Days Of Our Lives
Franco LoPresti and Sydney Malakeh Makes Their ‘Days of our Lives’ Debuts: What Were Your First Impressions?

Days of our Lives fans were introduced on the Monday, September 14 episode to Dante Vitali in the form of actor Franco LoPresti, and reintroduced to Sydney DiMera as now played by Sydney Malakeh.
The DAYS writers connected the story by having them as major participants in a high stakes poker game in Monte Carlo where Philip (John-Paul Lavoisier) with Gabi (Cherie Jimenez) by his side, are trying to win enough money to save Titan Industries and the Kiriakis legacy.
When we first meet Sydney she is in front of a mirror putting on her lipstick as she puts the finishing touches on her look for the evening, when she receives a call from her grandmother, Marlena Evans (Deidre Hall).

Photo: CordayProductions
POKER FACE
Later, Sydney shows up at the poker game with Dante Vitali, who introduces himself as Sami Brady’s fiancé. Philip explains that he has his own connections to Sami and would prefer his presence in the game be kept under wraps. Dante tells Philip he does not keep secrets from Sami.
Gabi asked Dante about his connection to Ava Vitali, to which Dante shared that although they shared the same last name, they were not close. Gabi says that’s good because Ava is “bonkers.” Dante did not appreciate Gabi disparaging Ava in that manner.
Philip is shocked that Sydney is such a poker player. Then we get the backstory on how she learned a lot from her grandfather, Roman Brady, and when she went to school, she played poker to beat the mean girls and realized she was quite good at it.
In the end, after throwing one guy out named “Otto”, who was “cheating” in the game, Dante offered two additional hands to Philip with a new deck. Dante asks,“Winner take all?” Philip says, “Works for me.” Eventually, Philip won the hand, but alone with Gabi told her he did not win enough to save Titan.

Courtesy/Peacock
DID MARLENA GIVE BIRTH TO STEFANO’S SON?
As all this is going down, in Salem, Marlena is wistful worried that there is something she has blocked out in her memories from her time being kidnapped by Stefano. She tells this to a concerned Julie (Susan Seaforth Hayes).
Meanwhile, Belle (Martha Madison), Chad (Conner Floyd) and EJ (Dan Feuerriegel) have all made it to Italy, and find hidden in a replicate chess set, just like Stefano willed to John and Marlena, a photo of Stefano with a young boy dated 1992 with whom they believe is “Dominic Marino.”
At the end of the episode, Dante shows up to a room with the mystery person wearing Stefano’s ring. He assures the person that no matter how many chips Philip won, he would not be able to save Titan and the Kiriakis mansion. Then, Dante utters, “Well, played, Dom.”
So, what’s going on here? Is Dante a bad guy? Is Sydney a schemer? Did Marlena have Stefano’s son, named Dominic Marino, but blocked the whole thing out for decades? And, what were your first impressions of the highly-anticipated debuts of Franco LoPresti and Sydney Malakeh? Weigh-in via the comment section. But first, in case you missed, check out this week’s promo for Days of our Lives below.
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Sydney Malakeh is miscast, and I still maintain she would work better as Ariana over Sydney. And I liked Franco LoPresti in Heated Rivalry; however, thus far, I am not sold on him in this role.
There’s just no way that this girl looks like the genetic offspring of Sami Brady & EJ DiMera. Now this leads me to believe the writers are pulling a retcon for no apparent reason. This version of Sydney DOES look like a Hernandez. So now are they going to say that Rafe is her actual father?
Now Fuzzy Devil Memory doesn’t recall all the details here, but the whole storyline back in the day involved EJ being with Nicole and she had a miscarriage. Sami was with Rafe at the time, but I don’t remember if she was with him before she was pregnant, so it would be a question of how to make that timing work. So Nicole found a way to swap Sydney out to replace her dead kid, and Sami got stuck with baby Grace, who didn’t live all that long unfortunately. And who ironically turned out to be teenage Chad’s kid, so the baby actually WAS a DiMera.
But after all this time, nobody ever noticed that Sydney looks nothing like either of her supposed parents, and nothing like her siblings Johnny & Allie??
Rafe is a middle aged FBI agent who doesn’t seem to have the best luck with the women, so the odds of him ever having children in the future are not great. So in that sense, it makes sense that they try to retcon him an adult child from the longest term relationship of his past, which was his marriage to Sami. I’m just not sure the calendars line up to support the idea.
She would have been great as Ariana. My one big problem with current Ariana is she has an accent and Ariana was raised in America not in Mexico, like the actress.
I can only assume there is a retcon coming of Sydney’s parentage because there is no way she’s the kid of Sami and EJ.
Dante and Sidney look like a couple
I don’t like this Sydney.
Watching Friday’s episode and Sydney is vaping. I don’t like this at all. Why are they having Sydney vape?
Based on how she was acting, and how she kept asking Rita if she wanted a hit, I’m guessing this vape was cannabis oriented, rather than nicotine.
This happens just a day or two after Chanel was eating “medicinal” brownies to deal with the side effects of chemotherapy, and then walking around Salem by herself, while blisfully stoned.
So I’m guessing since Chanel is Johnny’s wife and Sydney is Johnny’s sister, there’s going to be a scene where Sydney stumbles across Chanel’s medical weed stash and helps herself to the contents.
Breaking News
53rd Annual Daytime Emmy Awards Presenters Announced

The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) revealed on Thursday, the lineup of presenters for 53rd Annual Daytime Emmy Awards taking place on Friday, October 30, 2026, at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles, California.
The ceremony will stream live on the NATAS YouTube channel at YouTube.com/@theemmys and watch.TheEmmys.tv.
Scheduled to present from the current soaps are: Katelyn MacMullen (Willow, General Hospital), Delon de Metz (Zende, The Bold and the Beautiful), James Preston (Nick, The Bay), Paul Telfer (Xander, Days of our Lives), Tamara Tunie (Anita, Beyond the Gates) and Susan Walters (Diane, The Young and the Restless).

Photo: NATAS
In addition soap alums, Crystal Chappell, Lesli Kay, Joe Lando, Eva LaRue, who is also a nominee this year, A Martinez, Juliet Mills, and Alicia Leigh Willis, will also be on hand to present.
The ceremony which celebrates nominated lifestyle programs and dramas will also include presenters: Eva zu Beck (Superskilled with Eva zu Beck), Danielle Chang (Lucky Chow), Sunny Hostin (The View), Derek Hough (Extra), Pati Jinich (Pati’s Mexican Table), Star Jones (Divorce Court), Michael Jr. (Stand Up and Do Something), Judge Greg Mathis (Mathis Court with Judge Mathis), Keke Palmer (Glam Through the Ages), Nischelle Turner (Entertainment Tonight), and Andrew Zimmern (Andrew Zimmern’s Wild Game Kitchen).
The 2026 Daytime Emmy Awards will bring together an exciting mix of presenters representing the full spectrum of daytime television,” said Adam Sharp, President & CEO of NATAS. “From familiar faces in daytime drama to the personalities and creative voices behind talk shows and lifestyle programming, this year’s lineup reflects the breadth of talent that makes daytime so special. We look forward to celebrating the people who continue to shape the genre.”
Matthew Hoffman (Love Island USA, Cheap A$$ Beach Houses) will serve as the ceremony’s Voice of God, bringing his signature comedic narration to the evening’s celebrations. As previously announced, Lifetime Achievement honoree Genie Francis (Laura, General Hospital) will be presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award by her husband, Jonathan Frakes.
So, what do you think about the list of presenters for the 2026 Daytime Emmy Awards? Let us know who you are looking forward to seeing via the comment section below.
Days Of Our Lives
‘Days of our Lives’ Reveals Kyle Pryor Cast as Dominic Marino

For months now, Days of our Lives has teased the character of Dominic Marino. In recent weeks, viewers learned that Marino is on the down low working with Sami Brady’s (Alison Sweeney) apparent fiancé ‘Dante Vitali (Franco LoPresti), and that he is the never-before-heard-of child of Stefano DiMera (the late Joseph Mascolo) and Marlena Evans (Deidre Hall)!
Up until now, the Peacock streaming soap opera has never revealed his face, but that all seemed to change on the Tuesday, October 2o episode of DAYS. In story, Dante met Sami’s parents for the first time, Roman (Josh Taylor) and Marlena.
He shows them a photo of Dominic, which he happened to have on his own phone and even commented he kind of looked like he could be Marlena’s son. The photo, which has quickly made it around Soap Twitter/X, revealed that British-born actor Kyle Pryor is the man in the photo and eagle-eyed viewers actually located said photo on Pryor’s Instagram.

Photo: Peacock
Deadline revealed Pryor started taping at the end of 2025 and will first be seen in the role, on air Monday, November 2. In addition, Days will celebrate its 61st Anniversary with two special episodes featuring Dominic’s arrival, as well the returns of Tony and Anna DiMera, played respectively by Thaao Penghlis and Leann Hunley, on Friday, November 6 and Monday, November 9.
Those in the know, are are that Pryor previously held series regular roles on Australia’s Home and Away, and the UK’s Hollyoaks and guest starred on Emmerdale. In an ironic twist, Pryor appeared in the series Spartacus: Blood and Sand which is the same action series his apparent TV brother, Dan Feuerriegel (EJ DiMera), once appeared in before coming to DAYS.
So excited to see Kyle Pryor take on the role of Dominic Marino as Days of our Lives sets its anniversary story to kick-off with is arrival in Salem? Share your thoughts in the comment section. And in case you missed our latest conversation with Conner Floyd (Chad DiMera) he weighs-in on how Dominic’s appearance will shake things up in Salem. You can check that out below.
Days Of Our Lives
Days of our Lives’ Conner Floyd Talks Dominic Marino Mystery, Chad and Belle, and Susan Seaforth Hayes (Exclusive)

Fasten your seat belts Days of our Lives fans, as the mystery of Dominic Marino continues to unravel on all-new episodes of the Peacock streaming soap opera. Last week, Chad DiMera (Conner Floyd) learned that he may have a half-brother, who may be the biological child of his father, the late Stefano DiMera (the late Joseph Mascolo) and Dr. Marlena Evans (Deidre Hall), giving him great pause, because he knows Stefano had kidnapped Marlena for four years back in the late 80s and early 90s.
Chad has already been hunting down clues with his current girlfriend Belle Black (Martha Madison) in Italy and Salem, which revealed a photo of a young boy with Stefano with the date 1992 on the back of it, hidden inside Stefano’s chess set. So, what’s next?
Conner Floyd chatted on the Michael Fairman Channel in a new virtual interview released on Sunday, October 18, where he spoke on what the new addition to the DiMera family could do to the already dangerous sibling rivalries, the state of Chad’s relationship with Belle and much more.

Photo: JPI
DIMERA RIVALRY
After finding out from EJ (Dan Feuerriegel) that Dominic Marino could be the never-before-heard-of child of Stefano and Marlena, Conner Floyd explained, “I think it blows Chad’s mind a little bit. I think there’s a lot of things working there with old Chad. Obviously, bringing in another DiMera could cause some noise and the whole situation with Marlena’s a little awkward as well because he’s dating Belle, so this could cause a little tiff there. I think his head’s spinning and he does not know what to expect, but I also think he kind of expects that from Stefano, for sure.”
As to how this will change and color Chad’s relationship with EJ, Floyd responded, “Chad knows EJ’s not happy about it and I think he’s going to be real upset if this gets in his way of doing what he wants to do with the DiMera legacy and all that. However, for Chad, I think he’s just going to keep a sharp eye, see what this guy’s about, see if he’s here to cause some trouble or here to be a friend and kinda play it by ear.”

Photo: JPI
BELLE OF MY HEART
With Chad and Belle already being sleuths, Floyd says, you can look for the duo to continue getting to the truth. “I think Chad and Belle are committed to this. They’re going full National Treasure, Nicolas Cage,” says Conner. “They’re going to follow the clues. They’re going to get some answers.”
Since beginning in the role of Chad in June of 2025 and debuting on-screen back in April of 2026, the former Y&R star (where he played Chance Chancellor), says it was Madison who helped him get comfortable in his new surroundings.
“Martha is phenomenal. I couldn’t have asked for a better person to get tagged up with when I started here, just because she knows everybody,” shares Floyd. “She knows where to go, who to talk to. She’ll get the tea if you want, and so it was kind of cool. Martha took me under her wing, showed me the ropes. She’s a sweetheart. I love working with her too. She’s a great actress.”
But, is Chad in love with Belle after such a tortured past with his beloved Abigail Deveraux DiMera? Floyd thinks so! “I think he’s into it. They’re such good friends and they have such a rich history. I think he’s in for the ride. You know, it’s one of those things you probably overlook at first and then they reconnected, and it feels easy and they’re going on these fun adventures.”
MAKING CHAD HIS OWN
Conner had the arduous task of being the successor to Billy Flynn in the role of Chad.. Flynn had played the part for 12 years before deciding to exit and head to Y&R. So, how did Conner approach learning the ins and out of Chad? Floyd shared, “I really dove into Chad when I first got this job. I liked that he kind of walks this tightrope of DiMera and not DiMera, you know. He want to so honor his family roots and really do something for the DiMera family, but he doesn’t want to fall into that trap that all the other DiMera have found themselves in. Chad is a DiMera at heart. He’s got those demons, but he’s just trying to keep them contained.”

Photo: JPI
ICONIC
When Floyd got to DAYS, it was none other than Susan Seaforth Hayes (Julie Williams) who most surprised him in the most delightful way, given that he knew Hayes was a Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award winner and the current longest-running cast member on the canvas.
“I love working with Susan Hayes! I love her. She’s a sweetheart. Susan is one of the nicest people there. I just thought she was cool and it’s Susan Hayes, you know? We’ve had a lot of scenes together, which is nice,” explained Conner.
“We’ll go to her dressing room, we’ll run our scenes, and then we’ll spend about an hour just talking about life and she’ll tell me about a book she’s reading. She’s such a history buff, which blows my mind. She’ll start dropping all these historical facts on me. I learn something new by the time I walk out of her dressing room every time!”
Now below, check out the full conversation with Conner Floyd via the Michael Fairman Channel.
Weigh-in: Do you like Chad and Belle as couple? Do you think Chad will get to the bottom of the Dominic Marino mystery? If so, do you think Dominic is truly Stefano and Marlena’s son … and what about Rita (Maggie Carney) in all this? Let us know your theories in the comment section.
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