‘The Bold and the Beautiful’ Return Date Revealed

While the coronavirus shut down most of Hollywood and still has kept production on most shows at a standstill, Bold and the Beautiful became one of the first shows to resume filming after returning to set in June. It will now be among the first network shows to continue live episodes as it was revealed on Monday that new episodes would begin on July 20.

The CBS soap opera resumed production on June 17, shortly after the state of California began to lift restrictions on the industry. It wasn’t all smooth sailing for them, however, as a brief pause had to occur due to testing following multiple false positives, but things picked back up on June 24. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, a rep for the show explained that no one on set was positive with COVID-19 and that the pause was not because of anyone contracting the virus but due to having to switch medical labs. In returning, the production set also had to be altered a bit to accommodate the new guidelines so that everyone could remain at a proper social distance. Actors aren’t allowed to be within six feet of each other, either, which means filming has to get creative in making people appear closer than they actually are.

Bradley Bell, the head writer and executive producer of the show, told The Hollywood Reporter that any scenes that are shown in the new episodes in which two people are holding hands or touching faces, that it actually isn’t what the viewer will think it is. That’s because the crew brought in some of the actors’ spouses as stand-ins, “We’ll have a love-scene double where it will be the husband or the wife doing the actual touching.”

In learning that new episodes will soon be coming later in the month, viewers of the longtime soap opera were ecstatic to learn of the news. One user commented on the show’s announcement, “It’s been so long we need a couple refresher episodes this week to prepare for next week! Heck, I forgot who was with who!” Another echoed a similar sentiment, writing, “So I just literally fell out of my chair from being so excited! My husband says I need to calm down, but heck no, Bold and the Beautiful is back baby!”

The Bold and the Beautiful premiered in 1987. The show follows the Forrester family and their business, Forrester Creations, in Los Angeles.