Hollyoaks spoilers follow.
Hollyoaks has confirmed a major change in the ongoing Dillon Ray baby plot.
Back in September, the show's time jump revealed that Leah Barnes was pregnant. Viewers were then shocked to learn that Dillon, the boyfriend of Leah's brother Lucas, was, in fact, the father of baby James.
Dillon chose to keep the secret to himself until a manic Ste tried to run away with the baby last week. Ste has recently become convinced that his late husband James Nightingale is still alive, and has since received an assessment for psychosis.
As the situation escalated at the Lomaxes, Dillon quickly intervened and ended up confessing that he was James's dad, as a shocked Lucas looked on.
Related: Best streaming services in 2024
What to Read Next
Tonight's (November 25) episode saw Marie, Lucas and Peri pull together to support Ste. After organising a care rota, Lucas shared his frustration at having to care for his dad and Dillon's baby while Leah was "living it up" at university.
Concerned about the situation at the house, Marie told Peri and Lucas that they needed to get the Maalik's help with childcare – even though Dillon hadn't told them about being James's dad.
"We're at breaking point," she said. "It takes a village to raise a child."
Marie and Lucas then paid a visit to Misbah, where they revealed that Dillon was the father of Leah's baby. "I was going to tell you tonight, I swear," Dillon assured his aunt.
Related: Hollyoaks uncovers new Ethan death evidence in early streaming release
A shocked Misbah agreed to talk to her family about helping with childcare, while Marie assured Dillon that James was safe and wouldn't be left alone with Ste.
"He's going on anti-psychotic meds and he needs to be around his grandchild, it's good for him," Marie explained.
Later, Donny told Misbah that they should help to look after James, while Dillon shared his concerns about his son being around Ste after recent events.
"I know he would never do anything intentionally bad, but he's seeing things that aren't there, irrational thinking," Dillon said.
Related: Hollyoaks' Isabelle Smith reveals real-life friendship with co-star
Misbah acknowledged that it would be difficult to take in a newborn, as they were in a lot of "debt", but eventually agreed to look after James, so that Dillon could be a part of his life.
Following their conversation, Misbah, Donny and Dillon went to tell Marie and Lucas that they thought it would be best if they took over caring for James while Ste got used to his new medication.
"That baby needs to be part of Ste's recovery. That's his grandchild. I don't know who you think you are," a frustrated Marie said, just as Ste walked in the room.
After overhearing Misbah's suggestion, Ste believed that everyone was conspiring against him and lashed out at Donny. As Lucas restrained his dad, Marie was forced to agree to hand the baby over to the Maaliks. How will Ste cope with this change?
Hollyoaks airs on Mondays-Wednesdays with its Channel 4 streaming premiere at 7am, then an E4 broadcast the same night at 7pm. Full episodes are also released on YouTube a week after their Channel 4 release.
Selected omnibus episodes are available via Prime Video.
