Update: Patrick Muldoon Is Not Returning To DAYS!

Update: When Soap Opera Digest sought comment from Days of Our Lives regarding Patrick Muldoon’s apparent return to the show as Austin, a spokesperson for the show clarified that the actor is not, in fact, making an on-screen comeback. Rather, he was visiting the studio and providing a tour to a friend, and the show’s video post touting his presence at the studio was tongue in cheek. Soap Opera Digest deeply regrets jumping the gun and not waiting for official verification from the show about Muldoon’s Salem status before we reported it as fact. Below is the original article in full:

Austin is coming home to Salem again, but this time it’s Patrick Muldoon returning to Days of Our Lives to reprise the role. The soap shared the news in an Instagram video of the actor at the studio. “Studio four,” he mutters in the clip as he walks through the door and checks the sign, snapping his fingers as though trying to remember something. “It’s gotta be… Is it studio two?” Then Muldoon looks at the camera to talk directly to the fans. “Listen,” he says. “I just got off the 101 South in Burbank and studio two and four…” Then it all clicks into place. “Oh!” he exclaims. “Oh my God, I’m in Salem!” The actor then dons his sunglasses and smiles as he walks off. “Oh, it’s good to be back,” he declares.

Muldoon originated the role of Kate’s son back in 1992 and played the character until 1995. “It was a big cattle call,” he recalled to Soap Opera Digest in 2015 of landing the role. “For me, it was simply another audition. I screen-tested with Tracy Middendorf, who was playing Carrie. The main thing I remember is that after we got done, I saw Fran [De Simone], who was our stage manager, mouthing to someone else, ‘No. 4.’ I was No. 4, so I felt really good about that.”

By the end of 1992, Christie Clark returned to the role of Carrie Brady, changing the dynamic of the Austin and Carrie pairing. “It was an adjustment because Christie was younger than Tracy,” Muldoon recalled. “I tested with the actresses for both Carrie and Sami. Denise Richards [ex-Shauna, Bold and Beautiful] was also up for Carrie. We were friends since we were teenagers, and then later became boyfriend and girlfriend. I think they always wanted to bring Christie back, but they were waiting for her to get older.

In the same interview, Muldoon explained that his 1995 exit was born out of “simply being young and curious to try other things.” Upon his departure, DAYS recast the role with Austin Peck, who played the character until 2006. When Austin returned to the canvas in 2011, Muldoon was back in his shoes. “It felt like coming home to family,” he said of reprising the role.

Of course, stepping back into the role after Austin had been played by another actor for years proved an adjustment. “I learned that the show is basically writing for whoever played the role last,” Muldoon said, “so I think there was this misstep with maybe the Austin that the fans were used to, and my interpretation of the character. As a soap actor, you try to redirect the story. Sometimes that can be a mistake, but I think we were successful toward the end of my second stint.”

Muldoon’s second run lasted less than a year, and when Austin returned to Salem for a brief visit in 2017, Peck was once again back in the role. Peck also played the character for his appearances in the 2019 DAYS digital series Chad and Abby in Paris and 2021’s Beyond Salem on Peacock.

Since his last appearance on DAYS in 2012, Muldoon has been working steadily, appearing in movies like Deadly Revenge, Christmas in Palm Springs, A Horse Tale, Bernie the Dolphin, My Adventures With Santa, and Murder at Hollow Creek.

Now, Muldoon is back in daytime, though DAYS has not yet revealed when he will first air or what Austin’s storyline might involve this time around. Let us know how you feel about seeing Muldoon back in Salem and what kind of drama you’d like to see him stirring up in the comments below!