Emily O’Brien to Play Theresa! What about Gwen Days of Our Lives Spoilers

Transcript

00:00 Over the years, the soap opera days of our lives has certainly made some rather unconventional casting choices.

00:06 While some of these choices have been nothing short of brilliant, others have left fans scratching their heads in bewilderment.

00:13 One such instance occurred when Sami Brady, played by Alison Sweeney,

00:17 had to take a temporary leave due to maternity reasons back in 2005.

00:22 To address this, the show introduced an ingenious storyline where Sami masqueraded as a man named Stan,

00:29 and Dan Wells stepped in to portray this unique character.

00:33 On the flip side, there have been instances of casting that could only be described as bizarre.

00:39 For instance, in the spin-off series Days of Our Lives, Beyond Salem,

00:43 Eileen Davidson was brought back to the fold to portray a devilish version of Kristen DiMera.

00:49 The perplexing part was that Stacey Hayduk was already portraying Kristen in the main NBC show.

00:55 These peculiar casting choices were enough to leave even the most dedicated fans scratching their heads.

01:01 But perhaps one of the most bewildering casting decisions came to light recently.

01:06 Jen Lilly, who reprised her role as Teresa Donovan to attend Victor Kiriakis' memorial service,

01:13 found herself in an unexpected twist.

01:15 She discovered that the storyline originally planned for Shane and Kimberly Brady's daughter, Teresa, was still going to happen.

01:23 However, it was going to happen with a different actress stepping into the role.

01:28 It wasn't until the closing credits of the October 2 episode that viewers learned the identity of the new Teresa Donovan, Emily O'Brien,

01:35 who had been portraying Gwen Ristrick since 2020.

01:39 The revelation left fans and Lilly herself mystified.

01:43 During her return engagement, Lilly had noticed that her character's dialogue was not as extensive as she had anticipated.

01:50 It was only later that she was informed about her role being recast with Emily O'Brien and that they planned to have O'Brien wear a wig

01:57 to step into the character's shoes.

01:59 To her credit, Jen Lilly displayed nothing but empathy and understanding for her replacement.

02:04 She acknowledged that she had known the role might need to be recast,

02:08 but being brought back only to be kept in the dark about was quite a shock.

02:12 Lilly even expressed her concern for O'Brien,

02:16 as she had personally experienced the challenges of stepping into a recast role in the past.

02:21 Lilly had previously taken on the role of Maxie on General Hospital in 2011,

02:27 filling in for Kirsten Storms.

02:29 She remembered the difficulties and challenges that came with that recast, particularly in dealing with passionate soap opera fans.

02:37 Therefore, when she discovered that O'Brien would only be completing the three-month storyline originally planned for Teresa,

02:44 we couldn't help but marvel at the situation,

02:46 recognizing that it was a particularly challenging scenario for a recast actress.

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