Late Actor Drake Hogestyn Makes Surprise Appearance On ‘DOOL’
Drake Hogestyn passed away in September after a private battle with cancer. The news blindsided fans of the show. The only options the soap had were to recast the role or kill John Black off.
With the actor’s input, they wrote a final goodbye to the popular character. Keep reading to find out how he made a special return to the show.
John Black Saves Bo’s Life
John Black has been on a secret mission overseas for months. His loved ones feared he was missing or injured. But he recently made contact and was on his way back to Salem. As Marlena (Deidre Hall) eagerly awaited her husband’s return, he had a stop to make first.
He joined Steve (Stephen Nichols) and Shawn-Douglas (Brandon Beemer) in their quest to find the drug Versivex needed to save Bo’s (Peter Reckell) life. John Black used his skill as a former ISA agent to break into the lab where the drug was stored.
However, the lab was heavily guarded, and John Black was injured during the mission. But he was still able to save the day. Despite being badly burned, he was able to hold on to a dose of the drug needed to save Bo Brady.
Late Actor Drake Hogestyn Makes Surprise Appearance On DOOL
Drake Hogestyn’s last airdate as John Black was three weeks before he died of cancer in real life. The scenes were filmed months earlier.
‘DOOL’ Drake Hogestyn/Credit: YouTube
The DOOL episode on May 23 ended in a cliffhanger as John Black flat-lined with Marlena and Steve by his side. The show had a stand-in actor under the bandages. But longtime fans of the show swore they heard Drake Hogestyn’s voice when John Black uttered his last words: “I love you, Doc.”
John Black also spoke his famous catchphrase on the Thursday episode. “That’s a fact,” he told Steve when Steve said John Black always saves the day.
A former writer with the show took to social media to share whether that was actually Drake Hogestyn’s voice or not. @Jamey_Giddens wrote on Twitter that the actor recorded the voice scenes before this death.
Unfortunately, that turned out to be false. The soap opera writer returned to social media with a clarification. “So, I got my info wrong, guys. Drake didn’t record new voice work for the scene that aired today,” he recanted.
However, DOOL fans remained convinced that was Drake Hogestyn’s voice. Many suspect that the show clipped the words from previous episodes and inserted them into the John Black’s final scenes.
Regardless of where the voice recording was from, fans praised the soap for their handling of the delicate situation. One fan wrote, “Fantastic episode today they dealt it with it so tastefully it broke my heart.”
Another added, ‘The Drake/John tribute we’re gonna get is gonna hit me like a truck like I’m not ready to say goodbye to such a long running character nor ready to see what Marlena’s life will be like without John.”
The tribute to Drake Hogestyn and his beloved DOOL character is expected to air through June. Stock up on tissues now because it will be a hard one, and that’s a fact.
