The long-running soap opera Days of Our Lives has finally aired the heartbreaking onscreen death of Drake Hogestyn’s character, John Black, eight months after the actor died in September 2024.
Hogestyn, who starred in nearly 4,300 episodes as John, passed away at the age of 70 from pancreatic cancer. He made his final appearance on the show in the episode that aired September 9, 2024, weeks before his death.
While his character had remained absent from the ongoing drama series for the past nine months, the show finally gave John a proper send-off.
In Monday’s episode, John is seen in the hospital after being wounded in a lab explosion while searching for an experimental drug to save Bo (Peter Reckell). With his face completely bandaged, John is visited by his wife Marlena (Deidre Hall) and family, who remain by his side before he eventually succumbs to his injuries.
During his final moments, Marlena, whom he had been married to several times, tearfully told him that he’d given her and their four children “all the love we will ever, ever need.”
“We will always have you in our memories. We will always hold you in our hearts,” she said. “You can rest now.”
Hours after the episode premiered, Hall, 77, labeled it the “hardest day ever” in an Instagram post.
Previously speaking to TV Insider about his emotional return as Bo in Monday’s episode, Reckell admitted that “there was no acting required” while filming John’s memorial scenes.
“Because you’re saying things as the character that parallel your feelings in your personal relationship,” said Reckell. “When I went to John’s memorial and all these emotions came up, I just wanted to run away and be by myself and feel those feelings. To have to do it as a character was really difficult.”
In November, executive producer Ken Corday revealed that before Hogestyn’s death, he had signed off on his character’s ending.
“I wanted to make sure Drake signed off on this, and he was totally in favor of it,” Corday told Soap Opera Digest. “We were rolling the dice, because it’s difficult to tell a story of someone’s death or a character’s death while the actor is still alive — albeit [Drake] was fighting, like a tiger, a very difficult disease.”
He added: “I made the choice to [say], ‘Okay, let’s tell the story.’ He hadn’t been on [the show] in nine months. We needed a reason [for John’s absence].”
John was first introduced on Days of Our Lives in November 1985. The role was originated by Robert Poynton before Hogestyn took over in 1986.
His storyline was marked by constant drama, much of it tied to his career as an undercover spy. John most notably went on to become a supercouple with Marlena following their first marriage in 1986. They got remarried multiple times, including in 1999, 2006, and 2018.
Ariana Madix: From ‘Scandoval’ to Love Island USA host
Nick Offerman blasts Michael Flynn Jr for using Parks and Rec clip in homophobic post
Clarkson’s Farm star shares honest feelings about Kaleb Cooper
Love Island USA season 7: Meet the cast, release date, how to watch and more
Love Island 2025: Meet the cast of ‘bigger’ and ‘bolder’ new summer series
Call the Midwife bosses hit back at star’s ‘unacceptable’ claim about BBC show
