Who is John Black on Days of Our Lives? All you need to know

One of the most prominent longtime roles on Days of Our Lives is that of the character John Black. The character is portrayed by actor Drake Hogestyn and was introduced on the show in 1986. Despite a few pauses and presumed deaths, John Black has been one of the longest-running characters on Days of Our Lives.

John was introduced as a mystery character brainwashed into believing he was Marlena Evans's husband Roman. He then went on to put together his past in the face of many dangers and unrequited feelings for Marlena.

In the current storyline, John is married to Marlena but is looking for a way to find out who he truly was in the past. After several bouts of amnesia and brainwashing, it is time the character returned to his roots in Greece and found out where he started.

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Who is John Black? Character and storylines explored

Drake Hogestyn as John Black in a still from Days of Our Lives (Image via Peacock)

John Black's character arc is an interesting one since he was introduced to Days of Our Lives with another name: The Pawn. He met psychiatrist Marlena Evans, who tried to restore his memory, but also ended up falling for him. Marlena then discovered that John was actually her husband Roman Brady, who had been presumed dead.

She informed John this and the couple renewed their marriage vows. However, their happiness was short-lived as Marlena was kidnapped and declared dead in 1987. But she returned to Salem alive in 1991, with another twist to the tale.

Here, actor Wayne Northrop was cast as Roman Brady, but the role of John Black was retained and retconned. The plot turned to reveal that John had been brainwashed into believing he was Roman.

Marlena went to her husband Roman, and John struck up a relationship with Isabella Toscano. Unfortunately, she died of pancreatic cancer in 1992, leaving John to care for their son Brady Victor Black. John started having feelings for Marlena again, and they both had an affair. Marlena even got pregnant with John's child and gave birth to a girl named Belle.

At this point in the soap, Roman's teenage daughter Sami discovers the affair and kidnaps Belle to protect her father's feelings. Seeing that the affair is hurting a young girl, Marlena returns to her family and John starts pursuing other relationships. Later, Roman filed for divorce from Marlena after finding out about the affair.

Finally, after many struggles, John and Marlena married each other on July 5, 1999. Later, Marlena becomes an amnesiac after a dangerous fall and John is shot by EJ Wells, the son of John's nemesis Stefano DiMera. Though John recovered from the wound, he was hit by a car in 2007 and presumed dead.

In 2008, the character was revealed to be alive but he was wiped of his memory. John joined a life of crime and was brainwashed into being part of the DiMera family. Finally, after Marlena threatened to file for divorce, John's memories resurfaced and the two remarried in 2009.

Currently, John Black's story involves piecing together the truth about his mysterious past. In 2023, he found his biological father Timothy Robicheaux. It has also been hinted that John will start uncovering the story behind his first identity as 'The Pawn.'

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Who plays the character of John Black on Days of Our Lives?

Actor Drake Hogestyn plays the role of John Black in Days of Our Lives (via Peacock)

John Black is portrayed by American actor Donald Drake Hogestyn. He started his career with Columbia Pictures and was featured in the series Seven Brides for Seven Brothers in 1982. He was then cast on Days of Our Lives in 1986.

Initially, the character was introduced by the name Roman Brady, which was then retconned as John Black in 1991 when the writers wanted to retain him on the show. During this time, his pairing with the character Marlena Evans (Deidre Hall) became one of the most popular couples in the show.

The actor was briefly removed twice from the show, once in 2007 when John Black was presumed dead in the story, and again in 2008 reportedly due to budget cuts. However, the legacy actor always made it back on the show and continues to play the role of John Black on Days of Our Lives to date.

Drake Hogestyn has also been nominated for multiple awards for his role on the show. He won the Soap Opera Digest award for Hottest Male Star twice consecutively in 1994 and 1995. He also shared the Soap Opera Digest Favourite Couple Award with his co-star Deidre Hall in 2005.

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