'Days of Our Lives' -- which previously aired on NBC -- is now streaming on Peacock.
Like many network television shows, Days of Our Lives is making the move to streaming. ET's Matt Cohen spoke with the cast of the long-running soap about how the show will change after making the move from NBC to Peacock, after spending 57 years on air.
"Well, I think we all think of Peacock as NBC," Deidre Hall said, "so, it isn’t a huge transition, but it means that we are on the air, we'll still be reaching millions of people, and I think we’re all thrilled to be doing that."
"Absolutely, yeah, no, it's a new opportunity," Robert Scott Wilson added. "It's refreshing, and adds to the longevity ... with a lot of history. Brings it into another opportunity for a new audience."
For Drake Hogestyn, while he still prefers the traditional way of TV watching, he said he's going to get on board.
"I’m kind of the older audience. I don’t have a smart television set. I don’t have internet connectivity. I like to turn my set on, have my show be right there," Hogestyn admitted. "And I was talking to some guys in the gym and they said, 'Hoge, you're missing it! Everybody's on their phones, their tablets, different things. They watch anything they want, anytime they want. You have a television set?'"
"So, I’m with a lot of the audience here," he continued. "There’s a learning curve I’m gonna go through, but for a $1.99 a month, I think that is a deal, and I’m on board."
Moving from broadcast to streaming -- a transition that was initially shocking for some of the cast -- allows the 57-year-old soap to take more creative risks.
"It's an opportunity to be more creative -- whatever that means -- within the guidelines, and not losing the the integrity of the history of what we've done here for many, many years," Wilson shared. "But now, having the lines, being broadened a little bit, and being able to be a little more creative and keep up with he demands of what's streaming now."
That means the show can be more "racy," with Hogestyn explaining that they no longer have to follow some of the strict standards and practices imposed by broadcast television.
"We're kind of moving into a different league," Hogestyn added. "It’s from the league of standards and practices, where I remember there were some scenes we had one time that were pretty racy, and they had the standards and practices people in the booth, and when the racy scene came up, they accidentally knocked a hot cup of coffee over on 'em ... while we got the scene in, and they won’t have to do that now with the streaming."
"And it’s a balancing line there, between the older audience, and respecting what they want out of their soap opera, and yet giving the younger audience and the adventurers what they want also, he continued.
Eric Martsolf called the move "a gift" that will allow watchers to take the show with them wherever they want.
"I was nervous at first, I’ll be honest," Martsolf admitted. "I was nervous because I’m a creature of habit, like many people, that watch their television a certain way."
He continued, "And those nerves went away as soon as I got home, and I went to say hello to my twin boys, they're 16, and they're on their tablets, and they're on their phones and they're watching their stuff, and they're taking their phones and taking their shows with them out the door. I realized this could be a really important, wonderful thing -- the mobility."
"The ability to take your show with you wherever you wanna go, I think once people accept that change and realize what a gift that is, I think it's just gonna rock and roll from there honestly," Martsolf added.
All in all, it's an exciting time for the show, with Camila Banus adding that the cast is "happy" to be part of the long-running soap's innovative next move.
"I think we're all just buzzing with excitement," Banus gushed. "We're just happy to be part of this fun, new, different, innovative move, and I think the first soap to go full on streaming is a really exciting title to have."
Days of Our Lives is streaming now exclusively on Peacock.
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