The question of whether John McCook is leaving The Bold and the Beautiful persists, here’s what we know

Updated: Nov. 15, 2023 – The closer we get to the holidays the more The Bold and the Beautiful fans wonder if we’ll be saying goodbye to Eric Forrester ahead of New Year’s Eve. We’ve been in this storyline for quite sometime and the famed fashion designer’s condition has worsened. Not to the point of hospitalization, mind you, but he was given the news that he’s dying and the only thing left to do is spend as much time as he can with his family.

The problem, however, is that Eric doesn’t want his loved ones to know that he’s staring death in the face. To his knowledge, only Donna, RJ, and Katie know about his flagging health. But, in actuality, his son Ridge knows as well and so does Brooke Logan. The two of them shared the news with his grandchildren, Steffy and Thomas Forrester. Then, along with her sisters, Donna and Katie, Brooke told Hope.

Forced to maintain the lie that they’re not aware of his condition, and that he didn’t win the fashion showdown like he was told, the family must now honor him while managing not to tip Eric off that they know. It’s the kind of storyline that’s left many wondering if John McCook really is exiting the soap opera. Here’s the thing, if what’s been reported holds true, we should be in for a miraculous recovery.

TV Insider reports that the actor’s days on The Bold and the Beautiful are not coming to an end. McCook has extended his contract with the soap for another three years. As such, unless he chooses to step away from the role of Eric Forrester himself, he’ll be lighting up our screens until at least 2026.

By then he’ll be 82 though we wouldn’t doubt he could extend his contract again. After all, The Young and the Restless‘ Eric Braeden is currently 82 and is still making waves as Victor Newman in Genoa City. Not to mention back in 2022, when the show was celebrating its 35th anniversary and McCook was turning 78, he told Entertainment Tonight what his birthday wish was:

"My wish, my selfish wish, is that I can do this job until they don’t want me anymore, until I don’t want to. I don’t want to get to a point where I can’t remember lines anymore. Or I can’t do the job. I want to stay healthy enough and well enough, even 10 more years or 20 more years. To stay there, that’s my wish for me, personally."

So the soap icon plans to stay on The Bold and the Beautiful for as long as he’s able. But, in spite of the reporting, fans keeping asking whether or not McCook is leaving. This is due in large part to the caliber of acting being displayed in each scene. The emotional moments are stacking up and it doesn’t help that supervising producer Casey Kasprzyk tweeted the following on Oct. 30:

However, I’d like to remind everyone that this doesn’t necessarily mean McCook has chosen to leave the soap after all. It’s possible that Kasprzyk is referring to a week in which the characters finally get to talk to Eric about his health and how the potential loss of him will affect them. It doesn’t mean that they were setting up for a funeral.

Perhaps it’s a Forrester wedding, Donna and Eric still haven’t tied the knot. I’d think they’d do that before his passing. Then, when his health suddenly turns around, they can enjoy wedded bliss without the spectre of demise hounding their footsteps. If John McCook does depart The Bold and the Beautiful, Hidden Remote will keep you posted. But until then, expect the legend to continue his turn as Eric Forrester on the soap until 2026 as reported.