‘Days Of Our Lives’ (DOOL) spoilers reveal that actress Susan Seaforth Hayes, who plays Julie Williams on the soap, had some difficult scenes to film when Doug Williams (Bill Hayes) passed away on Thanksgiving on Days.
‘Days Of Our Lives’ Spoilers: Bill Hayes Was Susan Seaforth Hayes’s Real-Life Husband
Bill Hayes, who was also Susan Seaforth Hayes’s real-life husband, died in January at age 98, and the show is honoring both the character and the late actor.
The show recognizes that Doug is an icon to the audience. Soap Opera Digest recently interviewed Seaforth Hayes, who admitted the scenes were challenging.
The actress said,
“The hardest moment was going into the room after Doug Williams had passed, and there was a body double in the bed,”
She explained.
“I was talking to the body double as though it were Billy, who had just gone. Now, it was Doug who had just passed. So that was hard.”
Seaforth Hayes praised the soap for how beautifully they handled Doug’s death and funeral. She, of course, played the most prominent role in Doug’s farewell.
Seaforth Hayes gave the same eulogy for Doug that she gave at her husband’s actual funeral, which we imagine had to be difficult and gut-wrenching. Still, Hayes said it was also “emotionally rewarding.”
She also gave the eulogy at the funeral of her mother, writer and actor Elizabeth Harrower, in December 2003. Seaforth Hayes noted that the experiences were similar.
“The whole cast and crew had my back for sure,”
She assured.
“Billy was beloved by everyone. This man never made an enemy. Nobody didn’t like him. The better they knew him, the more they liked him. And I liked him most of all,”
She explained.
‘Days Of Our Lives’ Spoilers: Music Played A Vital Role In Saying Goodbye To Doug
Several former cast members returned to Days for Doug’s send-off. Stephen Schnetzer, who played Julie’s brother, Steve Olson, and Maree Cheatham, who played Julie’s aunt, Marie Horton, are coming home to Salem to say goodbye to the beloved patriarch.
Gloria Loring, who played Liz Chandler on the soap, is coming back to sing at Doug’s funeral, as the show’s budget permitted one piece of music for the service.
The song the show is using is a meaningful tribute to Doug and Julie as a couple, “Always (I’ll Be Loving You), which is also a significant song for the soap.
Seaforth Hayes said the music was a powerful aspect of Doug’s remembrance and tribute. It was a way to celebrate his life and honor his enduring love story with Julie.
At the funeral, Seaforth Hayes also spoke about the man she met on the set of Days in 1970, as she had been married to him for fifty of the happiest years of her life.
Bill was a member of the First Christian Church in North Hollywood. “The enthusiasm and love that he received from the church was in the room,” she mused.
As painful as it was for Seaforth Hayes to film these scenes, she considers it a gift from Days for the years she’s spent on the show and especially for the opportunity to meet and marry the love of her life.
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