Days of Our Lives Fan Favorite, Grey’s Anatomy Veteran and Star’s Real-Life Husband All Added to the Cast of Beyond Salem

When the second chapter of Peacock’s Days of Our Live spinoff Beyond Salem hits the streamer on Monday, July 11, viewers will be thrilled to see several familiar characters even as they are introduced to a few new faces.

In keeping with the Beyond Salem title — not to mention the precedent established with the show’s first chapter — several locals will be traveling to far-flung locations to visit loved ones. Already, we knew that Kristian Alfonso would be appearing as Hope, one of the most beloved characters in Days of Our Lives history. Storyline wise, Ben and Ciara will be visiting Montreal, which is where they cross paths with her mom.

Will reuniting with Ben and Ciara lead to Hope returning to Salem?

Credit: Jill Johnson/JPI

John and Marlena will catch a flight to San Francisco to visit his son, Paul, played once again by a returning Christopher Sean. Given that headwriter Ron Carlivati has warned that a murder mystery is about to rock Days of Our Lives, this might be a great time for John to convince Paul to come home and play detective with him!

“So, um, how are Will and Sonny doing? Marriage on the rocks? Wait, did I say that out loud… “

Credit: Jill Johnson/JPI

More: Days star shares nightmare audition

Also getting out of town for a bit will be Steve and Kayla, who swing by Seattle to visit their children, Stephanie and Joey. (You’ll recall that Joey spent years in prison for “killing” Ava. When she returned from the dead, he was released and eventually decided to get a fresh start in Seattle.)

Here’s hoping Steve and Kayla recognize their offspring, given that they’ll have changed quite a bit! The role of Joey is now being played by Tanner Stine, while Abigail Klein has stepped into Stephanie’s shoes.

It looks like all that Seattle rain has been very good for Stephanie and Joey!

Credit: NBC

Also returning for another round is Eileen Davidson as Kristen DiMera. How, exactly, that will work is unclear at this point. While Davidson slipped into the character’s infamous red dress for the first edition of Beyond Salem — and was used by the devil when the villain wanted to tempt John into cheating on his wife — Stacy Haiduk plays Days of Our Lives‘ version of Kristen.

Might the name “Hellworth” be a clue as to how Van Patten’s alter ego is connected to that of his real-life wife, Davidson?

Credit: Priscilla Grant/Courtesy of the Everett Collection

More: Will Abigail be the first of several Days deaths? 

Interestingly, when Davidson steps back onto the set, she won’t be doing so alone: Husband Vince Van Patten will join her as a mystery man named Phil Hellworth. No further detail was available about his alter ego, but perhaps he’ll help shed light on the mystery of the two Kristens!

Elsewhere, Loretta Devine will appear as Angela. Trust us when we say that even if you think you don’t know Devine’s work, you do. After all, she’s appeared on everything from A Different World to Boston Public. But she might best be known to fans of soapy dramas for her run as Adele, the wife of Dr. Richard Webber on ABC’s primetime sudser Grey’s Anatomy. No word yet on how her Angela will fit into the Beyond Salem tale.

Last year, Devine (center) joined Ann-Margaret and Jane Curtin in the big screen comedy Queen Bees.

Credit: Gravitas Ventures/Courtesy of the Everett Collection

In other news, we may finally get to know a bit more about Gabi’s new lover, Li, now that Victoria Grace has been cast as Victoria. We’re going to guess it’s not a coincidence that she happens to share his last name, Shin!

Of course, already the show revealed that Steve Burton — best known as General Hospital’s former Jason — would be appearing as Harris Michaels, a character he played decades ago on Days of Our Lives. And Peter Reckell’s Bo, who last month helped Ben and Ciara save their newborn son, will again put in a ghostly appearance.

<b>Which Days of Our Lives hunks made our list of soaps’ all-time sexiest hunks? Guess you’ll have to look through these pics of good looking guys to find out. Poor you!</b>