Days of Our Lives Releases Entire Cast from Contract: Is It About to Be Canceled?

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The end may soon be approaching for Days of Our Lives. 

According to a new report on TV Line, the entire cast of the hit soap has been released from their contracts with the show, fueling fears that the show is about to be canceled. 

In an even more worrying note, Days of Our Lives will be placed on an "indefinite hiatus" at the end of the month. 

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The show is a co-production between Sony and NBC, and they are said to be in negotiations to keep the series around, but with ratings continuing to creep down, it's possible that the end could be nigh. 

Season to date, the venerable soap is averaging 2 million viewers and a 0.44 rating in the demo. This is only down slightly from the 2.1 million viewers and 0.47 rating it averaged last season, but the series has been trending downward for quite some time. 

It's entirely possible that a deal could be reached for the show to continue, but it does not bode well if everyone has been released from contract by the producers. 

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If it does continue, it's likely there will be cost-saving measures thrown in to make the series more financially viable for both the studio and the networks. 

TV Line notes that someone close to the situation said that the production company could bring the cast back on new contracts with a reduced rate, or they could get rid of some of them. 

It's a shocking turn of events, especially when the series is going through a creative resurgence with this week alone, moving the narrative to one year in the future. 

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Many fans questioned NBC's faith in the series when Kelly Clarkson landed her own daytime talk show. 

Many wondered whether this could be the first step in removing scripted content from the network's daytime roster. 

Early ratings for Kelly Clarkson's talk show have been positive, so it's possible that NBC could extend the show, or set another daytime talker in place of Days. 

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The only silver lining here is that the show is filmed so far in advance that NBC has enough episodes to air the show through Summer 2020. 

That means that if a deal is reached in the coming months, there may not be much of an impact for fans who watch the show on NBC. 

Then again, this whole scenario is a weird one. The daytime soaps have been slowly but surely disappearing over the years, and it Days of Our Lives looks like it's on thin ice. 

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What are your thoughts on this?

Hit the comments below. 

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Paul Dailly was an Associate Editor for TV Fanatic.Follow him on X.

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