Chad DiMera’s Tearful Salem Farewell Wrecks Us On Tuesday as Actor Billy Flynn Says Goodbye to DAYS For Good

CHAD DIMERA AND HIS KIDS SAY GOODBYE TO ABIGAIL AND SALEM AND WE ARE NOT OKAY

TL;DR: Chad DiMera packs up Thomas and Charlotte and leaves Salem for Arizona on Days of Our Lives, but not before a gut-wrenching visit to Abigail’s grave and one final look at the Horton house. Tuesday marks the final airdate for Billy Flynn, Cary Christopher, and Autumn Gendron.

Grab Your Tissues, Salem — This One Hurts

We knew this day was coming, but that doesn’t make it any easier. Tuesday’s Days of Our Lives delivers Billy Flynn’s final episode as Chad DiMera, and the preview footage is already making us emotional wrecks. After more than a decade in the role, Flynn is heading to The Young and the Restless where he’s been airing as Cane Ashby since last summer, and Chad’s Salem exit is every bit as heartbreaking as you’d expect from a character who has been through absolute hell and somehow kept showing up.

Chad DiMera has spent the past several weeks preparing for this move, telling Julie he needed to take the kids somewhere far from Salem’s chaos. Tony initially suggested a two-week trip, but Chad has made it clear he’s not sure when they’ll be back. Translation: don’t wait up.

The emotional centerpiece of this farewell is Chad’s visit to Abigail’s grave. In the weekly preview, Chad DiMera places a candy heart on Abby’s headstone and whispers his goodbye. Then he goes back to the Horton house, clutches his wedding photo in the dark, and takes one last look around the home that held so many memories. If you can watch that without crying, you’re made of stronger stuff than the rest of us.

Saying goodbye to Billy Flynn’s Chad is ROUGH. Write to our editor at [email protected] and share your favorite Chad DiMera moments!

It’s Not Just Chad — We’re Losing Thomas and Charlotte Too

Here’s the part that makes this Tuesday even more bittersweet. February 17 isn’t just Billy Flynn’s final airdate. It’s also the last time we’ll see Cary Christopher as Thomas and Autumn Gendron as Charlotte. Chad DiMera is taking both kids to Arizona, and all three actors are walking out the door together.

Christopher’s departure has been expected for a while now. The young actor confirmed on social media that his time on Days of Our Lives was ending, and he’s got a stacked schedule ahead of him including a series regular role on an Amazon Prime show, plus roles in a Jonah Hill film and several other projects. The kid spent nearly six years as Thomas, starting when he was just four years old, and his goodbye post had fans reaching for tissues.

Gendron’s exit as Charlotte was less expected. She’s been playing the role since 2022, and while it makes total sense that Charlotte would leave with her dad, fans weren’t necessarily prepared to say goodbye to both DiMera kids at once. Jack (Matthew Ashford) and Jennifer (Melissa Reeves) share an emotional farewell with Chad and the grandkids, and Julie is right there to see them off too.

The Good News: Chad Will Be Back

Before anyone spirals completely, Chad DiMera is not gone forever. Conner Floyd, formerly Chance Chancellor on The Young and the Restless, takes over the role when Chad returns to Salem on April 21. Both Thomas and Charlotte will also be recast when the new Chad arrives, so the whole DiMera family unit is getting a fresh look.

That said, two months without Chad in Salem is going to feel strange, especially with EJ’s dark turn accelerating, the secret lab experiments moving forward, and the DiMera family in total upheaval. Chad DiMera picked a heck of a time to leave town, even if protecting his kids from the Jeremy Horton fallout makes perfect sense as a motivation.

Flynn took over the role from Casey Deidrick back in 2014 and turned Chad into one of the most beloved characters on Days of Our Lives. He earned three Daytime Emmy nominations along the way and gave us some of the most emotionally devastating performances the show has seen in years. We’ll miss you, Billy. Salem won’t be the same.

Want more Days of Our Lives spoilers, news, and commentary? Click below to keep up with everything happening in Salem!

WATCH THIS: This goodbye seems harder than others…

@soapoperamag Twelve years…. TWELVE. Billy Flynn has been playing Chad DiMera since 2014 and Tuesday is his last episode. I'm not emotionally prepared for this at all. He gave us everything with this role and Salem is losing one of its best. Wishing him nothing but the best in his next chapter. #DAYS ♬ original sound – Soap Opera Magazine