Days of our Lives fans are preparing themselves for the upcoming exit of Stefan DiMera (Brandon Barash), who will reportedly die next week due to a gunshot wound and leave his heart to an ailing Julie (Susan Seaforth-Hayes). The dramatic storyline makes for seriously good soap opera, but many viewers aren't ready to say goodbye to Stefan and wonder if Barash's time as Stefano's son has truly come to an end.
Unfortunately, Barash has confirmed that his time at DAYS has indeed ended. In a recent interview with Soap Opera Digest, the actor opens up about his brief stint as Stefan, reminding fans that when he took over the part from General Hospital alum Tyler Christopher (ex-Nikolas Cassadine), who originated the role of Stefan back in January 2018, it was only supposed to be short term.
"I knew when I took over the role, I was only supposed to be there a couple weeks or a month, maybe two months the most," he says. "It ended up being six or seven. I was very grateful for the time I had there."
He continues, "They just said they're moving on with the character and the storyline. No ego here. I didn't take it personally."
Though Barash has exited the role of Stefan for now, there's always the chance that the character could come back from the dead at some point in the future. After all, DAYS has resurrected plenty of previously dead characters with the help of Dr. Rolf (William Utay), who sadly wasn't able to work his magic this time around. But if that changed at some point down the line, would Barash consider stepping back into Stefan's shoes?
"I would never say no to a meeting. We'll have to see," the actor muses. "We'll have to cross that bridge and see what I'm up to if and when the opportunity knocks."
Barash took over the role of DAYS' Stefan from Tyler Christopher in March of this year, though daytime fans know him best as General Hospital's Johnny Zacchara, which he played from 2007 to 2013 and again in a recurring capacity from 2014 to 2016. Barash's additional credits include Major Crimes, Timeless, Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders, Scorpion, Lucifer, and Good Trouble.
How do you feel about Brandon Barash exiting the role of DAYS' Stefan DiMera? Were you hoping that Dr. Rolf would be able to save the character, or do you prefer when the writers have the guts to keep dead characters dead? Does your opinion on that change from character to character? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.
