Annabelle, Is That You? ‘B&B’ Plans to Gives Dolls Their Own Storyline

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Soap fans are used to some pretty weird things. Many soaps are enforcing strict social distancing guidelines for production. Some soaps, such as The Bold and the Beautiful, are using dolls as stand-ins during scenes. 

They don’t even try to hide that it’s a mannequin in the bed. Just watch these recent scenes from post-COVID B&B. 

https://twitter.com/IsntDaveOne/status/1289035248706236416

And now it seems the dolls will become more prominent on the soap, but not as stand-ins. The dolls will feature in their own storyline. 

B&B Producer Teases Plan for Dolls

The CBS soap is using unorthodox tactics during filming. Aside from the dolls, real-life partners are filming love scenes with their significant others.

For example, Denise Richards’ hubby, Aaron Phypers, stands in for Thorsten Kaye (Ridge) during love scenes. The soap then edits the footage together to make it appear that Thorsten is the one kissing Denise (Shauna.) 

During filming, mannequins are used in scenes where social distancing isn’t feasible. 

The Bold and the Beautiful’s head honcho recently spoke to BBC’s In The Studio. The executive producer has some interesting plans for future storylines. Daytime Confidential reports that the dolls will play a major part in their own storylines. 

Executive Producer Brad Bell gives a “sneak peek” that the show will use a doll “as a character and not just a stand-in.” He cites the popularity of the dolls in the press as the reason behind the idea. 

He notes that B&B has “never done” anything like the doll-character storyline before. However, anything goes, “under the circumstances.” 

Brad teases fans that artists in L.A. “can make dolls the spitting image of someone.”

Sounds intriguing, but it’s not exactly ground-breaking. That credit goes to NBC’s former soap Passions. The sudser featured many outlandish storylines. But none so far-fetched, yet oddly believable, as the uber-popular Timmy the doll. 

Throwback to Soaps’ First Living-Doll: Timmy From Passions

B&B won’t be the first soap to have a doll as a character. Passions ran on NBC from 1999 to 2007. It was created by former DOOL Head Writer James E. Reilly. During his time with DOOL, the soap saw supernatural storylines, such as Marlena’s possession. Those storyline ideas were heightened on Passions.

One of the most popular characters during the soap’s run was Timmy the doll. Played by real-life actor Josh Ryan Evans, Timmy was a doll brought to life by resident witch Tabitha Lenox (Juliet Mills.) 

The Timmy actor passed away in 2002. Coincidentally, on the same day as his real-life passing, Timmy the doll passed away on NBC’s Passions. 

However, it seems out of character for B&B to take a supernatural tone with their upcoming doll storyline. But fans will have to tune in to watch it unfold. 

The Bold and the Beautiful airs weekdays on CBS. Follow us on social media for updates on all your favorite soaps and more! 

Jennifer Havener
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