The Great Escape: Back From The Dead On Soaps

The king of cheating death, Stefano's first apparent demise took place in 1983, when it looked like he had suffered a fatal stroke. Actually, he had faked his death. In 1984, he looked to be a goner again when his limo plunged into icy waters. In 1985, Stefano was "murdered" and Marlena went to jail for the crime, but Stefano was still kicking and resurfaced in 1988. In 1994, Stefano again faked his death, this time in an exploding car. He was presumed dead again in 1996 in another explosion. In 2010, he racked up yet another presumed death after being shot (Ian faked his death this time). Finally, in 2016, he goaded Hope into "killing" him, which was later proven to be a ruse.

Not all return-from-the-dead storylines feature strictly evil characters revived to wreak more havoc on the soap. Case in point: the heartwarming reveal on AMC when Stuart Chandler (David Canary) surprised Pine Valley residents after being brought into the Pine Valley Hospital in 2011; he was thought to have been shot dead back in 2009 (pictured: his twin Adam visiting his grave). What they didn’t know was that he was a part of evil Dr. David Hayward’s experimental medical treatments. As the series came to its conclusion, gentle soul Stuart was reunited with Adam and with his beloved wife, Marian.

The ruthless James Stenbeck (Anthony Herrera) was thought to be dead no less than six times. But his first return from the dead was the most memorable. In 1983, James seemed to meet his maker when he tumbled out of a cargo plane. Three years later, a man in a monk’s robe approached a cowering Barbara (Colleen Zenk), James's ex, who was being held hostage at Duncan’ s castle. Then the man slowly lifted his head, revealing a familiar face, and intoned, "Hello, Barbara" — an instant classic soap moment.

Taylor Hayes (Hunter Tylo) cheated death on a few occasions. First, to the devastation of B&B fans everywhere, the psychiatrist perished in a plane crash in 1994. Months later, the doc was revealed to be alive, but suffering from amnesia and living with Prince Omar (Kabir Bedi). She wound up marrying the prince, unaware she had another husband, Ridge, who was in for a mighty shock when Taylor resurfaced in Los Angeles in 1995. Still not safe from the grim reaper, Taylor "died" in Ridge Forrester’s arms in 2002 after being shot by Sheila Carter — but it turned out, Omar had whisked her away to recuperate. In time, she escaped from Omar's clutches and was reunited with her family.

While back from the dead characters are somewhat the norm over in Salem, fans were outraged in 2015 when DAYS writers killed off the legacy character and fan favorite Will Horton, at the hands of The Necktie Killer. Thankfully, Will (Chandler Massey) was revived in 2017 when it was revealed that Dr. Rolf used a special serum on the lad and Susan Banks (Eileen Davidson, l.) kept him under lock and key, convincing him that he was her son E.J.. His mom Sami (Alison Sweeney) didn't give up on him and gradually, Will’s memories returned to him.

Being mobster Sonny Corinthos’s right-hand man often puts Jason Morgan (Steve Burton) in the line of fire. The character made another return from the dead earlier this year, but his most complex comeback but none more shocking and complex as the revelation that after being shot by Cesar Faison (disguised as Duke) and tossed into the water in 2012, he was the mysterious Patient 6 found in 2017. The discovery proved even more outrageous due to the fact that there was already somebody living in Port Charles as Jason Morgan. It turned out to be Jason’s twin, Drew Cain, who had Jason’s memories implanted into his brain by Andre Maddox on behalf of Peter August.

One of the most complicated and shocking returns was Phillip Spaulding (Grant Aleksander). A mentally unstable Phillip was found shot at Spaulding Enterprises in 2004 and even more shocking was that his father, Alan, was the culprit. Another big shocker for fans was the fact that Phillip was alive and delusional thanks to his father’s idea of an intervention to keep him from harming himself and others by keeping him in a warehouse made to look like the corporate offices. Daytime fans were glued to their TV screens the day that Phillip confronted his father with a gun at the site of his own grave and ended up forgiving him. The residents of Springfield, especially longtime love Beth (Beth Chamberlin) were jolted when he returned home in 2009.

OLTL's contribution to one of the best Back From the Dead storylines is the tale of the two Todd Mannings. Mitch Laurence had Todd beaten and locked up in Victor Lord’s crypt. Later, when the crypt was opened, Manning’s body was missing. He was legally declared dead in 2003. Soon after, a man claiming to be Todd Manning (after some reconstructive surgery) showed up in Llanview and stepped into Todd’s old life, marrying his two exes, Blair and Tea, raising his kids, and taking over The Sun. The real Todd (Roger Howarth; pictured with Kristen Alderson's Starr) showed up in 2011 claiming to be held captive for eight years and the other “Todd” turned out to be his twin, Victor Lord Jr.

The crafty Victor Newman (Eric Braeden) has dodged death several times over in Genoa City. None more memorable than 1993 when he had fled town after Nikki miscarried Jack’s baby in the aftermath of an argument with Victor. He was thought to have died in a carjacking. In reality, Victor found himself in Kansas where he rescued a damsel in distress, Hope Adams (Signy Coleman), from a rapist. Her authenticity and vulnerability drew the tycoon in like no other woman and soon he had fallen deeply in love with Hope. While his family mourned his “death” in Genoa City, Jack Abbott fought in court to take the reins of Jabot out of his enemy’s control and took over Newman Enterprises.

Victor got wind of the takeover from his friend Douglas and began plotting his comeback. The devious mogul quietly returned to GC and sent out anonymous invitations to a “gathering of great significance,” sending a shockwave pulsing through Genoa City when he revealed himself to attendees. Although his family was relieved, the rest of the attendees were rocked to the core and were left wondering what he would do next. Jack was out of town so Victor had one more stop to make. Who could forget the look on Jack’s face when he arrived at his office and found Victor in his chair. “Who are you?” Jack demanded in disbelief. “I am your worst nightmare,” Victor replied, setting the tone for a battle between the Abbotts and Victor Newman.

Of course, the shifty tycoon would evade death on other occasions. In 2008, a shipwreck. In 2012, there was an explosion on the dock. Fortunately, Sister Celeste whisked him away to heal from his wounds. Although he suffered from amnesia and was living happily in Los Angeles with Genevieve, the corporate tycoon found his way back to his family. In 2019, he faked his death to punish his son Adam. The mustache continues to prove he's too tricky for the angel of death.