Previously, in 1985, viewers watched as Bobby Ewing (Patrick Duffy) was killed off during the season 8 finale of the primetime hit soap opera Dallas.
“I knew exactly what he wanted to talk about,” Duffy shared with The Television Academy. “I turned to my wife at the time and said, ‘They're going to ask me to come back on the show,’” and that is exactly what transpired.
Thus, with Duffy on board to return, showrunner Leonard Katzman was hired to return to the series and bring it back to its former glory. Thus, the plan was devised to bring Bobby back from the dead.
?On May 16, 1986, Bobby Ewing was revealed to be alive and showering in his ex-wife Pam's bathroom in the season nine finale of the CBS series, 'Dallas' pic.twitter.com/yvY0IlyL0E
— RetroNewsNow (@RetroNewsNow) May 16, 2026? SIGN UP for Parade’s Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox ?
On the one hand, this event served as a creative reboot for the series, allowing it to pivot storylines and fix mistakes made by previous regimes. On the other hand, it caused distrust among viewers.
Things were even more complicated when viewers also watched the Dallas spinoff series Knots Landing. Following Bobby’s death, his older brother Gary named one of his children after his deceased brother, so from that point forward, the shows existed in separate universes and the crossovers that had occurred previously ceased to exist going forward.
Reflecting on the plot twist, one fan wrote on X, "Criticize this all you want, we’re still talking about it 40 years later. Incredible finale, incredible comeback."
Following the cancelation of Dallas, Duffy would appear on the sitcomStep By Step, as well as soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful, before reprising his role as Bobby once again for the Dallas reboot on TNT for three additional seasons.
Dallas is available for purchase on VOD platforms.
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