Dick Van Dyke is set to join Days Of Our Lives.
The Mary Poppins actor, 97, who has pretty much done it all during his illustrious career in TV, film and theatre, will make his soap debut in an episode of the NBC serial, which now airs on streaming service Peacock, portraying a man with amnesia.
The Hollywood legend will star opposite Drake Hogestyn, who play John Black in the long-running daytime drama, having come to know him well after they attended the same gym.
Discussing how exactly the role came to be, Dick told Access Hollywood: ‘Drake and I went to the same gym together.
‘I used to kid him, “Say don’t you ever have any parts for old people? Come on, give me a part! And he took me seriously. He got me a part.”I used to kid him, “Say don’t you ever have any parts for old people? Come on, give me a part! And he took me seriously. He got me a part.’
‘I have played old men before, but comedy old men. First time I ever just played my 97-year-old self.’
The Diagnosis Murder star explained that he watched a single episode of Days in a bid to get acquainted with the format and the actors, who have been ‘doing it for 20 years’.
‘That’s about all the homework I could do was watch one and see how they did it,’ the 97-year-old said.
‘The other thing, you have to hold [a moment] because there’s this thing of music and we’ve said something exciting.’
Days Of Our Lives, which is set in Salem and follows the trials and tribulations of families including the Bradys, Hortons, Carvers and DiMeras, made history earlier this year, moving from NBC to streaming service Peacock.
Days has won more than 50 Emmy Awards over the last six decades, and was renewed until season 58 in 2021.
Dick Van Dyke, meanwhile, recently stunned fans on The Masked Singer US, with the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang star being unmasked as Gnome, making history as he became the oldest ever competitor on the popular show.
Days Of Our Lives streams daily on Peacock in the US.
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