Damon Porter - William Bardwell

William Bardwell first appeared in February 2006. He would later be known for his short-lived marriage to Gloria Bardwell. He was portrayed by Ted Shackelford until July 18, 2007, when the character died after complications from a stroke. Weeks later, Shackelford returned to portray William's identical twin brother, Jeffrey Bardwell.

History
In 2006, John Abbott, Sr. finally remembered what happened the night Tom Fisher was shot. He went to D.A. Will Bardwell to tell him the truth in order to free his daughter, Ashley Abbott, who was taking the blame for his crime. John told Will that he was the one who shot and killed Tom Fisher. Will thought that John was lying, but a lie detector test proved him wrong. John was then sentenced to seven years in prison. Will then moved on to investigate the tainted Glo-Again face cream, which resulted in a consumer death. Since no new evidence and leads were found, the case became cold.

In 2006, Jill Abbott decided to join an online dating agency, and she was shocked to discover that Will was her anonymous date. Will's wife, Miranda, a well-known fashion editor, had died several years earlier. Jill was his first physical relationship after his wife's death. Will was involved in a love triangle between Jill and Gloria Bardwell, whom he met at a grieving spouse support group. Gloria's husband was John Abbott, who had recently died of a stroke. Gloria's interest in Will was certainly strengthened by her knowledge that he was the sole heir to a multibillion-dollar oil fortune.

In 2007, William and Gloria were married. Soon after, new evidence arose in the Glo-Again scandal, and most of Jabot Cosmetics employees were subject to DNA testing. Will suspected that Gloria was the culprit. She was very hesitant to give a DNA sample for the case. After much persuasion, Gloria finally gave her DNA sample. She got her son, Kevin Fisher), to get a fake sample. Upon handing her sample over, she performed a sleight of hand trick, switching her sample with the fake. Of course, her test came back negative. However, when dining out, William watched Gloria's friend, Evan Owen, do the same trick. He discovered his wife's secret, and he set out to prove the truth. Upon meeting Gloria at the Athletic Club, William staged a hug in which his watch got caught in her hair. Pulling the hairs he needed for her DNA sample, he ran the test anonymously; it was positive.

Will confronted Gloria with the test results, and she admitted her secret to him. During their argument, Will suffered a stroke. While he was in hospital, Gloria's other son, Michael Baldwin, and Kevin were able to get Gloria's test results. An unknown copy, however, remained at the lab, where Detective Maggie Sullivan found it. She then took over William's cases, and she was determined to find out who was the positive match. William died of complications from the stroke. Shortly after, Gloria found a letter saying that Will's uncle's company had recently left $50 million to him, which was then given to Gloria. She decided to use some of the money to throw him a wonderful celebration of his life. At his wake, his identical twin brother, Jeffrey Bardwell, arrived to express his condolences to Gloria. He regretted not spending more time with his brother.