Days Of Our Lives
Martha Madison On Her Decision to Exit Days of our Lives: “It Was a Lightbulb Moment For Me”
She gave us her all, and became one of Days of our Lives favorite and strongest actresses. We are talking about Martha Madison, who for a near 20-years (with some breaks in between), has played the only daughter of Marlena (Deidre Hall) and John Black (Drake Hogestyn) on the former NBC and now Peacock streaming soap opera.
However, fans of Madison’s recently learned she taped her final episodes as Belle back in April, and since the show streams so far ahead of taping, Madison’s Belle will continue on the show well into November.
Now, in an interview with TV Insider, Martha addressed the real reason and decision for her departure which included; that she was told right after DAYS received a two-year renewal pick-up from Peacock, that she was going to be a victim of budget cuts.
Photo: JPI
Madison detailed, “Albert (Alarr, the then-co-executive producer) called me the day before the renewal was announced to let me know that they decided to write me off the show again. I asked why they chose me, and he said it was budget-dictated. He told me specifics about how they were going to send my character off, and then I thanked him (and) wished him well, and that was that.”
However, Martha shared she knew her time was probably coming to an end, anyway, sharing, “Honestly, the writing had been on the wall since they squashed the EJ and Belle story so abruptly, so I wasn’t fully surprised. But then weeks later as I was saying my goodbyes to everyone, I randomly got another script. I was so confused because it indicated that Belle was staying in town, but nobody had spoken to me about that. Ultimately, they said they’d like me to stick around to ‘occasionally do legal stuff,’ and ‘then, you never know what might happen after that,’ and really that was just such a lightbulb moment for me.”
In terms of how the character of Belle was written and treated during her tenure, Madison offered up what was clearly part of the main crux of the situation: “In my opinion, Belle was never meant to be a peripheral character. She is the only child of Marlena and John, and, after 19 years of coming and going from the show, it just finally clicked for me that they were never going to showcase the character the way I felt she should be. So, I declined the opportunity to recur and shot that last episode in April. Don’t get me wrong, I am so grateful to have played Belle for two decades, but I’m ready for more. It was just time to leave.”
So, are you glad that Martha stood her ground and was not going to take less than someone of her abilities deserved? Do you agree that Belle had become a peripheral character and that should not be, given that she is John and Marlena’s daughter? Comment below.
Maxie the actress on GH can’t think of her name is always Belle to me.
Kristen Storm is her name and you are so right.
Her name is Kirsten – not Kristen.
Please Kirsten played Belle for four years. I love Kirsten but she is now Maxie to me. Martha has on and off again played Belle for 20 years she earned that role.
And i present to you the new Lulu Spencer on General Hospital 🙂
She should be front and center. She is the daughter of a legacy couple, just like Shawn, Brady and Eric is. But hopefully she will find something out there better that will appreciate her talents. Shawn needs his Belle, good luck Martha, we love you.
You have to be true to self. Recurring as Belle may be ok but truth is, Belle should be a core character. I hope there are greener pastutes for Ms. Madison. Daytime’s final four are minimizing actors and that affects story. We have endless one-on-one conversations. No fun side stories. No background extras. No location shoots. It is disappointing. I am tired of endless news rehash, carbon copy talk, and courtroom trash.
Well NBC had their chance and chose to limit this character which was a big mistake . I don’t blame Martha for her choice. Now what will NBC do now? Recast! Given all the turmoil lately at Days…. I hope they get it right! As for Martha, I sincerely hope she lands a a new roles soon! Like Lulu
Spencer on GH! Good luck girl!
I hope that TPTB change their minds really soon, especially now that AA is out, and offer her a front-and-center storyline(s) that will entice her to come back. She was great as Belle and will be missed.
I totally agree. I love Martha as Belle! She will sadly be missed.
Martha Madison is a rock solid actress and in the future, shouldn’t the daughter of John and Marlena be a tentpole character in Salem? Yes, she is a “good girl” and not a vixen like Gabi or even Chloe or Nicole, but that is what the still missed characters of Hope and Jennifer were as well.
I could NOT AGREE with you MORE. The character of Belle will be greatly missed, sorry to see her go!
Why?
Days Of Our Lives
Days of our Lives Star Brandon Barash and Wife Isabella Devoto Welcome Baby Boy
Congratulations are in order to Days of our Lives‘ Brandon Barash (Stefan) and his wife, Isabella Devoto. The couple welcomed their first child together, a son, named Joaquin Lee Barash.
Taking to his Instagram account on Thursday, Barash revealed little Joaquin was actually born back on September 15th.
Brandon shared three adorable photos of the newest addition to his family accompanied by the words: “Joaquin Lee Barash arrived on the planet on 9.15.23. A mighty name for a mighty boy…to honor my (departed but never gone) father, Jerry Lee Barash, as well as my wife’s Hispanic heritage. We. Are. Smitten…and forever changed. Through your birth, lil man, we are reborn. Our family is mightier, our ocean of love runs deeper and more fierce. School’s back in session.”
Photo: BBarashIG
The actor also shares a daughter, Harper,9, with his ex, GH’s Kirsten Storms (Maxie). Harper is pictured in one of the snaps with her baby brother. You can see them below.
Isabella and Brandon tied the knot back in December of 2022.
@NIKKIRYANPHOTOGRAPHY & @MCCALLMEDIAMANAGEMENT
Share your well-wishes to Brandon, Isabella, Harper and little Joaquin via the comment section.
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All My Children
Chrishell Stause Stars in New Lifetime Thriller ‘You’re Not Supposed to Be Here’
Selling Sunset star and soap alum, Chrishell Stause (ex-AMC, DAYS, Y&R), will star in a new Lifetime thriller, You’re Not Supposed to Be Here dropping on November 4th.
In the thriller, Stause, along with Diora Baird, play a lesbian couple, enjoying quality time together before the birth of their new baby in a remote mountain town. Zoe (Stause) is pregnant and along with Kennedy (Baird), are offered a break from their stressful lives when Kennedy’s boss gives them a key to a cabin in the woods. Watch out!
According to The Wrap, “When they arrive, they are met with less than welcoming arms, prompting Zoe to sound alarms of homophobia, which Kennedy attempts to tamper down. ”
Courtesy/Lifetime
The official loglines from Lifetime share on the story: “Just as the two let their guards down, their nightmare begins. They realize they are completely unprepared for what is in store, and that the townspeople want something the two have.”
Photo: JPI
In real-life, Chrishell is currently married to Australian singer and rapper, G Flip. The two tied the knot in May of this year. Formerly, Stause was married to This Is Us and ex-Y&R star, Justin Hartley (ex-Kevin, ex-Adam). Their marriage ended in 2019 and their divorce was finalized in 2021.
Stause has been featured in the current season of the reality/real estate series, Selling Sunset which streamed its sixth season on Netflix beginning in May. A seventh season is said to be on the way.
So, will you be checking out Chrishell’s new thriller on Lifetime? Comment below.
Breaking News
Writers Strike Comes to an End; Leadership Votes To Conclude Work Stoppage
It’s over! After 148 days, the 2023 Writers strike will go down as the second longest in WGA union history, only a labor stoppage in 1988 was longer.
The strike will officially come to end on Wednesday at 12:01am PT. This was due to a vote from the guild’s leadership that now has authorized its over 11,500 members to return to work.
That means: pitching and selling scripts, taking meetings, responding to notes, writers’ rooms opening up again, and more, can now restart.
Photo: JPI
The WGA committee shared that the vote, “Allows writers to return to work during the ratification process, but does not affect the membership’s right to make a final determination on contract approval.” However, WGA East and West voted unanimously to lift the “restraining order” on Tuesday.
As the negotiators shared, the end of the strike doesn’t mean that the tentative agreement that the union reached with producers on Sunday night is a surefire thing: Union members still need to vote to ratify the contract. Union leadership announced on Tuesday that will take place between October 2nd and October 9th.
Photo: JPI
However, SAG-AFTRA still remains on strike. So, even with the writers returning to work, many productions can’t move forward without their principal actors and performers.
So soap fans, how do you feel about this news for your favorite shows? Glad that the head writers and their writing teams will be back at work as soon as this week from Days of our Lives, General Hospital, and The Bold and the Beautiful? Y&R’s Josh Griffith, who previously had gone Fi-Core during the 2008 strike, remained at the top rated show during the last several months.
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