James E. Reilly, a sometimes controversial soap scribe who twice served as Days of Our Lives' headwriter and created the supernatural-themed Passions, passed away over the weekend, at age 60, Soap Opera Digest reports. Reilly was recovering in the hospital from cardiac surgery when he died.
Read more about Reilly's passing and his daytime legacy, after the jump.
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How will Passions' mad-dog creator Jim Reilly make sure we follow his show from NBC to DirecTV? By staging a killer cliff-hanger — literally. "A major character from a core family will be murdered in the final NBC episode [airing Sept. 7]," reveals Reilly, who's been on quite a death spree lately. (Another key character gets whacked Aug. 28.) The NBC finale also has big twists that'll impact the she-male plot and the Luis/Fancy/Sheridan love triangle. "And we'll pay off the audience by having Ethan finally meet his son," Reilly reports, "but even that ends on a huge shock." Expect more insanity when the soap hits DirecTV Sept. 17. "There will be three killings during the first month or two, and we find out one of the most stable, beloved citizens in Harmony is a murderer," Reilly says. The Lopez- Fitzgerald clan becomes the target of a new villain who'll make badass Alistair look like a choirboy. Reformed witch Tabitha will return to the dark side. And, notes Reilly, "If given ...
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Passions head writer James E. Reilly must have a kinky thing for mysterious hooded figures. Last year, that white-cloaked lady skulking around Harmony was revealed to be Rachel, as played by General Hospital vet Sharon Wyatt. Coming up this spring, NBC says 16 characters will "travel to Rome searching for lost loves and priceless works of art." Their lives will be manipulated by an incognito monk, whose identity will first be revealed online at PassionsVendetta.com on June 1. Don't go there yet, though — the site will actually launch on March 14, offering twice-weekly video clips with clues as to who's under the hood this time.
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