Days Of Our Lives
DAYS Conner Floyd Opens Up on His Soap Switch from ‘RIP’ Y&R’s Chance Chancellor to ‘Hello’ Chad DiMera (Exclusive)
You know what they say, often soap opera actors are like members of a baseball team; where at times, it feel like they were traded to another one of your favorite daytime dramas as new characters or recasts to fill key a spot. That analogy is kind of what went down for Conner Floyd.
After getting his soap opera start on The Young and the Restless back in 2021 as Phillip ‘Chance’ Chancellor IV, it was a role he played on-screen until late July of this year when Chance was fatally shot by Cane’s assistant, Carter. But here’s the twist! Conner was already hired to be the new Chad DiMera on Days of our Lives replacing Billy Flynn who took on the role of Cane Ashby on The Young and the Restless. In a “only in the soaps” moment, when Floyd taped his final scenes on Y&R, he died in the arms of Flynn, his DAYS predecessor!
Michael Fairman TV caught with Conner on the red carpet at the 52nd annual Daytime Emmy Awards to see how things are going over at his new digs in Salem and Days of our Lives, how he feels now about exiting Y&R as Chance in the manner that he did, and just how long we have to wait with DAYS schedule of taping over nine months ahead of streaming new episodes on Peacock for his debut!

Photo: JPI
“Over at DAYS, it’s going great,” rejoiced Flynn. “I kind of meshed in the program without a beat. Been learning everybody’s names. Haven’t got it wrong yet, but don’t test me on it,” joked Conner on his new castmates. “Everyone’s been very welcoming. It’s been great to fill these shoes. Got big shoes to fill by the way (because of Billy Flynn).”
AND THESE ARE THE DAYS OF OUR LIVES
Conner shared, he didn’t feel that out of place when coming to the set of Days of our Lives, because of Billy Flynn’s mentorship,”I got a month of spark notes from Billy, and where to go, how things work, who to hang out with, you know, stuff like that. So it was really nice and helpful.”
Sharing how his experience coming on to the top-rated soap opera, The Young and the Restless compared to his shift to DAYS, Floyd explained, “Going into Y&R was a lot harder than going into DAYS just because I kind of knew the lay of the land already. But, I also know Greg Rikaart (Leo, DAYS) from way back on Y&R, and so he’s been kind of my chauffeur around days these days.”

Photo: JPI
The big question for any newcomer to Days of our Lives, have you met and talked with soap icon, Susan Seaforth Hayes (Julie Williams)? “I have got to see her a little bit. She’s a legend,” admitted Floyd. “It’s been great to pick her brain and kind of get her sense on everything. I’m making my rounds with the cast and so far it’s been great.”
TAKING A BULLET ON DAYTIME
Floyd was all for the way his exit on The Young and the Restless went down, when Chance was shot and killed by Carter (Vincent Stalba) and landed in the arms of Cane (Billy Flynn). But does anyone dying in soap operas ever mean they are truly ‘dead-dead’? Conner weighed-in. “I loved it. I wanted there to be more blood, more gore, actually, but you know its daytime. But, that was a great week. It was awesome to work with everybody. We had a bunch of cool guys in the scene, which was fun. #RIP Chance, but never say never, man. It’s daytime!”

Courtesy/CBS
And as the story goes, Floyd met Days of our Lives Daytime Emmy-winning casting director, Marnie Saitta on a plane, and she remembered him when the role of Chad became available. “I’m very into serendipitous stuff,” shared Conner. “Just look at the fact that I got to work with Billy before all this played out. I met Marnie Saitta on a plane and that’s how this all kind of came into fruition. It feels like it’s part of the plan, you know what I mean?”
FROM CHANCE TO CHAD
Sinking his teeth into the role of Chad previously played by Casey Deidrick and Billy Flynn and comparing him to Detective Chance Chancellor, Conner reflected, “I love Chad. It’s a really, really fun character. It’s completely different from Chance, which is nice. I’m trying to find my own spin on it, you know, a little different from Billy.”

Photo: JPI
But what about the wait! While Conner is taping at DAYS as Chad, we are still watching Billy Flynn in the role! Floyd confirmed his Salem debut, “April of 2026! Nine months ahead. It’s a trip,” exclaimed Floyd. “I thought Y&R was stressful. Just because I’d go to do a scene, I’d leave and I’d be like, ‘I don’t know what the hell I just did (as we work so fast)’. But then, I’d get to see it on-air in like a month.”
As for the transition from Genoa City to Salem and working within the world of soap opera, Floyd expressed, “It’s like going to college or high school. You spend four years there, you make your friends and then you gotta peace out. But I like change. I like the challenge. So it was nice to step into a new environment, and not get too comfortable.”
Watch our interview with Conner Floyd from the red carpet at the 52nd annual Daytime Emmy Awards below. For more red carpet conversations on the Michael Fairman Channel click here.
Now, let us know, what do you think of waiting until April of 2026 to see Conner as the new Chad on Days of our Lives? Do you miss him as Chance on Y&R? Do you think down the line they could resurrect Chance as well? Share your thoughts via the comment section.
He was criminally underutilised as Chance on The Young and the Restless, so I am hopeful that he might be finally able to spread his wings as Chad on Days of Our Lives. And it helps he does have a resemblance to the exiting Billy Flynn.
Love him and they wasted him on y and r. Love that he’s on Days
I hated that they killed him off on Y&R, loved him. But I have to agreet with Scott, he was so under-used on Y&R so I’m happy for him to have this opportunity which he sounds positive about. Miss seeing him though.
I really liked Conner Floyd as Chance Chancellor and wish him well in his new role. However, I am finished with Y&R. Killing Chance was Y&R’s way of breaking with the show’s roots and its oldest storyline. I don’t find the remaining characters compelling enough to keep watching. The show has lost its soul.
Hate that they sacrificed his character on Y n R for fake Cane, Billy Flynn!
But must say he and Annalyn McCord will be fire together!!! …and if Marci Miller ever grace s our screen again as Abigail , she and Connor Fllyod will quite possibly the most beautiful couple on daytime!!!
Can’t wait to see his Days debut.
Days Of Our Lives
DAYS OF OUR LIVES: Sophia Seemingly Plans to End Her Life, But Not Before Setting Fire to Johnny’s Apartment With Him Trapped Inside
The final few moments of the Thursday, April 30 episode of Days of our Lives, will pave the way, to what just may be the end of Sophia Choi’s (Rachel Boyd) life, but not as you may think!
After an unhinged Sophia paid a visit to Johnny DiMera (Carson Boatman), maced him in the eyes, knocked him out and then tied up to a chair, now conscious, she lets him know that she holds him responsible for all the trouble and trauma she has gone through from adopting her child, and her being sent to a mental institution.
So instead of the unregistered gun Kristen (Stacy Haiduk) gave her to finish off Johnny, Sophia sets up a plan to light candle, use nail polish remover and turn on the gas on the stove to ultimately create a mass explosion, which although Johnny pleaded to her not to that to all the innocent people inside his apartment building, she doesn’t seem to care.

Photo: JPI
FIERY FACE OFF
The plan was supposed to be, after she takes care of Johnny she will toss the gun in the Salem River, then focus on payback to Holly Jonas before leaving town to start a new life.
Now, Sophia makes her exit, leaving Johnny to be a few moments away from an explosion or gas inhalation, when Chanel (Raven Bowens) comes home after awaiting the results of her mammogram. She sees Johnny tied up, as he panics and tells her to put out the flame on the candle, things go awry, and a fire has begun and everything may go up in flames with Johnny and Chanel inside.

Photo: JPI
A BROKEN SOPHIA
Back in her room, Sophia breaks down after reading the social media comments about her, she planted, and then starts writing a suicide or farewell note which says. “I’m tired of begging for forgiveness for my mistakes. All I wanted was to move forward, to be loved and understood. But it’s clear that I was never going to get that. Holly Jonas said that I was dead to her. So, as her former BFF, I’m going to make her dream a reality.”

Photo: JPI
A DEADLY TRAP
Now, the fate of Johnny, Chanel and Sophia will be revealed on tomorrow’s May 1st cliffhanger, which may be the end of Sophia when she crosses paths with Kirsten at the bridge near the river. We do know Rachel Boyd is no longer appearing in the show credits section and is now off contract with the soap.
So, what did you think of the climatic final moments of DAYS? What did you think of the performance of Rachel Boyd as Sophia Choi? Let us know via the comment section.
Breaking News
Jacob Martinez is ‘Days of Our Lives’ New Javi Hernandez Replacing Al Calderon in the Role
Finally! The casting has been revealed as to just who would be Al Calderon’s successor in the role of Days of our Lives, Javi Hernandez. On Friday, April 30, the long-running soap opera revealed Jacob Martinez is taking on the part and he will first be seen this coming June 30th and then on all-new episodes streaming on Peacock.
As previously reported, the popular Calderon exited the soap opera last year to join the cast of the NBC primetime medical drama, Brilliant Minds as nurse Nico Silva, who in May will air the remainder of their second season. The series has been on the bubble for renewal by the network. His last episodes as Javi will also air this May on DAYS.
Since DAYS tapes ten months ahead of streaming, Martinez has been secretly ensconced in all the drama in Salem for quite some time. When viewers see the new Javi in story, we should learn what will happen in Javi’s relationship with Leo Stark played by Emmy winner, Greg Rikaart, plus his continued relationship with his relatives in the Hernandez clan. Currently, when Javi returned to Salem after taking care of his ailing father, and after the bust-up of his marriage to Leo thanks to Dimitri (Peter Porte), he claimed he had moved on with someone else while he was away from Salem.

Photo: JPI
Like Calderon before him, Martinez is a multi-talented actor and singer. Jacob’s resume is impressive having appeared in the musical In Pieces: The Musical at Joe’s Pub at The Public Theater and he was hand-picked by Joey Contreras to play the role of Grey. Other credits include: the short film, Memory Swim and the play Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage.
Martinez hails from Norfolk, Nebraska and appeared when he was very young at the Johnny Carson Theatre, and as DAYS fans know, Jacob is now working at the Days of our Lives studios, right where the “Tonight Show” is filled. In addition, Jacob Martinez is a graduate of The American Musical and Dramatic Academy (AMDA).
Taking to his Instagram on Thursday, April 30 once the news of his casting was revealed, Martinez, expressed, “Way too many people to thank in one post, so I’ll just say THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART to each and every person who continues to pour into me and encourage me to chase my dreams. I cannot even begin to express how grateful I am. I already feel beyond blessed, supported, and loved. See you all in Salem ⏳”
Jacob Martinez appeared on Friday on the Days of our Lives Instagram account announcing his casting. You can check it out below. Deadline was the first to report the casting switch.
So, excited to learn who is the new Javi Hernandez? Please welcome Jacob Martinez to the role and be on the lookout for his debut on June 30. Comment below.
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Days Of Our Lives
‘Days of Our Lives’ Conner Floyd on Chad’s Quest For Abigail’s Resurrection; But Who Should Be Cast as NuAbby?
Former Y&R favorite, Conner Floyd made his debut as the recast Chad DiMera on Days of our Lives last week on the April 21 episode of the Peacock streaming soap opera
Floyd replaced Billy Flynn in the role who is firmly cemented in his old stomping grounds of Genoa City and The Young and the Restless as Chad DiMera. For the last year or two of Chad’s story, he believed his wife, Abigail Devereaux DiMera could be alive, he even thought Cat Greene (AnnaLynne McCord) was Abigail until the story turned.
Now with Floyd taking over the role and Lexie coming back to life after years of being dead, and Chad noting how Dr. Rolf (Richard Wharton) and his brother, EJ (Dan Feuerriegel), could resurrect somehow they all love, he thinks, how about Abigail? The part of Abigail was played by Kate Mansi and then Marci Miller.

Photo: JPI
Speaking with Stephanie Sloane for her new Daytime Dish Newsletter on the matter, Conner shared, “Any kind of idea that she could possibly be coming back, as farfetched as that may seem, he’s stuck on it. The idea gets in his head, and he’s locked in on it.”
CHAD WRESTLES WITH THE FATE OF ABIGAIL
Floyd added that Chad, “He’s asking Theo (Joseph Tyler Andrews) about it. He’s asking EJ about it. It’s one of those things where he loves her so much that the peace in his mind that he’s made with this kind of comes unbroken. So the fact that that she might be able to come back, he’s so bent on it, he thinks it’s going to happen and he kind of spirals away.”
A NEW ABIGAIL ON THE HORIZON?

Photo: ABC
That begs the question, with Days of Our Lives taping ten months in advance, which is already taking them into the beginning of 2027, is it possible that the soap has already recast Abigail and its being kept top secret?
Recently, it was revealed that former General Hospital favorite, Sofia Mattsson (ex-Sasha) has joined Days of our Lives. Back on March 30 it was reported that Mattsson is now taping all-new episodes that will be seen in 2027, but her role was being hush-hush! Could she the new Abby?
If not, the question is, since it seems that Kate Mansi is not coming back as she is firmly entrenched in her role as Kristina Corinthos-Davis on General Hospital and other outside projects, and Marci Miller has also been away from soaps for awhile working on other TV and film roles and indie motion pictures, who should play nuAbby?
Now below, let us know, who do you think would make the perfect leading lady opposite Conner Floyd as a recast Abigail Deveraux DiMera? Be our armchair quarterback casting director and drop your pick in the comment section.
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