Outrageous Soap Opera Secrets

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11. Days of Our Lives – Will’s Alive

One of the greatest daytime comebacks in 2017 was when actor Chandler Massey returned to Days, reprising his Will Horton role. Now, coming back to life is not a new thing in Salem, but because Will passed away at the hands of the Necktie Serial Killer (looking at you, Ben Weston) and had a funeral, it was a shocker to find out that Susan Banks had kept Horton hidden away all those years.

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10. Young and the Restless – Ashley’s Revenge

Karma can be a real witch at times in the land of soaps. When Jack Abbott made a stipulation some years ago that only “blood” Abbotts could become CEO of Jabot (thus, keeping Ashley out of the running as she technically was not one), she took matters into her own hands. Ash then created a scenario that questioned Jack’s paternity. After all, their mother, Dina, had a very colorful past. Jack went to extreme lengths to figure out who his bio dad may be. Candidates included Philip Chancellor, Neil Fenmore, and Victor Miller (Victor Newman’s dad). In the end, the run around was for nothing, as it turned out that Ashley had paid someone to tamper with Jack’s DNA results. All’s well that ends well, but things almost turned ugly for poor Jackie as he stressed about not being a “true” Abbott.

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9. General Hospital – Harmony’s Meltdown

One of the most over-the-top secrets to be exposed as of late on GH is Harmony’s meltdown. Sure, the life-long cultie would likely never have won mother of the year; however, when she turned out to be the one behind Dr. Neil Byrne’s murder, fans were floored (to say the least). She hid this secret for years to cover up another major secret about her daughter’s real parents and ended up going on a crime spree until she passed away herself.

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8. Days of Our Lives – Nicole Steals Sami’s Baby

Sami and Nicole have had a longstanding rivalry over the years that hasn’t settled down in the least. One major reason Ms. Brady has such a hate-on for Ms. Walker is that Nicole switched her daughter with another baby back in 2009 and raised Sydney as her and EJ’s child for about a year or so. The truth eventually came out, but the entire ordeal just created more animosity between the two ladies.

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7. Young and the Restless – Ashland Fakes Cancer

Most fans could sniff this scheme from a mile away, although Ashland Locke did a stellar job keeping his fake cancer under wraps. He was able to fool Nikki, Victor, and Victoria (as well as Nate); however, he’s also earned the title of public enemy #1 in Genoa City, and the Newmans will never allow this to slide. Not a good family to cross.

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6. General Hospital – The Connection Between Drew and Franco (Plus, Jason!)

As Drew was originally thought to be Jason Morgan, the initial hate between Cain and Franco always made sense. The two did finally establish a bond and friendship when it was revealed that Franco wasn’t Jason’s twin, but rather, the illegitimate child of Heather Webber and Scott Baldwin! While it turned out that Drew was Jason’s twin; instead of living it up Quartermaine style, he was sent to the same adoptive mother as Franco, Betsy Frank. Franco and Drew grew up as young boys thinking they were brothers and were just as close. Sadly, Betsy’s partner Jim Harvey molested Franco and was about to do the same to Drew. A young Franco accidentally pushed Drew down the stairs to hide him but injured him during the entire ordeal. When Betsy found out she told everyone Cain had passed but sent him to an orphanage Betsy left town to escape Harvey, and the “truth” didn’t come out until decades later. 

© Howard Wise/jpistudios.com

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5. Days of Our Lives – The Real Roman Brady

The Drew Cain storyline resembled that of Days’ Roman Brady, circa the 1980s. When O.G. Roman (actor Wayne Northrop) left the soap in 1984, Brady was written off the canvas by passing away. The show recast the role with Drake Hogestyn in 1986, and Roman mysteriously returned. As his face looked a lot different, and his memories were sketchy, it took some convincing for Marlena to believe this was her husband. She was right to be skeptical, the storyline took a massive twist when the REAL Roman came back in 1991, and actor Wayne Northrop made a very Brady return.

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4. Young and the Restless – Sharon Hides The Truth About Christian

It’s hard to believe that a doctor could convince anyone they were pregnant when they weren’t; however, the Y&R made this storyline work in 2015. Sharon didn’t plot or scheme to switch Sage and Nick’s baby with hers and Dylan’s, but when she eventually found out the truth, it took her a very long while to tell Nick that “her” Sully was actually “his” Christian. Well, technically Adam’s Christian, but that’s a whole other outrageous soap opera secret that was eventually exposed, too!

© Howard Wise/jpistudios.com

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3. General Hospital – Who’s Peter’s Mother?

It was hard to believe that Anna gave birth to such a vile human being as Peter August, so it actually made sense that he ended up being the son of Devane’s evil twin, Alex. It took a very long time for the truth to come out about it all, but once it did, all heck broke loose in Port Charles!

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2. Days Of Our Lives – Abby Versus Gabby

“Whodunit” storylines are always interesting, so when Andre DiMera was un-alived in 2018, Days fan boards buzzed on the internet with speculation. While Gabi Hernandez was arrested, charged, and spent time in jail for the murder; it was a real stunner to learn that Abby DiMera did the deed while she was dealing with a multi-personality disorder. Abby was responsible for Andre’s murder while running around as her alter-ego, “Gabby”.

© XJJohnson/jpistudios.com

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1. Young and the Restless – Adam’s Revenge On Victor

Picture it: Genoa City, 2008/2009. Adam is released from jail and is ready to enact some revenge on his dad and bio family. Back then, the Moustache and Ashley had reunited, and they were expecting their second child. Adam got close to Ash and made her believe Victor’s deceased wife Sabrina was haunting her; so much so, that he frightened Abbott into taking a tumble down the stairs, thus losing the baby. In addition, he blackmailed a doctor to keep up with this ruse that Ashley was still expecting. When it was time for the baby to arrive, Adam stole Sharon and Nick’s infant upon delivery (Faith), and for months Victor believed his granddaughter was his daughter. The truth finally did come out; however, Adam went to extreme lengths to try and keep all his revenge secrets hidden. He even seduced another man, Rafe Torres, to stay quiet about everything.

© Howard Wise/jpistudios.com

Dorathy Gass

Dorathy Gass is an avid fan of daytime drama and has been watching Days of Our Lives, General Hospital, and Young and the Restless for over two decades now. As a full-time freelance writer, she gets to combine her love of soap operas and writing through her Fame 10 articles. Also a mother of two busy girls and a mommy blogger, she's been published multiple times over in Huffington Post Parents and Scary Mommy.