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‘Days of Our Lives’ Dan Feuerriegel Teases the Mystery of Marlena’s Chess Set, and Opens Up About the Departures of His Co-Stars (Exclusive)

By Michael Fairman

Published

2 months ago

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Photo: emilysandiferphoto

EJ DiMera (Dan Feuerriegel) is always in the thick of things on Peacock’s Days of Our Lives. Currently on all-new episodes his pet project to bring his sister, Lexie Carver (Nikki Crawford) back to life, seems in part, successful.

Meanwhile, his machinations with the women in his life continue as viewers wait to see just what he may remember about Cat Greene (AnnaLynne McCord) and his past, and what trouble he and Gwen Rizczech (Emily O’Brien) will stir up, and that’s only part of EJ’s story.

Recently, viewers learned at the reading of Stefano’s will, that the Phoenix’s Queen of the Night, Marlena Evans (Deidre Hall) was bequeathed a chess set. In fact, Stefano left it not only for Marlena, but her late husband and Stefano’s ultimate adversary, John Black. Clearly, there is more to the story, after Marlena declined the gift and walked out without saying a word, opening up another mystery.

Photo: JPI

In a brand new conversation with Days of Our Lives leading man and villain, Dan Feuerriegel now featured on You Tube’s Michael Fairman Channel, he previews just how EJ may be deployed into the mystery of Marlena’s chest set from his father, the iconic Stefano DiMera.

CHECKMATE

First, Feuerriegel weighed-in on what EJ truly thinks of Marlena. “Respects, but cautious. Marlena’s the Queen Bee,” explained Dan. “So, there are some people on DAYS that EJ will not mess with, shall we say, and Marlena is one of those characters.”

As to what is up with the chess set that Marlena was given and turned down at the will reading, Dan shared, “There’s some fun that that occurs with that chess board and shall we say, like a little adventure. Obviously, EJ is suspected of having something to do with this, but also, in regards to the will reading, he was shut out. So, he’s curious. EJ’s kept a little bit to the side about what it is, because it’s his father. However, it’s going to lead to some pretty fun stuff.”

EJ has always wanted his father’s respect, so might that be what drives him to make sure Stefano’s wish with Marlena is carried out? Dan weighed-in. “I think in the end, EJ will do what his father wanted. So, whatever that entails that’s what he’ll do. With this and the chess set, he’s a little bit out of the loop, which is infuriating for him, but it also gives him a lot of curiosity. He definitely wants to keep himself involved. But as I mentioned, he’s kept to the side a bit, but he’ll get his mitts in there somewhere.”

THE HARD GOODBYES

In soap operas, cast members come and go, and sometimes, often like a baseball team analogy, they are traded from one show to another, or their story has run out for now. But in soaps, never say never.

For Dan, he had to say goodbye to some very key members of his on-screen family when they departed Days of Our Lives for various reasons: his on-screen brother, Billy Flynn (ex-Chad, now Cane, Y&R), on-screen son, Carson Boatman (Johnny) and on-screen sister, Stacy Haiduk (Kristen/Susan, now Patty, Y&R). As DAYS fans know, the series tapes ten-months in advance of dropping new episodes, so fans can expect to see both Boatman and Haiduk firmly in their Salem roles for months yet to come.

Photo: JPI

BILLY FLYNN

“It was a bit of a bummer because I had developed a close bond with him and he was a lovely guy,” Dan shared fondly. “We shared a lot of the same kind of humor and views on the world and things like that. We were able to chat and it was shame. But look, Billy’s got a big family now, and he needs to do what’s best for him and his wife and his family. And so, you completely understand it. Then, Connor Floyd came in and Connor is just as lovely. It kind of sucks because the guy that is more handsome than me leaves, and then is replaced with a guy just as handsome. I’m like, ‘okay, alright.”

Photo: JPI

CARSON BOATMAN

It’s no secret that some of the best scenes were always between EJ and his son, Johnny. So, when Carson Boatman was let go from the show late last year, it was hard for all involved. “It’s a similar situation to Billy to be honest. It’s like the people that I loved the most moved on from the show and it’s sad,” shared Dan. “It’s because Carson and I were friends outside of the show. We would hang out and just like me and Billy we’d talk to with each other and everything like that and that just translated into (our on-screen) father/son dynamic.”

Photo: JPI

STACY HAIDUK

Since Dan became the new EJ DiMera back in 2021, he had the opportunity to work with Stacy Haiduk not only as EJ’s sister, Kristen, but as the wacky Susan Banks, EJ’s mother! Here he sums up his experience working with Haiduk and the respect he has for her as a performer.

“I adore Stacy so much. Whenever she plays (Susan Banks) my mother, it’s so much fun,” said Feuerriegel. “They give her so much dialogue and the way she talks is so different. Stacy will improvise a little bit here and there. But the amount of times I’ve had to bite my lip from not laughing because she just makes such great, fantastic, outrageous choices … and she’s also an absolute sweetheart. Then, to go from that, to the dynamic of Kristen where it’s very brooding and a very similar brother/sister dynamic, it’s fantastic. To be able to work with with her was really, really lovely. She’s an amazing woman and a fantastic actor. I know she’s at Y&R now which is great. But, that’s another a bummer for me. There’s been a few little heartbreaks for me, personally.”

Now below, check out our full conversation with DAYS Dan Feuerriegel now on the Michael Fairman Channel, where we touch on many subjects on the life and times of EJ DiMera.

Then weigh-in: what do you think is the story behind Marlena (and her late husband John) being gifted the chess set by Stefano? What are your hopes for EJ DiMera in the months to come? What did you think about the sentiments shared by Dan on the departure of several of his beloved co-stars? Drop your thoughts in the comment section.

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Love this show and EJ!!!

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Dan looks totally hot in that photo and the mustache is so sexy, yet so not EJ. Well, Stacy as Kristen/Susan/etc is a bummer, I thought she was going to Y&R for a short story arc. It appears she’s exited stage right, among the others mentioned in the article. I loved when Stacy assumed the role of Kristen, but… if indeed Stacy is at Y&R permanently, I would like to see a new actress to play Kristen #3, it’s time to retire Susan and the other siblings. As fun as they all were with Eileen Davidson, and then with Stacy… those characters and yes dear Susan need to be exiled – it just gets old, it was fun times watching Eileen’s Susan especially and the others, however, if Stacy isn’t coming back to DAYS, I think the focus should be solely on the Kristen character. Who would I love to see take-over the role? DAYS call….Robin Christopher!

Reply

Stacy is not back permanently; she’s a recurring player on both soaps, so she could also work on Days of Our Lives, but they rested the character, and it is not the first time they have done this. I am sure, at some point, Kristen will be written back in.

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DAYS call….Robin Christopher!

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She is retired and no longer acting.

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rumor has it that Robin is no longer retired from acting. You think you’re always right and in the know, hey.

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DAYS Call Robin Christopher as nu-Kristen!!!

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That man Just oozes masculinity and sexiness

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Days Of Our Lives

‘Days of Our Lives’ Alum Al Calderon Talks On His Daytime Emmy-Nominated Scenes as Javi Hernandez (Exclusive)

Published

1 day ago

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July 23, 2026

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Last Tuesday, Al Calderon scored the first Emmy nomination of his career for his role as Javi Hernandez on Days of Our Lives.

Calderon name was announced as one of the performers competing for gold in the Emerging Talent in a Daytime Drama Series category at the upcoming 53rd annual Daytime Emmy Awards on October 30.

This week, Calderon chatted live on You Tube’s Michael Fairman Channel for a one-on-one conversation where he discussed: his nominated scenes and time on the Peacock streaming soap opera, his decision to leave DAYS, his role of Nico Silva on Brilliant Minds and its sad cancellation, plus his passing the torch of Javi to Jacob Martinez, who took over the role on-screen on the June 30, 2026 episode of Days of Our Lives.

Photo: JPI

JAVI REVEALS TO LEO THAT HE HAD A DAUGHTER WHO DIED

Al revealed the scenes that comprise his now Emmy-nominated reel have at its epicenter the heartbreaking moments from the September 12, 2025 episode. In it, Javi shares for the first time to Leo (Greg Rikaart) that he had a daughter named Solana, with a woman he was seeing named Sylvia. One fateful day, Sylvia left their child in a car when she went to work and the little girl died. Javi had blamed himself for not being the parent to take his daughter to school that day since he was hungover the night before, therefore it opened up the opportunity for something to happen to the his child, and it did.

The multi-talented actor/singer explained his reel: “It was the scene where he is talking about his daughter to Leo. I also included the scene where Javi goes to talk to Melinda (Tina Huang) and to see if it would be a viable option to adopt, because I wanted to introduce the subtlety and nuance of why Javi kind of has this whole connection to Tesoro, in a way.”

It is true that Al can bring the tears and make us cry right along with him during his run as Javi.  To that, Calderon added, “I’ve read the comments that I’m a little bit of a crybaby, so I didn’t want the entire reel to be of me crying, but I wanted it to show a little bit of an emotional range of the restraint that Javi was feeling so I included that scene

In addition Calderon shared, “I also included a really beautiful scene with Cherie Jimenez (Gabi Hernandez, DAYS) where I’m looking at photos of Tesoro, and of course, Javi is crying. I just wanted to show the relationship between Javi and his family as well, and as I mentioned the reveal of the child that he lost.”

Alice Halsey

Photo: JPI

ALUMS AL CALDERON AND ALICE HALSEY REPRESENT DAYS OF OUR LIVES IN EMERGING TALENT CATEGORY

In a twist of fate, Calderon is also nominated in the Emerging Talent category with Alice Halsey who played Rachel Black. Halsey is currently starring in the reboot of Little House on the Prairie in the lead role of Laura Ingalls on Netflix.

As to his hope on Emmy night, Al expressed, “Of course, I want to win, but Alice Halsey is going to give me a run for the money. And if’s not me (who wins the award), it better be her!”

You can check out the full interview with Al below.

Now let us know, do you remember Al’s emotional scenes when he explained to Leo he had a daughter who died, which made it all the more heartbreaking to not end up with permanent custody of Tesoro? What do you think of Al’s chances to win the gold based on his Emmy scene selection? Do you miss him as Javi? Weigh-in via the comment section.

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Days Of Our Lives

Emily O’Brien Talks On Her Y&R Past as Jana Hawkes and Working with Peter Porte on ‘Days of Our Lives’

Published

3 days ago

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July 21, 2026

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Emily O'Brien

On the latest edition of Soapy Hosted by Rebecca Budig and Greg Rikaart which dropped on Tuesday, July 21, Emily O’Brien is the featured guest. As soap fans know, Emily has worked with Rikaart both in her first soap role on The Young and the Restless as Jana Hawkes and now on Days of Our Lives in her current role of Gwen Rizczech.

While Emily continues on DAYS, she has very impressive list of credits in the other part of her career as a voice-over actress and one in motion-capture in some of the most popular video games in the world.

O’Brien was first seen on The Young and the Restless back in 2006. She recalled her landing the role which eventually paired her for her five year run with Greg Rikaart.

Photo: JPI

BEING CAST ON THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS

“The role was just a few days and she wasn’t even supposed to be English,” Emily recalled. “The role was originally called Jade. Karen Rae, the casting director of The Young and the Restless at the time said to me “Oh, you’re from England. Try it with the dialect.” I put it on and she said, ‘I’m going to bring you back at like 3 for s callback.’ So then they changed the role to Jana and they said she’s going to be a Brit. I was only supposed to be on for like five episodes and it turned into 5 years.”

In explaining why she loved crazy Jana, Emily shared, “Jana was sort of like the misanthrope. She was just was the odd one out and I loved it. I felt so comfortable playing that because she was just eclectic and weird and she loved playing with Ouija boards and she rode a motorbike. There was just so much color to bring to her. It was just such a great match to play with Greg (Kevin), and Christian LeBlanc (Michael) and Tracey Bregman (Lauren).

Photo: JPI

GWEN, DIMITRI AND LEO ON DAYS OF OUR LIVES

On Days of Our Lives, the Leo, Gwen, Dimitri dynamic is quite unique and been through many schemes and entanglements. Often Emily finds herself in repartee with her ex-lover, Dimitri, who turned out to be gay and then had a thing for her bestie, Leo (Greg Rikaart)!

During the conversation, Greg and Emily sang, Peter Porte’s praised with O’Brien expressing, “Peter is just ready to play. He comes on set prepared. I’ve never seen him with his script. From blocking and rehearsals, he doesn’t have it. He’s prepared. He’s a physical actor and he always trying to come up with something. I think he let me slap him. He let me kiss him. He let me throw a cheeseburger in his lap. He’s ready for anything for anything.”

You can catch the full episode of ‘Soapy; featuring Emily O’Brien below where the actress also talks about replacing Jen Lilley as Theresa Donovan after being let go as Gwen; and being paired again with Greg Rikaart on the Peacock streaming soap opera this time as best friends and more.

So, were you a big Jana Hawkes and Kevin Fisher fan on Y&R? Did you like them as a couple? Do you like the dynamic between Emily and Peter Porte and Greg Rikaart on DAYS? Weigh-in via the comment section below.

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Days Of Our Lives

‘Days of Our Lives’ Alum and Daytime Emmy Nominee, Al Calderon, Chats Live on the Michael Fairman Channel

Published

4 days ago

on

July 20, 2026

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Al Calderon

Al Calderon, the OG Javi Hernandez, scored his first ever Daytime Emmy nomination last Tuesday when the nominations were unveiled in full by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) for the upcoming 53rd annual Daytime Emmy Awards.

Now, Calderon will be vying for the gold in the Outstanding Emerging Talent in a Daytime Drama Series category. Nominated alongside Al were: Braedyn Bruner (as Emma Scorpio-Drake), General Hospital, Alice Halsey (as Rachel Black), Days of Our Lives, Giovanni Mazza (as Gio Palmieri), General Hospital, Ambyr Michelle (as Eva Thomas), Beyond the Gates and Arielle Prepetit (as Naomi Hamilton Hawthorne), Beyond the Gates.

Tomorrow on Tuesday, July 21, Al will chat live on You Tube’s Michael Fairman Channel in a special conversation, not only to get his reactions and thoughts to becoming an official Emmy nominee, but also to talk about his run as DAYS Javi, which came to an end last month on-screen (Days of our Lives tapes ten months ahead of dropping new episodes, and Calderon had exited the series in 2025).

Photo: JPI

AL CALDERON WRITES HEARTFELT POST TO HIS LATE MOTHER

Previously Al shared the news of his nominations on his Instagram with a special acknowledgement to his late mother. Calderon expressed, “Hi mom, it’s me. I got nominated for an Emmy today. I hope you can be my date while you’re watching over me.
I’m honored to be recognized and even considered to be able to put my name in the ring. Thank you to my family Days of Our Lives family. for the opportunity. Latino gang baby.”

Currently on DAYS, Jacob Martinez has taken over the role of Javi starting with the June 30th episode. When Calderon exited his time on the Peacock streaming soap, he stayed within the NBCUniversal family nabbing the role of nurse Nico Silva on the second season of the medical drama, Brilliant Minds starring Zachary Quinto.

Al Calderon

Photo: NBC

FROM DAYS OF OUR LIVES TO BRILLIANT MINDS TO AN EMMY NOMINATION

Before the back-half of the last six episodes of the season of Brilliant Minds began to air at the end of May, NBC decided to cancel the show and the possibility of a renewal for a third season came to an end.

Currently, Calderon is continuing to also pursue a career as a musical artist through his singing and songwriter; having released in 2026, the single and music video to his track, SMOKE and more.

If you have a question or comment for Al, but cannot be with us during the live broadcast, you can drop it in the comment section below and we may just ask it while on-air.

The live chat begins tomorrow at 8 pm ET/5pm PT, and if you haven’t “subscribed” to the Michael Fairman Channel for upcoming celebrity features, livestreams and special event coverage, we urge you to do so, that way you can be notified ahead of our guest appearances.

So, were you thrilled for Al that he received a Daytime Emmy nomination for his work as Javi on DAYS? Have you enjoyed his performances on the soap opera and on primetime in Brilliant Minds? Let us know via the comment section below.

 

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