Thursday’s installment of Days of Our Lives served as a poignant farewell to the late Bill Hayes, whose final appearance as Doug Williams aired six months after his passing at age 98. In a quietly powerful scene, Hayes’s on-screen wife—and real-life partner—Susan Seaforth Hayes shared a tender moment of remembrance that left viewers declaring, “It’s the end of an era.”
Beyond this tribute, the landmark episode marked the soap’s 15,000th broadcast, celebrating over 60 seasons on the air. The milestone special wove in familiar faces—Kristian Alfonso returned as Hope Brady, among others—and showed characters like Hope laying flowers at Doug’s graveside.
The show even plans an on-screen funeral for Doug, honoring Hayes’s more than 2,100 appearances since he began the role in 1970. For his decades-long contribution, Hayes was honored with a Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018, and Days of Our Lives continues to stream on Peacock for new and longtime fans alike.
