Less than a year since joining “Beyond the Gates” as a breakdown writer, Emmy Award winner Ron Carlivati has exited the daytime drama series, Soap Opera Network has learned.
According to sources, Carlivati decided to exit the soap opera just as the show began writing work on Season 2, which premieres early next year on CBS.
This marks the second major change among the show’s writing team following the exit of Robert Guza Jr. as co-head writer earlier this year. In Guza’s case, Tracey Thomson (“The Young and the Restless,” “Secrets of Sulphur Springs”) was brought in as his successor, both as co-head writer and executive producer, one of eight.
In her role, Thomson works alongside series showrunner, executive producer, creator, and head writer Michele Val Jean in crafting the show’s long-term story.
Another writer exiting the daytime drama series is Christopher Dunn, who joined the series in August 2024 as a breakdown writer. His previous writing work includes “Santa Barbara,” “Sunset Beach,” “Guiding Light,” “All My Children,” “Days of our Lives” and “The Young and the Restless.” It’s understood it was Dunn’s decision to exit.
Elsewhere, scriptwriter Lynn Martin concluded her stint at the soap in June, according to LinkedIn. Similarly, while script writer Jazmen Darnell Brown also indicated on LinkedIn that he had concluded his run at the soap opera as well, he recently updated his page, revealing he’s back for Season 2.
At press time, it was unknown if Carlivati’s decision to leave “Beyond the Gates” meant he would be joining a different soap opera as either head writer or breakdown writer, or if he simply just wanted a break from daytime. He previously served as head writer of “One Life to Live,” “General Hospital” and “Days of our Lives.”
Receiving nine Daytime Emmy nominations throughout his career as a writer on soaps, Carlivati won the prestigious award in 2008 for “One Life to Live” and in 2018 for “Days of our Lives.”
Under his guidance, “Days of our Lives” also won the Writers Guild Award for Daytime Drama for four consecutive years (2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024). He previously won the award in 2015 and 2017 for his work on “General Hospital.”
With writing work for “Beyond the Gates” 4-6 months ahead of taping, don’t expect to see changes on-screen until at least early 2026. In the case of Guza, his name should remain in the credits through fall 2025.
