The 10 Biggest Casting Stories of the Year!

20. Because portrayer Ingo Rademacher happened to be in California for a little while, GH was able to bring Jax back onto the canvas to be part of Josslyn’s kidney transplant storyline. And later in the year, the actor's availability allowed for another stint. Sadly for fans, his visits to Port Charles remained brief.

19. As they prepared to air their 11,000th episode, Y&R decided to pull out all the stops, and cast Star Trek icon Nichelle Nichols in the role of Neil's mother, Lucinda. The actress, who admitted to being a huge fan of the soap, appeared in two episodes, one of which was the special anniversary show.

18. Nathan and Maxie had been talking about the mysterious Claudette for what seemed like ages before GH finally announced that they had recruited OLTL alum Bree Williamson to take on the role of the troublemaking vixen. Unfortunately, Claudette disappeared almost as quickly and mysteriously as she appeared!

17. DAYS fans were shocked when Jen Lilley (Theresa) announced that she was leaving the soap after three years. Due to her other outside commitments and opportunities she wished to pursue, she wasn’t able to give DAYS the time the soap required.

16. Despite rumors that her contract negotiations with GH had stalled, Rebecca Herbst inked another multi-year deal to continue playing Elizabeth on the soap. Despite reports that another soap was eager to snatch her up, she opted to remain in Port Charles much to the relief of her legions of loyal fans.

15. Brooke and Ridge's son, R.J., returned from school looking quite a bit older than when he left, with teen actor Anthony Turpel assuming the recast role in time to help reunite his parents!

14. Shortly after daytime vet Tristan Rogers reprised his role as Colin on Y&R, it was also announced that he would be returning to GH for another stint as Robert! The talented actor found himself doing double duty for a time, but unfortunately for GH fans, it was Y&R that snapped him up for another storyline in early 2017!

13. Y&R fans were thrilled when Judith Chapman revealed that she would be returning as Gloria in time for the holidays! Now the only question is what kind of trouble she's going to get into this time!

12. Longtime Y&R viewers were overjoyed when Beth Maitland finally reappeared as Abbott peacemaker Traci in November. With the family in chaos, it's the perfect time for her to set things right! (And hopefully stick around permanently!)

11. Y&R recast a few of their young children, but the most drastic was SORAS-ing Victoria and T.J.'s son, Reed, and replacing little Max Page with teen actor Tristan Lake Labeau!

10. GH surprised everyone when they announced that Tonja Walker would be returning to the soap she called home in the '80s. They remained mum about which role she would be playing, but fans definitely had their suspicions!

9. GH fans were devastated when fan-favorite Michael Easton’s character of Silas was brutally murdered. So they were equally as thrilled when the soap announced the actor was coming back as yet another character, the mysterious new doctor, Finn!

8. Y&R fans cheered when the soap revealed that Michael Graziadei would be reprising his role of Daniel for a limited run just in time for the show’s 11,000th episode!

7. Greg Vaughan left DAYS and found primetime success with the hit series QUEEN SUGAR, but by the end of the year revealed that he would be reprising the role of Eric in January, 2017!

6. At the beginning of the year, Michael Roark joined the cast of Y&R as Travis, but while Victoria and Travis' romance had its fans, Roark announced he was exiting the soap in December.

5. Steve Burton (Dylan) shocked Y&R fans when he announced his exit from the soap. Unfortunately for GH fans hoping he'll come back as Jason, Burton seems to be keeping busy with other projects right now.

4. Shortly after GH fans were shaken by the temporary recast of Nikolas, they had the rug pulled out from under them again when the soap revealed that Kirsten Storms was taking a medical leave of absence and DAYS alum Molly Burnett would be stepping into the role of Maxie for a brief time!

3. GH fans were stunned when it was announced that Tyler Christopher was taking some time off from the show and SUNSET BEACH alum Nick Stabile would play Nikolas temporarily. When Stabile’s short stint ended and there was no word on Christopher’s return, fans began to worry, and eventually Christopher confirmed the news that he would not be back as the Cassadine prince!

2. Although Justin Hartley was a fan favorite as the new Adam Newman, he left the soap in September to strike out in primetime, urging his fans to check out his new show, THIS IS US! (And many did, as the NBC series became a huge hit!)

1. When his contract with GH came up, Bryan Craig (Morgan) opted not to renew and strike out in Hollywood. He landed a big role in an upcoming movie, but some mysterious tweets left GH fans hopeful that Morgan wasn't really truly dead.

Click here to relive all the beautiful weddings and romantic proposals with your favorite stars this year!