Your go-to guide for the hottest May stories.
BOLD AND BEAUTIFUL
“This May, romance takes the spotlight, love entanglements get messy, family members return to the scene, everyone gets down to the business of fashion, publishing, and hospitality, schemes are plotted, and drama is everywhere,” dishes Executive Producer/Head Writer Bradley Bell.
Bill/Katie/Carter: “Bill’s extensive setup of Sheila Carter with the help of Ridge is still being actively buzzed about by everyone. As his family and friends continue to try and wrap their heads around his crazy scheme that worked, Bill gets back to the business of Spencer Publications with his sons Wyatt and Liam and, more importantly, wooing back Katie’s heart. This May, the Katie/ Carter/Bill triangle gets complicated as Katie affirms her love for Carter, and Bill professes his love for his ex. What lengths will Bill go to reunite his family?”
Steffy/Finn: “After a very stressful year, Steffy and Finn finally have time for their romantic relationship. This supercouple is on top of the world now that they are reunited and especially now that Sheila is back in prison where she belongs. As they solidify their love and commitment to one another, Steffy returns to the business of being CEO and running Forrester Creations, and Finn remains committed to medicine. But how long will their relationship status stay ‘uncomplicated’? Liam is pulling both of them into his concerns about Hope and Thomas, and unbeknownst to them, Sheila is plotting a way out of jail.”
Liam/Hope/Thomas: “Liam’s intuition tells him something is amiss with Thomas and Hope working together, but he can’t seem to place it or prove it just yet. Meanwhile, Thomas continues to work on himself and step up to the plate to co-exist with Hope in a platonic way, unaware of her burgeoning feelings for him. This brings us to Hope. She’ll have quite a month trying to navigate her love, commitment and her marriage to Liam while simultaneously attempting to fight off her own amorous emotions she’s feeling for Thomas. Hope worries that she’s more like Brooke than she realizes when it comes to men and needing the drama of a bad boy. This story takes exciting turns in May, especially when Thomas and Steffy realize what is happening with Hope.”
Brooke/Ridge/Taylor: “Brooke and Taylor continue to bond and support one another in their newfound friendship. They face challenges when Ridge, Jr. returns from Europe and is welcomed with open arms by his parents, back into the family and, hopefully, into the family business. Thomas worries that this might mean Brooke and Ridge are getting closer, but Taylor remains steadfast that she and Brooke are over Ridge. But are they? This month, we’ll see an exciting shift in the dynamic between Ridge, Taylor, and Brooke and how Ridge, Jr.’s return affects everyone in this blended family.”
Deacon: “Deacon keeps his love for Sheila a buried secret in his heart and focuses on his new business. This month, he will engage with some prominent personalities at Il Giardino as he works on establishing himself as the premiere spot to dine in Los Angeles.”
Sheila: “Unhappy to return to prison, Sheila searches for a way out. Stay tuned; it’s going to be great!
DAYS OF OUR LIVES
Head Writer Ron Carlivati shares what he has planned for Salem and beyond.
EJ/Nicole/Eric: “We decided to make Nicole pregnant, with the big story being, is it going to be Eric’s? Is it going to be EJ’s? So that was the biggest reason we had Eric and Nicole get together during the ‘great breakfast biscuit incident of 2023’, to preserve that possibility that Nicole might be pregnant. So even though she’s solidly in this relationship with EJ and Eric is in this relationship with Sloan, we have seen Eric and Nicole continue to dance around each other, and the biscuits allowed them to really give to their feelings. So now Nicole finds herself pregnant and it’s a huge dilemma because Nicole, as we know, found out years ago that she couldn’t carry a baby to term. So the story becomes about, a, will she be able to actually carry the baby to term and give birth to it, and b, whose baby is it?”
Shawn/Belle: “We chose to have Shawn be the one who shoots Bo, because obviously the emotional stakes of a son shooting his father to save his mother couldn’t be higher. And while everyone is telling Shawn he did the right thing and he’s not to blame, he cannot see it that way. So he plays this moment over and over again in his mind, what he could have done differently, what he should have done differently. While he’s being consumed by guilt, the person that he’s pushing away is Belle, who is trying the hardest to be there for him, the one he should turn to at this moment for support. But he doesn’t feel he deserves her support, so their marriage and their relationship start to really get tested.”
Kate: “We very intentionally did not show Bo murder Kate, but I think we gave the audience some clues that it maybe didn’t happen. We learn that Kate did escape and basically went from the frying pan into the fire because she falls right into another dangerous situation. We find her imprisoned on a boat and it’s a callback to when Lauren [Koslow] first took over the part and we saw her being held captive on a fishing boat, chopping fish in the middle of the ocean somewhere. We reveal a familiar face from the past who is a villain who has plans for Kate. And other characters start to realize that there’s a chance that Kate is still alive and they’re searching for her, so look forward to a fun adventure to take place on this vessel.”
Paulina/Chanel/Sloan: “We’ve revealed that Talia is the person behind these incidents with Paulina and that’s a bit of a mystery because why is Jada’s little sister doing this to Paulina and Chanel? So you’ll see that she has a co conspirator her, Colin, that is putting her up to this and the stakes get even higher and more dangerous and more deadly as we reach the climax of the story.”
Johnny/Wendy/Tripp: “When Wendy came to Salem from BEYOND SALEM, we sort of teased a triangle with Joey and Tripp and that morphed into a triangle with Johnny and Tripp, who both are interested in Wendy. She has a connection to both of these guys and it builds to a situation in which Wendy really has to choose. Who does she want to be with? She can’t have it both ways and ultimately makes a choice between the two, and we possibly are going to introduce somebody else into that little triangle, which may become a quadrangle.”
Andrew/Paul: “We started a little romance between Andrew and Paul in BEYOND SALEM and we wanted to revisit that a little bit as part of the Greek adventure. We pulled Andrew into it and then pull them into a bigger story where Andrew finds himself in danger, needing to be rescued.”
Megan/Kristen: “We had a lot of fun reintroducing Megan into the DiMera clan. She was brought to Salem and sent off to Statesville, where we had a sisterly reunion between Megan and Kristen. These two women start to kind of plot together, each with their own agenda, but kind of needing each other to get themselves out of the Statesville mess. The goal is to integrate Megan back into the family, and as she schemes to get out of prison, we do reveal yet another DiMera who enters the fray.”
Alex/Stephanie/Chad: “We’ve built this conflict between Maggie and Alex, which was really fun to see Maggie unexpectedly step into the CEO position and run the company with a surprising amount of authority and strength. She clashed from day one with Alex about how the company should be run and what the direction of the company should be, and it finally comes to a head where Maggie fires Alex and he kind of spins out from turns to Stephanie for support. She’s there for him as a friend, but Chad doesn’t like it. So it becomes, what does Chad do to protect his relationship when he’s finally opened up to moving on from Abigail with someone, and it looks like she could be turning a little bit back toward Alex?”
Brady/Chloe/Xander: “Poor Brady and Chloe, who seemed like they were finally going to be together. Kristen remains a problem, but the bigger problem is mini-Kristin, Rachel. Rachel does not like Chloe and does not want her in this relationship, and while Brady doesn’t want to give in to her childish whims, it is a real problem. Chloe starts to see the relationship as impossible because, bottom line, Brady needs to put his daughter first and there may not be a Brady and Chloe that can happen here. We see Chloe getting drawn closer to Xander, which was this very unexpected pair because as we love to remind the audience, he left her in the clutches of a Mexican drug lord. And now they are friends and roommates, so in addition to Rachel, this Chloe/Xander connection will also be a threat to the possibility of a reunion between Brady and Chloe.”
GENERAL HOSPITAL
The fate of Victor’s hostages — not to mention the planet — are on the line this month, say Co-Head Writers Chris Van Etten and Dan O’Connor.
Michael/Sonny: “Michael is soon to be in possession of the very damning evidence against Sonny that could send him away for the rest of his life. This has obviously been part of Michael’s plan for close to a year now, but maybe that decision is not as easy as it seems, and Michael will have to make a tough call about what is best for his family.”
Nina’s Revenge: “Nina’s act of revenge has far-reaching consequences when she learns that the authorities are in search of Drew, who, in turn, are in search of Obrecht, who is the one means by which her own daughter, Willow, may survive her final battle with leukemia.”
The Quartermaines: “When Drew finds himself an additional target of the SEC, trouble hits the Quartermaine family at large. Ned finds himself with few allies, but chief among them is his mother, Tracy, who is back in town with an agenda all her own, which requires aid from Brook Lynn, who just happens to owe Tracy for Chase’s reinstatement at the PCPD.”
Dex/Josslyn: “Dex and Josslyn hope that they will be free from being forced to work and live in Sonny’s world, but not everything is as simple as it seems.”
Ava/Austin: “Austin and Ava hope that the coast is clear, but Mason pops up with a very dangerous job for them.”
Sasha: “With all hands on deck at Deception, Sasha needs to return to the set of her initial mental episode. Will she be able to triumph over adversity this time?”
YOUNG AND RESTLESS
Genoa City will spring into romance and intrigue, according to Executive Producer/Head Writer Josh Griffith.
Victor/Nikki: “Victor fears that Sally Spectra will continue to cause damage to his family, so he’ll take matters into his own hands and make Sally an offer that she may not be able to refuse. Nikki will struggle with her own feelings about both Victoria and Nick’s choices in partners as she fears history will repeat itself.”
Victoria/Nate/Elena: “Nate finds himself in the hot seat when Victor learns of Victoria and Nate’s affair and grills Nate about his intentions for Victoria — and Newman Enterprises. Nick, too, grows increasingly suspicious of Nate’s true agenda. Elena has discovered Victoria’s Achilles’ heel in the form of J.T. Hellstrom and hatches a plan for J.T.’s return to Genoa City and Victoria’s life. Meanwhile, Nate and Victoria will deal with the fallout of their affair as it becomes more public, both at home and at the office.
Diane/Jack/Phyllis: “Phyllis will continue to exact revenge on Diane even from the ‘grave’. Meanwhile, Jack vows to clear Diane’s name and find himself in over his head when he crosses the line to protect Diane.”
Ashley/Tucker: “Although the Abbott manse is at full occupancy this spring, there is still plenty of room for drama, thanks to Tucker’s arrival, which further complicates Ashley and Jack’s growing conflict over Diane. Ashley and Tucker being under the same roof will force her to question her true feelings for him.”
Summer/Kyle: “Summer and Kyle’s marriage will no longer be immune to their mother’s feud with Phyllis’s ‘death’ possibly being the last straw for the couple. Christine returns to the D.A.’s office and teams up with Chance to investigate Phyllis’s death, which leads to more questions than answers. Christine finds herself in the unique position of seeking justice for her one- time rival.”
Sharon/Nick/Sally/Adam: “Nick will be torn between Sally and Sharon when Sharon faces an unexpected crisis and threat from the past, and turns to Nick for help. Luckily for Sally, Adam is waiting in the wings and more than ready to reclaim his role in Sally’s life and discredit Nick in the process.”
Devon: “Devon’s surprise reunions with Harmony and Malcolm leads him to make a life-changing decision about his future. Tucker will have his work cut for him as he works to wins Devon’s trust back.”
Billy/Chelsea/Daniel/Lily: “Romance blooms this spring for Billy and Chelsea as they carefully navigate their future together. Meanwhile, Lily will be a support system for Daniel when drama ensues during the investigation of Phyllis’s death.”
