James Scott who plays the character E.J. on 'The Days of Our Lives'.
Poor Casey Hughes. In a town where you can get away with switching babies or shooting your boyfriend then watch him tumble over a cliff, it isn't fair that teenage Casey, of all the characters on As the World Turns, had to do jail time.
Casey committed theft to support his gambling addiction and was promptly sent to the slammer for it, where he has lingered off-screen for months. This was all to facilitate Zach Roerig's exit, who chose to leave the role of Casey when his contract was up. Casey's police chief mom, Margo (Ellen Dolan), and former DA dad, Tom (Scott Holmes), didn't have enough clout to get him community service, so he was sent to prison.
The good news is, Casey is coming home in January. However, this time he'll be played by Billy Magnussen, who recently appeared on Broadway in The Ritz. Magnussen debuts January 29. Let's hope Casey isn't too jaded from prison life.
This season's I Wanna Be a Soap Star winner, Ashlee Holland, premieres December 26 on Days of Our Lives in her prize-winning role. The actress was awarded a 13-week contract with the NBC soap. Previous seasons have produced two current cast members on other soaps. Mykel Shannon Jenkins just turned up on The Bold and the Beautiful as Charlie Baker, one half of a father-son police detective duo. Over on One Life to Live, BethAnn Bonner has fit in nicely as Talia, a member of Llanview's finest. Perhaps Holland will be impressive enough to warrant a longer stay in Salem.
Back where she belongs? As much as I've enjoyed Ashley Abbott on B&B, I miss her relationship with her brother, Jack (Peter Bergman), on The Young and the Restless, so I'm looking forward to seeing Eileen Davidson bring Ashley back to Genoa City, even if it's just for a few episodes. Look for Ashley to return during the holidays on December 28, January 2 and 3.
Although there has been no official announcement by General Hospital, there is a statement on Sarah Brown's official website, www.sarahbrown.net, that she is returning to GH. Most of you probably remember that Brown originated the popular role of Carly Benson. However, this time she will not be reprising the role. (Laura Wright currently plays Carly and is staying put.) One rumour floating around Internet message boards is that Brown's new character will turn out to be Brenda Barrett, formerly played by Vanessa Marcil, who herself has been rumoured to be returning to GH for years now.
It's also not known if this will be a long-term contract role or a brief run. I'm guessing it will be the latter, as Brown has been steadily employed in various prime-time programmes and movies since her departure. She starred in Big Momma's House 2, was briefly a regular on the crime drama Cold Case, and had a substantial role in the two-part season finale of The Closer. She also tried her hand at another soap. She played Julia Larrabee on ATWT, where she briefly broke up supercouple Jack (Michael Park) and Carly (Maura West) when Jack contracted a nasty case of amnesia. No official start date has been posted, so keep tuning in so you don't miss her.
- Dana Block
