"Days of Our Lives" fans have been hearing about dropping ratings for far too long. When Ron Carlivati first took the job, the future of the show was in question. He didn't know if it would be renewed, meaning he would have been working for only about six weeks as he wrote the ending of the soap opera.
In the midst of February sweeps, behind the scenes, there was as much drama as on the set. The announcement of changes to the production team of "Days Of Our Lives" was followed by the long-awaited renewal fans had hoped for. With Dena Higley out and Ron Carlivati in, the network decided to roll the dice for one more year.
Ron Carlivati came in swinging!
Carlivati's scripts began to air on July 19. He delivered right away on things he had promised. A Chabby reunion was high on the list for fans and that is in the works. "Days of Our Lives" fans wanted the storylines to not drag on so long that missing a couple of days didn't get them behind. Just a little more action, please. He delivered on that as well.
Ron Carlivati did something else that many fans appreciate. Instead of coming in and changing a lot of characters, he is bringing back some blasts from the past. Vivian Alamain will be stirring up trouble again around the end of the year. Before that, fans will be thrilled to see Sami back in Salem with a storyline involving Will, who was being murdered by the necktie killer the last we saw of him.
When fans of "Days of Our Lives" began to speak out on social media against bringing back characters from the dead, Ron Carlivati quickly spoke up that it could be a twist.
With all the changes, it seems that more viewers would be tuning in to see the new and improved "Days of Our Lives." According to a ratings report on Soap Hub, that isn't the case, however.
The show is still dipping in numbers. As of the week ending on July 28, the soap opera lost 212,000 viewers when compared to the same time last year, despite 1,000 gained from the week before.
Did they wait too long to make the needed change?
The obvious question for fans is: What is considered an acceptable increase in ratings?
We know that Ron Carlivati will be at the helm for the next contract signing, which will happen in May. While that may sound a long way off, the drop in numbers from last year is a 10% decrease in viewership.
Can "Days of Our Lives" be turned around by May or should a change have happened before the gap got so bad? Do you think Ron Carlivati can bring enough life back to Salem to entice more viewers?
