Calum Lill has recently confirmed his Corrie fate was sealed as he gears up for a new project away from the cobbles. But with villains too often facing a grim death, here’s how the soap could do better for Joel’s exit.

Another dramatic exit looms on the horizon for Coronation Street viewers as actor Calum Lill was announced to be on his way out of the show in upcoming months.

After wreaking havoc in Hollyoaks, the soap star joined the ITV drama as duty solicitor Joel Deering, a new love interest for Dee-Dee Bailey, portrayed by Channique Sterling-Brown.

While many viewers had already found him too good to be true, well aware that nothing is ever as it seems in soapland, it wasn’t until he was revealed to have potentially murdered Lauren Bolton that fans received confirmation he was a new antagonist they shouldn’t under-estimate.

The wayward teen played by Cait Fitton has been the main point of focus in the a hard-hitting storyline about sexual assault and the lack of support they receive from authorities in their time of need.

But as Joel’s secret unfolds and could soon be rumbled by Weatherfield residents, viewers of the Manchester-based programme have one request – that he leaves.

Yet with the show’s history of abruptly ending its most dramatic storylines with the sudden death of its villains (looking at you, Stephen Reid), villains need a real punishment.

Joel recently found out that Betsy Swain was none other than Lisa Swain’s daughter

Lisa Swain showdown

Joel got the shock of his life in recent scenes upon finding out that Betsy (portrayed by Sydney Martin) was the daughter of DS Lisa Swain (Vicky Myers), sent to the cobbles to find out what really happened to Lauren.

Armed with evidence against him, Betsy has been relentlessly blackmailing Joel for money but with the confirmation that Joel knows about her connection to the detective, viewers of the Manchester-based programme have been convinced the teen’s days are numbered.

While Betsy’s fate hangs in the balance, a new theory suggests that Joel may kill her off or kidnap her to keep the lid on his secrets, leaving DS Swain to risk everything, even her career, to find the culprit.

Leaving no stone unturned, Lisa could then be brought straight to Joel, confronting him one last time. And with Calum Lill due to exit the long-running drama, the detective could overstep, murdering Joel herself in a fit of rage or in a slip-up.

In another potential and more optimistic outcome, Joel could finally be brought to justice, with a mystery ally intervening in Swain’s showdown with Joel to steer her on the right path.

Regular viewers will know that the copper is a single mother, allowing us to theorise that the storyline could pave the way to her finding love in Weatherfield.

Fans of Coronation Street can expect dramatic scenes next week as Dee-Dee will be paying Lauren a visit in hospital (Image: ITV)

Lauren fights back

But whatever happens to Joel, one important issue still needs to be addressed – how will Lauren cope as the mother of a new-born and what will her journey entail after enduring Joel’s abuse in silence?

The 18-year-old was first introduced to ITV viewers in 2022 and while she was entailed in Max Turner’s far-right storyline, she has since tried to start afresh on the Street and leave the past behind her.

Unfortunately, the lonely teen was made vulnerable to Joel’s manipulation tactics, particularly as her dire financial situation pushed her to sell content on O-Vidz. It’s time for her to get her power back.

While her journey so far is already a testament to Lauren’s strength as a character, one could speculate she could cement her status on the cobbles by standing up to Joel once and for all and telling DS Swain the truth about her disappearance.

As DS Swain struggles to keep her troublemaking daughter Betsy away from trouble, the storyline could allow Lauren to finally find an ally to take her under her wing, after Roy Cropper’s (David Neilson) attempt to protect her shockingly backfired and resulted in his own arrest. Both Swain and Lauren could then work together to finally expose Joel, bringing him to justice with Betsy’s help.

Lisa Swain has recently asked Lauren to allow her son Frankie to undergo a paternity test, believing the results could point her to sex offender Nathan Curtis. But with Lauren’s reluctance to open up, could she decide to get closer to the teenager? And why not even develop a mother-daughter bond, allowing Lauren to finally find stability?

Dee-Dee is slowly catching on to Joel but could it put her in danger?

Dee-Dee seeks justice

Another character could trigger Joel’s downfall as Dee-Dee Bailey starts to doubt her fiancé. The solicitor has had hearts in her eyes since getting involved with Joel, who proposed to her early on in their relationship.

But as the storyline unfolds, spoilers for next week have confirmed that she will begin to pick up on more signs her other half is lying to her. Convinced her beau is having an affair due to a mysterious piece of jewellery he claimed to have bought for his daughter Maeve, Dee-Dee will soon rumble his link to Lauren.

Paying her a visit in hospital, Dee-Dee will then learn that Lauren plans to leave for Belfast – much like Joel. Later on, a meeting with Emily at the solicitor’s office could leave her relationship in jeopardy.

This is enough to suggest that Dee-Dee may catch on to Joel and put two and two together behind his back before exposing him to the authorities. But there again, some twists could be ahead as doing so would put Dee-Dee at risk of being confronted by Joel.

Viewers of the ITV soap have speculated that Ellie could be planning her own revenge against Joel (Image: ITV)

Return from the woodwork

One loose end will need to be elaborated on before Joel’s exit as the soap will also have to address what happened to Ellie. The teen was revealed to have been abused by Joel herself and an episode aired in early June, 2024, seemed to suggest he had killed her off after deleting her phone number from his list of contacts.

But days later, Ellie was seen once again, demanding money from Joel, which he furiously refused. Since then, Corrie fans have wondered if she could make her return in an attempt to expose Joel for his actions.

A recent theory has suggested that Ellie may also try to blackmail Joel, or even join forces with Betsy. Another theory adds that she may also be the one to turn him into the police, inspiring Lauren to do the same.

However his downfall plays out, it’s time for Coronation Street to give an appropriate ending to another major villain (Image: ITV)

Court trial comeuppance

However he may be exposed, Joel Deering will need to face justice for the harm he has caused as villains are too often killed off, leaving livid viewers to complain they’ve had too gentle a downfall.

Speaking to The Daily Mirror about the storyline earlier this year, former police constable Maggie Oliver underlined the soap’s intention to underline the system’s failures in the support it offers to survivors of sexual abuse.

Coronation Street bosses have collaborated with the Maggie Oliver Foundation for the storyline in a bid to reflect the reality of the situation. But for once, criminals on the soap need to be properly punished for their vile actions and if any character deserves justice – with the exception of the beloved Roy Cropper – it needs to be Lauren.

During her chat with us, Maggie Oliver also insisted that Coronation Street wasn’t try to scare viewers away from the authorities through Lauren Bolton’s storyline but the only way to successfully achieve this is allowing the wayward teen to find someone strong enough within the police force to support her through the ordeal – who better than Lisa Swain?

“I have to be honest, if it was my daughter, unless she was dragged down an alleyway, and it was on CCTV, and she was battered and bruised, I would be very reluctant to encourage her to to go to the police, because I really feel that the system is often as bad as the actual attack”, Maggie Oliver notably said.

“It is a postcode lottery as to the treatment that a victim receives from the citizen and the individual officers that they deal with can have such an enormous impact on that victim but also the leadership, and the way that the police in particular are managed, can be massively traumatising for a victim when they are not with compassion, with support, with fairness. All those things are not routinely offered.”