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Days of our Lives fan favorite Casey Deidrick (Chad) revealed on Twitter this afternoon that he has taped his final episode on the NBC soap, ending a four-year chapter that saw the creation of one of the soaps’ most popular younger characters of the late ’00s.
Deidrick, who joined the soap in 2009 as Chad Peterson (now DiMera) has been rumored to be exiting the show for months. Until today, he’s been relatively quiet regarding his contract status.
The actor tweeted:
Taped my final episode today on #DOOL. One more day of filming tomorrow. What an amazing experience, thank you all! pic.twitter.com/XVUrmh8SOv
— Casey Deidrick (@CaseyDeidrick) June 20, 2013
Initially introduced Will Horton’s (then-Chad Patton) rival and ex-boyfriend of Mia (Taylor Sprietler), Chad would go on to become a central character when he was revealed to be the son of the villainous Stefano DiMera. Deidrick’s enduring charm and emotional performances helped turn the tide in favor of the one-time bad boy and would amass a large fan base in the process.
Days of our Lives has reportedly been searching for actors to take over the role upon Deidrick’s departure. No matter the case, he won’t see anyone until after October 30, 2013, which is the actor’s expected final air date.
Deidrick’s exit could be the first of many for DAYS’ younger set. Soap Opera Uncensored reports that Camila Banus (Gabi) and two-time Emmy winner Chandler Massey (Will) will be departing the soap later this year. Banus confirmed her departure in red carpet interview with SOU editor Nelson Branco during the 40th Annual Daytime Emmy awards. It should be noted, that Massey has not officially confirmed his exit.
TVSource Magazine wishes Casey Deidrick all the best as he embarks on new projects.
My Take: Though I’m sad Deidrick is leaving, he’s got a bright future ahead of him. Chad’s lingered in a perpetual state of storyline limbo since the departure of Chad’s fiancee Melanie last fall. Currently the show is in the stages of rekindling Chad’s romance with ex-girlfriend Abigail.
[…] of Chandler Massey’s plans to depart Days of our Lives spread at the Daytime Emmys, just moments after winning his second Emmy […]
Sad to see Casey leave the show, but I was not as invested in his character of Chad as I am some of the others so I wish him well. I am not really that sad to see Camila leave as I never really cared for the character of Gabi. I have heard the Blake Berris is also leaving at the end of the year as well. I never really cared for the character of Nick, so I am not really sad about that either. Blake is a fine actor, though, and he has been making other film projects outside of Days so I’m sure he will do fine. I am hoping that Chandler will decide to stay on the show and maybe the show could work around his college schedule so that he could film his scenes and still go to college full-time. I would hate for him to leave the show, because he is such an asset to Days of our Lives and to this storyline that he is involved in. Also, he and Freddie Smith have such great chemistry together that is unmatched with any other screen pairing that I’ve seen on the show. But if he does leave, I would hope that they keep Freddie Smith on as Sonny and allow him to have a great storyline of his own because he is an asset to the show as well.