Emmerdale has confirmed Graham Foster will be killed off in "gripping" scenes on the ITV soap, in the new year.
Actor Andrew Scarborough will bow out of the role in a week of "action-packed" special episodes.
The soap is launching a whodunnit in the first month of 2020, as Kim Tate's ex is brutally murdered by a mystery culprit.
Those believing Kim is the obvious culprit might be surprised to learn several suspects will emerge.
Motives will soon become clear in upcoming episodes ahead of Graham's death.
In dramatic scenes, each episode will replay Graham's final day from a different perspective until the killer is unveiled.
With it promised Graham will meet a "grisly end", lives will change forever.
The death will play out amid the secret currently boiling away in the village, that he could be the biological father of Andrea Tate's daughter Millie.
After Graham's death, the repercussions in the village are said to be huge with the character "driving someone" to kill him.
Emmerdale producer Laura Shaw confirmed: "Graham’s murder will form part of an unmissable week of drama packed full of exciting twists and turns.
"It’s always exciting to step outside of our usual story-telling style and viewers will be on the edge of their seats as some of our villagers have their lives irrevocably changed forever.
"Graham has been a huge character at the heart of some of our biggest storylines so it felt only fitting that he left us with an enormous, explosive bang, to kick off what promises to be a massive year of drama for Emmerdale."
The scenes will pave the way for a huge year in the village in the fallout, while this month will shed light on who Graham's enemies are.
But with Emmerdale asking whether anyone in the village could really be capable of murder, is there hints of a twist on the cards?
Emmerdale airs weeknights at 7pm on ITV, with an extra episode at 8pm on Thursdays.
