2016 was the year that Days of Our Lives' fictional town of Salem saw so many big names disappear from the canvas.

As various actors quit the show or opted not to renew their contracts for a variety of reasons, and others saw themselves fired because there wasn't a place in the story for them anymore, Salem saw some major players disappear, and fans were forced to either say goodbye to characters they loved, legacy characters, or in some cases, just actors who they had grown to love in a role. And while Salem wasn't an emptier place physically (several new and returning faced filled the holes), the loss of these characters was definitely felt for a long time, and helped drive the story to new and unexpected places.

Here are the five characters who left in 2015 that were greatly missed:

Dr. Daniel Jonas (Shawn Christian)


News broke in summer 2015 that Christian had opted out of renewing his contract and planned to leave the soap, meaning the good doctor was leaving Salem, and unfortunately, it was for good. He and Nicole (Arianne Zucker) had finally landed in a good place romantically, and were planning to marry. But a drunk driving accident on New Year's Eve saw Daniel sustain life-threatening injuries, and he passed away, but not before his heart was given to Brady (Eric Martsolf), who also nearly died in the same accident, and was saved by the gesture.

Stefano DiMera (Joseph Mascolo)

Another shocking death early in the year was that of DiMera Patriarch and Days of Our Lives legend Stefano DiMera, portrayed by Joseph Mascolo. He was killed off when a distraught Hope (Kristian Alfonso) shot him for Bo's own death in late 2015. Though he has since made sporadic appearances as a ghost visiting his son Chad (Billy Flynn), Stefano as a living, breathing character is off the canvas. His death played out throughout the year, as Hope and Rafe (Galen Gering) teamed up to frame Andre (Thaao Penghlis) for the murder, and then Hope was finally revealed as the culprit and wound up in prison herself.

Eric Brady (Greg Vaughan)

After causing the accident which killed Daniel, Eric was forced to confront his drinking problem head-on, and found himself sentenced to a prison sentence for his crime. He was taken off the canvas to serve time, and Vaughan was let go from the role and released from his contract to accommodate the story.

Abigail Deveraux DiMera (Kate Mansi)

She's actually back in Salem now with a new face (and a new portrayer in Marci Miller), but Kate Mansi opted out of renewing her contract late last year, meaning Abigail would be leaving the canvas, at least temporarily. This was done with Abigail slowly going crazy, trying to get help at an institution, and eventually escaping. She was later believed to be dead in a plane crash-but she has since come back to Salem with a new face, and is waiting to reveal herself to her loved ones.

Theresa Donovan (Jen Lilley)

Donovan quit the show to focus on other ventures, and thankfully her character wasn't killed off, though she did disappear recently in an effort to protect both Brady and their son from her dangerous past. She left Salem to make sure they weren't hurt, but had to pretend she no longer loved Brady and wasn't interested in being a mother in order to do it, a heartbreaking moment for fans of the couple.

Days of Our Lives airs Monday-Friday at 1 p.m. on CBS.

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Days Of Our Lives, Nbc, Soap Operas