What happened to Stephanie on Days of our Lives? That’s the question Days fans are asking after Stephanie Johnson (Abigail Klein) popped up in Salem with a new face.
It’s been a while since Steve (Stephen Nichols) and Kayla’s (Mary Beth Evans) daughter has been in Salem.
The last time Stephanie was in her hometown was back in 2017 for a brief stint when Shelley Hennig was in the role.
Stephanie has been in Seattle with her two brothers, Joey (Tanner Stein) and Tripp (Lucas Adams), but work has brought her to Salem.
Beyond Salem Season 2 brought Stephanie back on-screen, but this time with a new actress taking on the character.
Let’s take a look at the reason behind the switcheroo.
What happened to Stephanie on Days of our Lives?
It was announced in May that Abigail would be stepping into the role of Stephanie for Beyond Salem. Stephanie’s return to Days of our Lives was teased at the end of the Peacock original.
As for a reason for the actress change-up, well, it’s pretty simple and standard. Shelly was available to return for the kind of stint the writers wanted for Stephanie.
Days head writer Ron Carlivati teased his initial plan for introducing Abigail on Beyond Salem when he spoke with Soap Opera Digest podcast. Ron hoped to have Shelly play the role of Stephanie at the beginning of the week when the bomb went off, and Stephanie landed in the hospital.
The plan was to have Stephanie sustain several facial injuries that would leave her bandaged for the week. Then on Friday, when the bandages came off, Abigail would be in the role.
Unfortunately, Shelly was unable to appear due to a scheduling conflict.
Who is Days of our Lives actress Abigail Klein?
Although this is Abigail’s first big role in the soap opera world, she did appear as a nanny on The Young and the Restless for one episode back in 2011.
The talented actress is best known for her role as nurse Eloise on the short-lived CBS show Code Black. Abigail then appeared in Aussie Girl, The Incredible Life of Darrell, and There’s… Johnny!.
Most recently, Abigail had guest stints on American Housewife, S.W.A.T., and starred in the Lifetime Christmas movie Christmas on Ice.
Stephanie Johnson is back on Days of our Lives with a new face, and she’s sticking around for a while. A new mystery client brought Stephanie to town but will romance keep her there?
Perhaps playboy Alexander Kiriakis would be a good match to shake things up for her. After all, he’s one of the few men in Salem Stephanie’s not related to.
What do you think of the NuStephanie?
Days of our Lives airs weekdays on NBC.