As a big plotline wrapped up this week on Beyond the Gates, the sophomore sudser also had to bid adieu to one of its original stars. In fact, just as gunshots rang out and Detective Jacob Hawthorne (Jibre Hordges) found his life in danger, another person took a bullet for him. Who’s the gunshot victim, and what happened to them?
Spoiler alert! It’s former firefighter Derek (Ben Gavin)…and he was pronounced dead at the hospital! Gavin spoke to TV Insiderabout finding out the news his character was kicking the bucket and why it made sense for Derek to be the one to die.
The actor found out the news that Derek was being written off at the end of 2025. He was surprised, to say the least, but Gavin explained that The Powers That Be made it clear to him that not just any character could die; it had to be someone that viewers had invested time in and cared about.
Cue Derek, who, although he’s an OG character, doesn’t currently have a job (he’s a retired firefighter), no parents on the canvas, and no family. Gavin said that he suspected such a lack of immediate connections could have made Derek expendable; it’s also worth noting the character currently had no significant other (after his relationship with Ashley [Jen Jacob] collapsed). However, Gavin stressed that he enjoyed how Derek was fleshed out in the second season of BTG, and that Derek’s not a pushover any longer.
How did he find out he was exiting the soap? EP Julie Hanan Carruthers informed him herself. Gavin told TV Insider:
She made it pretty clear that, ‘You’re gonna die a hero.’ And Derek’s got a hero complex, so it’s only fitting. I get the nature of it, but it didn’t make it any less difficult to swallow.
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What did you think of Derek’s exit? How do you feel about seeing the character go? Let us know in the comments!
This story was originally published by Daytime Confidential on May 21, 2026, where it first appeared in the Beyond the Gates section. Add Daytime Confidential as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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