Coronation Street villain says ‘we’re so back’ as return ‘sealed’ after ‘crushing’ exit

A Coronation Street bad boy has seemingly confirmed his return to the soap and fans are over the moon.

Coronation Street fans are convinced that a star has returned to the cobbles after they shared a cryptic photo online.

Actor Jack James Ryan joined the ITV soap in 2021 playing the role of Jacob Hay, a drug-dealing bad boy. And it’s fair to say the character ruffled plenty of feathers when he arrived and was initially despised by viewers.

Jacob ended up grooming Simon Barlow (Alex Bain) and he also made a grieving Leanne Battersby’s (Jane Danson) life hell, following the death of her son, Oliver.

However, he became a reformed character in later episodes when he returned to the street in a bid to turn his life around. Jacob struck up a romance with Amy Barlow (Elle Mulvaney) and moved in with Ken Barlow (William Roache) and co at Number 1.

Sadly, Jacob was not able to escape his criminal past as his drug boss dad Damon Hay (Ciaran Griffiths) showed up and got Jacob involved in a drug smuggling scheme.

In 2023 though, fans saw Jacob leave the street after getting in trouble with Damon and being warned to leave or risk Amy being hurt – and the character hasn’t been seen since. But now, three years on and Jacob actor Jack has dropped a huge clue he has returned to Coronation Street.

On Wednesday (January 15) he shared a photo on his Instagram Story from what appeared to be a Corrie dressing room. Alongside Jack in the picture, he posed with co-stars Elle and Summer Spellman actress Harriet Bibby.

He captioned the post: “We’re so back.” And it didn’t take long for fans to go wild over Jack’s ‘return’ to the soap. On X, one person said: “Shut up, is Jacob coming back?!” Another added: “OMG PLEASE.” A third penned: “Oh I hope so.” Reach has contacted Coronation Street for comment.

Jack previously spoke about his decision to leave the soap in 2023. Talking about Jacob leaving with Amy and his friends thinking the worst of him, Jack told the Manchester Evening News and other press: “It’s crushing.

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“It’s because it’s so unjust and there’s nothing you can really do about it. They think he’s been lying the whole time and he was just this drug dealer all along. Jack added: “It’s heartbreaking. And it’s not just for Jacob, it’s heartbreaking for me as well. Hashtag Justice for Jacob.”

Addressing why he chose to leave, Jack said: “It was a difficult decision because I love the character so much. I was coming up to that two-year mark on the show and the conversations upstairs were very much about, what I call, the fixtures and fittings.”

Since his soap exit, Jack has gone on to star in ITV thriller, Passenger, and also the real-life ITV drama I Fought the Law, alongside Sheridan Smith.

Coronation Street airs Monday to Friday at 8:30pm on ITV1 and ITVX