When Days of Our Lives (DOOL) announced it was abandoning its network home after 57 years and moving to a streaming service, audiences were shocked and saddened. Some viewers were intimidated by the technological leap, while others were offended by the idea of their soap moving behind a paywall.
Sadly, those emotions are still very fresh, mere days before DOOL formally parts ways with NBC. But why did this transition have to happen in such a jarring, clumsy way? Now that it’s been revealed that the soap opera’s move to Peacock was finalized back in 2021, it begs the question: Why didn’t DOOL ease viewers into this streaming switcheroo?
Want DOOL spoilers? Check out Days Of Our Lives Spoilers For The Week (September 5, 2022)
Ever since the stunning announcement, DOOL has frantically tried to change the narrative around their Peacock move. Actor Robert Scott Wilson (Ben/Alex) calmly referred to the transition as “a no-brainer”. And when that didn’t settle speculation about the soap getting canceled, things got pretty sloppy.
First, a director for the soap, Scott McKinsey, begged viewers to subscribe to Peacock. Acknowledging that DOOL had no future on NBC, McKinsey told fans that subscribing around the date of September 12th would “help solidify DOOL’s chances of remaining viable with Peacock”.
A few days later, executive producer Ken Corday spoke with Soap Opera Digest (SOD) in an effort to set the record straight. In the interview, he outlined a lot of exciting changes that will happen thanks to the Peacock move: longer episodes, less commercials, and access to many (if not all) of DOOL’s 14,000-plus episodes!
Want DOOL hot takes? Check out We Weigh In: Are Constant Cast Exits Ruining Days Of Our Lives?
On top of that, Corday talked about how being free of a network will unshackle the soap from some of its prior content-related restrictions. “We will be able to say and do things that are a bit more titillating than on broadcast,” Corday explained. “It’s still Days Of Our Lives, but it’s not your mother’s Days Of Our Lives.”
Unfortunately, Corday may as well have been whispering into a hurricane. Instead of teasing these positive changes as a preemptive strike — perhaps in advance of the August 3rd announcement – Corday has put himself (and DOOL as a whole) on the defensive.
It appears as though the powers-that-be didn’t expect such a backlash from the fans, and now they’re scrambling. As emotional as this transition is for DOOL viewers, it’s evidently just as scary and intense for the writers, producers and talent behind the scenes.
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Corday’s mood was rather mercurial during the interview. One minute, he was snapping at “bottom feeders” for believing the soap wouldn’t survive; the next minute, he claimed that the best part of the job was “trying to keep everything positive”.
The emotional climate feels just as fragile in DOOL’s current advert for the Peacock switch, in which Deidre Hall (Marlena Evans) pleads with viewers to continue supporting the soap.
“I’ve been on Days Of Our Lives for more than 40 years now, and you can’t be a part of something for that long and just call it a job,” Hall intones in the video. “We’re a family. As a loyal viewer, I consider you to be part of that family.”
Want more DOOL spoilers? Check out Days Of Our Lives Spoilers For September 2022
“We love you,” Hall adds, “and we’re so grateful for your ongoing support.”
The video strongly resembles a pledge drive commercial, complete with soft, twinkling background music and a misty look in Hall’s eyes. Another video, which features Galen Gering (Rafe Hernandez) and Arianne Zucker (Nicole Walker) slashing prices on Peacock subscriptions, is similarly surreal.
In a Fame10 poll taken shortly after the announcement, only 24% of readers planned to follow DOOL to Peacock. In a smaller sample poll on August 30th, that number rose to 28%. Clearly, the data suggests an audience still reeling over the sudden leap into streaming.
Want DOOL plotline predictions? Check out Days Of Our Lives Plotline Predictions For The Next Two Weeks (August 29 – September 9, 2022)
And this is where DOOL royally messed up: nothing about this Peacock move should’ve been sudden. As Corday reveals, they knew this change was coming for over a year, even if they weren’t sure when it would happen.
“This was baked into the last contract when we were renewed in 2021,” Corday told SOD in that same interview. “The network always had the right to migrate the show exclusively to Peacock and now they’ve decided to do so.”
Beyond Salem and A Very Salem Christmas were clear attempts at persuading viewers to adopt the streaming platform, but they were too coy. Despite a looming Peacock takeover, DOOL chose to remain silent, wasting months of strategic campaigning time.
Want more DOOL spoilers? Check out Days Of Our Lives Spoilers For The Next Two Weeks (August 29 – September 9, 2022)
Instead of concealing this inevitable move to streaming – a move that McKinsey says likely saved the soap from cancellation – DOOL should’ve been buttering viewers up with all the perks. Longer episodes! No restrictions on content! Less commercials! All access!
But rather than tantalizing audiences with the benefits of Peacock, they’ve given viewers a stark ultimatum: pay up or say goodbye to DOOL. Corday and company may be calling the shots, but they’ve done little to endear those who will have the final say — the viewers.
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Ryan Pratt
Ryan is an avid runner, reader, hiker and music collector. When he isn't writing and editing for Fame10 Soaps, he's relishing in the fine company of his two cats, Penny and Gus.