Fans who tuned in to Days of our Lives this week saw the exit of actress Olivia Rose Keegan in the role of Claire Brady, who is now being portrayed by soap opera newcomer Isabel Durant. The actress made her debut on today's episode of the NBC soap opera, and she says taking over for recent Daytime Emmy winner Keegan has been a challenging yet gratifying experience.
"Olivia is Olivia and she's brilliant," Durant tells Soap Opera Digest of her predecessor, adding that she didn't try to copy Keegan's take on Claire. "I sort of made the call that I would just listen to what people said. I would listen to how the character was and just do my best to find it within myself as the weeks went on. It was a welcome challenge."
DAYS' head writer, Ron Carlivati, marked the transition from Keegan to Durant on his Twitter feed, first posting a photo of the former actress with the caption, "A huge thank you to @oliviakeegann who brought Claire Brady to life and made us care about her even when she was at her most dastardly. Wishing Olivia all the best as she writes her next chapter..."
A huge thank you to @oliviakeegann who brought Claire Brady to life and made us care about her even when she was at her most dastardly. Wishing Olivia all the best as she writes her next chapter... #days pic.twitter.com/SCShBrszFL
- Ron Carlivati (@carlivatiron) August 11, 2020
Carlivati then posted a photo of the latter actress with the caption, "But as one chapter ends, another begins. Please help me welcome Isabel Durant to Salem as she steps into the role of Claire, beginning tomorrow on @nbcdays!"
But as one chapter ends, another begins. Please help me welcome Isabel Durant to Salem as she steps into the role of Claire, beginning tomorrow on @nbcdays! #days pic.twitter.com/6eST8LgN7F
- Ron Carlivati (@carlivatiron) August 11, 2020
As Soap Central previously reported, Durant is an Australian actress with credits that include This Is Us, Life Itself, Mako Mermaids, Dance Academy, Camp, and Reef Doctors.
As for Keegan, the actress was reportedly unable to continue with DAYS as she joined the Disney+ show High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, which is currently readying its second season. Keegan has taken on the role of Lily, "an energetic and adorable East High freshman whose sweetness masks her insecurity and highly competitive nature" in the series that follows the adventures of a high school drama club.
Shortly after confirmation that she'd been de-Claired, Keegan took to social media to, um, declare her NBC role was "the opportunity of a lifetime."
Playing Claire has been the opportunity of a lifetime and I am beyond grateful to have been trusted with such a beautiful story. Thank you for everything. So excited to see @IsabelDurant1 take the reigns ????
— Olivia Keegan (@oliviakeegann) August 13, 2020
How do you feel about Isabel Durant taking over for Olivia Rose Keegan in the role of DAYS' Claire Brady? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.
