This week on Days of our Lives, Julie will share special moments with her beloved husband, Doug. The scenes will mark the late Bill Hayes's last scenes as part of the Salem landscape, according to this week's DAYS promo.
Poor Doug and Julie were forced to spend months living with Maggie in the Kiriakis mansion as the Horton house was restored following a devastating fire. Tom Horton's chair was the only piece of furniture to survive the blaze, something that felt like a miracle to his granddaughter Julie.
On the Thursday, July 11, episode, Doug sits comfortably on that old iconic chair as he shares a tender moment with his wife. Julie asks Doug if he realizes just how much she loves him. Doug smiles as he and Julie kiss and embrace.
While this will be the last time we see Doug, his death won't occur in Salem time until later this year. DAYS already taped Doug's memorial episodes that will air in December. A plethora of former stars will return to bid farewell to Doug and Hayes. They include Kristian Alfonso (Hope Williams Brady), Melissa Reeves (Jennifer Horton Deveraux), Stephen Schnetzer (Steve Olson), and Gloria Loring (Liz Chandler).
Hayes passed away on January 12, 2024. His widow, Susan Seaforth Hayes, who has played Julie since 1968, has said that Julie's grief will mirror her own in the storyline. She was also consulted on how it would all play out.
"Then they asked me, 'How do you feel about Julie's life following the loss of her partner?' and we agreed on how Julie might be feeling," she said on Harvey Brownstone Interviews in June. "And he has written several scenes for me to play that. So, I am very grateful that the reality of my own loss, and the loss the fans will experience will be translated into an emotional and realistic storyline."
What are your favorite memories of Doug and Julie on DAYS? Are you stocking up on tissues for the scenese that you know are coming? 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.
