Father … neither was entertaining to watch … Too Dark for Daytime TV …. Not Why I tune in!

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Agreed!!! And I didn’t watch the death scene.

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Yeah, right! You probably have it on a 24/7 loop!

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You wish. I haven’t seen one single real scene with GW. I’ve seen a couple of gifs in 2014 and that was more than I could bear. Never heard his voice. Not in interviews either. I have a total aversion to this actor.

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Happy to See Sammi back .. hope they figure out how to bring EJ back (Remember, Stephano had Kristen give his “corps” a shot of some kind …. did he revive him in a lab out of the country????? (YES I WAS PAYING ATTENTION!!!!)

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Honestly the scenes with Marlena (Deidre) were good. However, due to the departure of Freddie Smith, recasting I am not all that upset about writing out of Will. What I found disappointing and in poor taste frankly was bringing up EJ and a letter before even a funeral or a true ounce of mourning for Will. I hate to think that Days will remake another mistake of attempting a re make of the Sami hour! What I most disliked about Daniel was the endless propping, to have Sami dominate again and to have dismissal of genuine air time in balance for others would totally wreck for me Days which up to now was improving. As much as I felt little for the Paige character I have to say the mourning of Paige by Eve and Kassie was well done and superior to date than this Sami interlude has been thus far and as I said the interjection of EJ without a mouring or funeral having taken place for Will was in poor taste!

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Not everyone was a fan of Guy Wilson. He is the reason I stopped watching. Pretty obvious he is part of the reason why they turned Will’s character into an ass and the only way not to admit they messed up is to get rid of Will. Torture lasted long enough! Why keep such an awful character, when in the beginning he was a likeable character and role model? I see fans cry about Will’s death and how it is an affront to the LGBT community. Please!! WHO wants THAT kind of Will as an LGBT community model? I certainly don’t. Hard to imagine young gay men struggling or trying to figure out their lives, to see Will as a character they can associate with or relate to. Can’t cry about LGBT representation lost, if that representation is shitty.

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Agreed! But they didn’t have to have Will die at the hands of Ben aka the neck tie killer. The writers could have sent Will off to join Sonny in France. Then in six months or so, have Sonny and a recast Will return to Salem.

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Young people struggling with ANY type of life issue should NOT be looking to soap operas for help, or answers, or guidance. To even suggest that is ludicrous! Soaps have been built on things like adultery, divorce, casual sex, murder, etc. Young gay people struggling with their sexuality should be directed to the series Queer as Folk. That was an insightful, well written show that presented all sides of the gay lifestyle, something that soaps will never ever do.

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I agree with you wholeheartedly… that teens should not take to heart… what presents itself in Serial

although… I will adamantly state.. that what pulled me in to daytime… was ” how to relate” in familial situations…..

and to see an LGBT experience… like mine… featured… my heart soared

DAYS ! don’t let this be gone… Paul is alive… able present and gives… eye for an eye present

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I have not watched in awhile, but sorry to hear that Will was killed off. The Will Sonny love story was one of the best storylines I had seen on Days for awhile. Sorry it ended. Not one for watching murders on TV, so I am waiting for them to pass. Glad Guy is doing well, but wish they had kept Sonny and Will together.

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Who IS the guy who is “Stefano’s other son” (??) How many sons does this man have?? They bring out these old characters from years ago, with little to no explanation for newer viewers – I started to tune in (about 2 1/2 years ago I guess) and the Will and Sonny characters grabbed me. Now, they are virtually off the canvas, and who ARE some of these people? I guess I can grasp that “Patch” is Kayla’s ex husband or estranged husband – but I don’t seem to be following how Aiden (the lawyer involved with Hope) is indebted to Stefano and why these creepy other son or relative or whatever the heck he is keeps telling Aiden “you can be debt free” and things of this nature in his annoying, snarling bitch-like voice.
I am really sorry that the Gay characters have been written out or murdered (I assume Derrick left town to get a job at Days Inn or something, his absence is never even explained) and I don’t blame gay viewers and gay-friendly viewers to feel annoyed or betrayed.

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Andre is a confusing character Tim. The actor, Thaao Penghlis has been off and on with Days for over 30 years. He started as Tony, and then Andre was his look alike cousin. Andre was a serial killer too. He strangled a bunch of women while wearing a mask of Roman’s face. Tony disappeared off a pier, and returned many years later. Then it was revealed he was really Andre. Then Tony and Andre both became Stefano’s sons somewhere along the way. Which is really gross now, because they both had sex with their sister Renee, who was one of Andre’s murder victims. Tony died about 6-7 years ago. Now Andre is back. I’m not sure why. I think both characters have pretty much run their course and storylines are very limited other than just to be evil for evil’s sake.

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Thank you DYLAN for the explanation. Yes, I agree, it seems like really his presence doesn’t serve any real purpose. He keeps threatening Aiden and I keep thinking….did I miss something here? I haven’t missed an episode since early 2013 when I started to watch it. I needed to get a Soap Fix after ALL MY CHILDREN didn’t quite make it as an on-line inception, and I chose DOOL – which is a great show, but they have drifted away from the summer storylines and right now of course are more or less focused on the necktie killer (Ben). It’s as if they have really dredged up characters from years ago almost as if they don’t expect after the 50th Anniversary for the show to go on much beyond that – it feels like they are doing a “wrap up” in some ways, especially with Will Horton being murdered.

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R.I.P. Will Horton. I miss you already.

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Beyond the Gates

53rd Annual Daytime Emmy Nominations Announced: ‘The Young and the Restless’ Tops With 18, ‘Beyond the Gates’ With 16

Published

3 hours ago

on

July 14, 2026

By

The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) today announced the full list of nominees for the upcoming 53rd Annual Daytime Emmy Awards, and it was CBS daytime’s The Young and the Restless and broadcast television newest soap opera, Beyond the Gates that racked up the most nominations with 18 and 16, respectively.

The full reveal on Tuesday follows the announcement of several major categories including Lead Actor and Actress on Monday via Extra and Entertainment Tonight and The View today revealing Daytime Drama Series and more.

The 53rd Annual Daytime Emmys ceremony is set to take place on Friday, October 30 at the historic Hollywood Palladium in Hollywood, California.

Photo: CBS

In a statement, Adam Sharp, President and CEO of NATAS expressed, “We’re proud to honor the extraordinary talent and creative teams whose work continues to define and elevate daytime television, As the Daytime landscape evolves and new forms of storytelling emerge, we remain committed to recognizing the innovation happening across the industry.”

“Each year, the Daytime Emmy Awards celebrate the creativity, passion, and dedication that drive this vibrant community of storytellers,” said Rachel Schwartz, Head of the Daytime Emmy Awards. “Congratulations to this year’s nominees, whose work continues to entertain, inspire and connect with audiences every day. We look forward to celebrating their remarkable achievements in Hollywood this October.”

The Daytime Emmy Awards have recognized outstanding achievement in television programming and crafts since 1974, honoring work in a variety of genres, including daytime dramas, talk series, entertainment news, culinary, adventure, instructional and legal/courtroom programming.

This year’s Lifetime Achievement Honoree, Gold & Silver Circle Inductees, and ceremony host will be announced at a later date.

Now below, check out the nominees in the daytime drama, talk show, entertainment news series and creative arts categories and congratulations to all!

Photo: JPI

Outstanding Daytime Drama Series
Beyond the Gates
Days of Our Lives
General Hospital
The Young and the Restless

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Daytime Drama Series
Stacy Haiduk (as Kristen DiMera), Days of Our Lives
Karla Mosley (as Dani Dupree), Beyond the Gates
Michelle Stafford (as Phyllis Summers), The Young and the Restless
Heather Tom (as Katie Logan), The Bold and the Beautiful
Tamara Tunie (as Anita Williams Dupree), Beyond the Gates

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Daytime Drama Series
Eric Braeden (as Victor Newman), The Young and the Restless
Steve Burton (as Jason Morgan), General Hospital
Scott Clifton (as Liam Spencer), The Bold and the Beautiful
Thorsten Kaye (as Ridge Forrester), The Bold and the Beautiful
Christian Jules Le Blanc (as Michael Baldwin), The Young and the Restless

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Daytime Drama Series
Linsey Godfrey (as Sarah Horton), Days of Our Lives
Camryn Grimes (as Mariah Copeland), The Young and the Restless
Beth Maitland (as Traci Abbott), The Young and the Restless
Trisha Mann-Grant (as Leslie Thomas), Beyond the Gates
Amanda Setton (as Brook Lynn Quartermaine), General Hospital

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Daytime Drama Series
Sean Dominic (as Nate Hastings), The Young and the Restless
Timon Kyle Durrett (as Bill Hamilton), Beyond the Gates
Michael Graziadei (as Daniel Romalotti), The Young and the Restless
Roger Howarth (as Matt Clark), The Young and the Restless
Mike Manning (as Bradley “Smitty” Smith), Beyond the Gates
Lawrence Saint-Victor (as Carter Walton), The Bold and the Beautiful

Outstanding Emerging Talent in a Daytime Drama Series
Braedyn Bruner (as Emma Scorpio-Drake), General Hospital
Al Calderon (as Javier Hernandez), Days of Our Lives
Alice Halsey (as Rachel Black), Days of Our Lives
Giovanni Mazza (as Gio Palmieri), General Hospital
Ambyr Michelle (as Eva Thomas), Beyond the Gates
Arielle Prepetit (as Naomi Hamilton Hawthorne), Beyond the Gates

Outstanding Guest Performance in a Daytime Drama Series
Jasmine Burke (as June Hughes), Beyond the Gates
Jeff Kober (as Cyrus Renault), General Hospital
Eva LaRue (as Natalia Rogers-Ramirez), General Hospital
Christopher Sean (as Paul Narita), Days of Our Lives
Ray Wise (as Ian Ward), The Young and the Restless

Outstanding Writing Team for a Daytime Drama Series
Beyond the Gates
The Bold and the Beautiful
Days of Our Lives
General Hospital

Outstanding Directing Team for a Daytime Drama Series
Days of Our Lives
General Hospital
The Young and the Restless

Outstanding Casting for a Daytime Program
Beyond the Gates
General Hospital
The Young and the Restless

Outstanding Daytime Talk Series
3rd Hour of TODAY
The Drew Barrymore Show
The Kelly Clarkson Show
Live With Kelly and Mark
TODAY With Jenna & Friends
The View

Outstanding 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
Tamron Hall, Tamron Hall
Jennifer Hudson, The Jennifer Hudson Show
Sherri Shepherd, Sherri

Outstanding Entertainment News Series
Access Hollywood
Entertainment Tonight
Extra

Outstanding Daytime Personality (Daily)
Mona Kosar Abdi, Derek Hough & Terri Seymour, Extra
Cassie DiLaura, Denny Directo, Kevin Frazier, Rachel Smith & Nischelle Turner, Entertainment Tonight
Scott Evans, Zuri Hall, Kit Hoover & Mario Lopez, Access Hollywood
Star Jones & Corey Jovan, Divorce Court

Outstanding Arts and Popular Culture Program
Beyond the Gates: Welcome to the Neighborhood — An Entertainment Tonight Special
Off Script With The Hollywood Reporter
Variety & CNN Actors on Actors
Variety Studio: Actors on Actors
Working In the Theatre

Outstanding Music Direction and Composition for a Daytime

Beyond the Gates, Episode 103
Have Guitar Will Travel World
The Kelly Clarkson Show Episode 5033
Let Frankie Cook,” Getting the Band Back Together
Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

Outstanding Technical Direction and Video for a Daytime Program

Beyond the Gates, Episode 104
The Bold and the Beautiful,” Episode 9511
Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade”
The Jennifer Hudson Show, ” Episode 4041
Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade”

Outstanding Hairstyling and Makeup for a Daytime Program

Beyond the Gates, Episode 103
General Hospital, Episode 15719
The Kelly Clarkson Show,” Episode 5033
The Young and the Restless,” Episode 13273

So, what do you think of the 53rd annual Daytime Emmy nominations? Who are you happy to see receive a nomination and who do you think was snubbed? Weigh-in via the comment section.

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Beyond the Gates

53rd Annual Daytime Emmy Nominations: Outstanding Lead Actress Drama Series

Published

19 hours ago

on

July 13, 2026

By

Monday on Entertainment Tonight, the second set of nominations for the 53rd annual Daytime Emmy Awards were announced which included the highly-coveted Outstanding Lead Performance in a Daytime Drama Series – Actress and Outstanding Daytime Talk Series.

ET followed suit after Extra announced the nominees, as previously reported, in the Outstanding Lead Performance in a Daytime Drama Series – Actor and Outstanding Daytime Talk Host.

Now, five leading ladies of the soaps are vying for the gold for Lead Actress and the category marked the first-ever nominations for CBS daytime’s Beyond the Gates when two actresses made the final cut. Only General Hospital is not represented among the actresses this year after Nancy Lee Grahn (Alexis Davis) took home the trophy last year.

Photo: NATAS

THE FIVE LEADING LADIES OF THE SOAPS ARE …

The 2026 Lead Actress nominees are: Stacy Haiduk (Kristen DiMera), Days of Our Lives, Karla Mosley (Dani Dupree), Beyond the Gates, Michelle Stafford (Phyllis Summers), The Young and the Restless, Heather Tom (Katie Logan), The Bold and the Beautiful, and Tamara Tunie (Anita Dupree), Beyond the Gates.

This marks the first Daytime Emmy nominations for Karla Mosley and Tamara Tunie. In addition, this marks the first-time in her career that Stacy Haiduk had received a Lead Actress nod after two Supporting Actress nominations.

Meanwhile, Michelle Stafford had previously won 3 Emmys – 2 for Lead Actress and 1 for Supporting, but this recognition makes it her 11th overall nomination.

Heather Tom currently is tied for the most all-time Daytime Emmy wins with One Life to Live alum and General Hospital guest star, Erika Slezak. The B&B star has 19 nominations throughout her career.

Photo: ABC

DAYTIME TALK SERIES

In the Outstanding Daytime Talk Series category, the nominees are: 3rd Hour of Today, The Drew Barrymore Show, The Kelly Clarkson Show, Live with Kelly and Mark, Today with Jenna and Friends and The View.

“We’re proud to honor the extraordinary talent and creative teams whose work continues to define and elevate daytime television,” NATAS president and CEO Adam Sharp said in a statement on the nominations. “As the Daytime landscape evolves and new forms of storytelling emerge, we remain committed to recognizing the innovation happening across the industry.”

The rest of the nominations will be revealed tomorrow on Tuesday July 14 starting on The View and then the full list of nominees in both the main and creative arts will be released by NATAS. The 53rd Annual Daytime Emmy Awards are slated for October 30th in Hollywood, California.

So, what do you think about the women who are vying for the Lead Actress Daytime Emmy? Happy with who got in? Who do you feel got snubbed? What do you think of the nominees for Daytime Talk Series? Weigh-in via the comment section.

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Beyond the Gates

‘Daytime Emmy Nominations Special 2026’ Live on the Michael Fairman Channel

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July 12, 2026

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It’s Daytime Emmy nomination week, and as previously reported things kick-off on Monday, July 13 when Entertainment Tonight (7pm ET) will announce the nominees for Lead Actress category and Daytime Talk Series for the upcoming 53rd annual Daytime Emmy Awards. In addition on Monday, Extra (7pm ET) will reveal the nominees for Lead Actor and Daytime Talk Host.

On Tuesday, The View (11am ET) starts things off with their announcement of Daytime Drama, Entertainment News program and Outstanding Daytime Personality-Daily. That is followed by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) full reveal of all the categories beginning at 12noon ET/9am PT on their website and their official social handles on X and Instagram.

Then, Tuesday night at 8pm ET/5pm PT join Michael Fairman as he hosts his 12th annual Daytime Emmy Nominations Special 2026 live on You Tube’s Michael Fairman Channel where he will chat with some of the just announced nominees as we celebrate the hard work of the men and women in front of the camera who will be going for gold.

WHEN ARE THE DAYTIME EMMYS?

This year, the 53rd annual Daytime Emmy Awards will be handed out on October 30 in ceremonies in Hollywood, California (Venue yet to be revealed). At that time, as like last year, both the major categories and creative arts will be presented. There is no word yet on a broadcast partner for the annual celebration of daytime programming, or if it will soley be streamed on NATAS’ watch.theemmys.tv and various apps and platforms.

WHO WILL BE APPEARING ON THE DAYTIME EMMY NOMINATIONS SPECIAL 2026?

Throughout Tuesday, keep an eye on Michael Fairman TV’s social media handles on X, Facebook and Instagram, for updates of who will be expected to appear on our live show.

If you have a question or comment for one of the nominees, or on the nominations, we can encourage you to join us in the live chat on Tuesday night.

So, who are you hoping lands a nomination from Beyond the Gates, General Hospital, Days of Our Lives, The Bay, The Bold and the Beautiful and The Young and the Restless? Let us know via the comment section. More Tuesday!

 

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