Days Of Our Lives
DAYS Greg Rikaart Recalls How a Network Executive Once Told Him She Would Never Knowingly Cast a Gay Actor as a Romantic Lead
Daytime Emmy winner, Greg Rikaart can currently be seen as openly gay character Leo Stark on Days of our Lives. In real-life, Rikaart is a longtime advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, and for the first time back in June of 2013, he publicly acknowledged his long-term relationship with now husband, TV writer and producer, Robert Sudduth. The moment also coincided which with his 10-year anniversary on The Young and the Restless (as Kevin Fisher) and the US Supreme Court’s landmark ruling supporting same-sex relationships.
Now in the new audio series, Making: Stories Without End hosted by WEBZ Chicago’s Natalie Moore, he speaks on the current landscape and evolution of being a gay actor and gay characters in the episode entitled, “Soaps take the lead on nuanced storylines about Queer Life.”
Rikaart shared how from when he started in Hollywood until now; things have changed somewhat for the better, but it was not always that way, recalling, “We were still in this place where being an out gay actor …. I don’t wanna say it was career suicide, but it was definitely seen as being very limiting. One day, I’ll say the name, but I had an acquaintance who was a very big network executive who once told me at a party, I think after she had had a few too many drinks, that she could never knowingly cast a gay actor as a romantic lead. And at the time, 90 some odd percent of roles that I was auditioning for were for straight, young, romantic leads.”
Photo: JPI
When asked if the woman network executive knew he was gay, Rikaart confirmed that she did. However, he said, it did take him a moment to come back from that comment, sharing, “At the time? For sure. And then I think I felt by the time I publicly came out, I think I felt secure enough in my life and my career that it was a risk I was willing to take. ”
Previously on daytime, Greg Rikaart took on the role of straight character, Kevin Fisher on The Young and the Restless. He played the contract role from 2003-2017, and then has been on recurring status with the series since 2017. In story, Kevin is married to Chloe (Elizabeth Hendrickson) and the two have two children, Miles and Bella.
Later, in the soap role of his lifetime (thus far), Rikaart moved over to Days of our Lives took take on bad guy Leo Stark, and soap opera’s finally showed that gay people can also do bad things since previously, to play it safe, most characters of the LGBTQ+ community were always written to be quite saintly to make them more palpable to the audience.
Photo: JPI
Rikaart first appeared on DAYS as Leo Stark back in March of 2018 and then was “killed-off” a few months later, but he turned out to be very much alive by the end of the year and continued his troublemaking ways until March of 2019. Greg reprised the role during an April Fools episode in 2020 and again in 2021 in the Peacock limited series Days of our Lives: Beyond Salem followed by the Days of our Lives Christmas Special also on Peacock. Eventually Greg brought Leo back in full bloom in February of 2022 and has been going strong into 2025 – where the character is a now a bit more loveable, and had entered into a romance with Javi Hernandez (Al Calderon).
You can listen to the full episode below from the audio series Making: Stories Without End hosted by WEBZ Chicago’s Natalie Moore. The episode also features moments with Eden Riegel (ex-Bianca Montgomery, AMC) who talks on the the ups and downs of All My Children’s attempt at a Transgender storyline with the Zoe/Zarf character as played by the late Jeffrey Carlson.
Photo: JPI
Tamara Braun (ex-Reese, AMC) also discusses the moment the priest came to christen Bianca and Reese’s child on All My Children, and refused to do so, when he found out Reese was a woman, not a man. Braun explained, “Erica basically told him what love was about and what being a good Christian, a good Catholic was about, and that this was not acceptable.”
Current Beyond the Gates writer and the former head writer of DAYS, GH, OLTL, Ron Carlivati was also interviewed for the episode who spoke to the evolution of how gay characters have been accepted by the daytime soap opera audiences and more.
So, what do you think about the evolution of gay characters on your favorite soap operas? What Greg Rikaart shared from the network executive that she would never knowingly cast a gay actor for a romantic lead? Share your thoughts via the comment section and you can listen to episode from Making: Stories Without End below.
Hate to say it, but I feel like we still semi-live in these times. Not as jagged as before, but it still does exist. I’m happy he was able to be comfortable to say who he is, and that it’s accepted, as it should be without question.
I know. Homophobia seems to be making a comeback along with racism, sexism, transphobia and the dehumanizing of our neurodiverse populace ( check out RFK Junior’s vile and ignorant comments about autistic people).
I can’t resist guessing who that high power executive might be. Could the first name rhyme with ill, the second name rhyme with Aaron and the third name rhyme with welps?
The person you’re thinking of would be a producer / show runner, not a network executive.
But do network executives cast shows? Or do they have to sign off on the casting?
Sometimes yes, sometimes no. However, it’s beside the point of his story.
The network executive who spoke to him, he says, knew his sexual orientation. But he was not yet out at this point in time. Her comments felt oppressive to him; a psychological push to refrain from living his live openly as a gay man.
So embarrassed that I was well into my 50’s before I truly understood the prejudice gay men and women faced in the industry for pursuing their craft. I remember when Greg Rikaart first came out. Shamefully I was one of those thinking why can’t he remain in the shadows? I don’t need to hear this. Thank God for his courage and him refusing to it put up with my BS. Lessons were taught and learned.
Beyond the Gates
53rd Annual Daytime Emmy Nominations Announced: ‘The Young and the Restless’ Tops With 18, ‘Beyond the Gates’ With 16
The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) today announced the full list of nominees for the upcoming 53rd Annual Daytime Emmy Awards, and it was CBS daytime’s The Young and the Restless and broadcast television newest soap opera, Beyond the Gates that racked up the most nominations with 18 and 16, respectively.
The full reveal on Tuesday follows the announcement of several major categories including Lead Actor and Actress on Monday via Extra and Entertainment Tonight and The View today revealing Daytime Drama Series and more.
The 53rd Annual Daytime Emmys ceremony is set to take place on Friday, October 30 at the historic Hollywood Palladium in Hollywood, California.
Photo: CBS
In a statement, Adam Sharp, President and CEO of NATAS expressed, “We’re proud to honor the extraordinary talent and creative teams whose work continues to define and elevate daytime television, As the Daytime landscape evolves and new forms of storytelling emerge, we remain committed to recognizing the innovation happening across the industry.”
“Each year, the Daytime Emmy Awards celebrate the creativity, passion, and dedication that drive this vibrant community of storytellers,” said Rachel Schwartz, Head of the Daytime Emmy Awards. “Congratulations to this year’s nominees, whose work continues to entertain, inspire and connect with audiences every day. We look forward to celebrating their remarkable achievements in Hollywood this October.”
The Daytime Emmy Awards have recognized outstanding achievement in television programming and crafts since 1974, honoring work in a variety of genres, including daytime dramas, talk series, entertainment news, culinary, adventure, instructional and legal/courtroom programming.
This year’s Lifetime Achievement Honoree, Gold & Silver Circle Inductees, and ceremony host will be announced at a later date.
Now below, check out the nominees in the daytime drama, talk show, entertainment news series and creative arts categories and congratulations to all!
Photo: JPI
Outstanding Daytime Drama Series
Beyond the Gates
Days of Our Lives
General Hospital
The Young and the Restless
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Daytime Drama Series
Stacy Haiduk (as Kristen DiMera), Days of Our Lives
Karla Mosley (as Dani Dupree), Beyond the Gates
Michelle Stafford (as Phyllis Summers), The Young and the Restless
Heather Tom (as Katie Logan), The Bold and the Beautiful
Tamara Tunie (as Anita Williams Dupree), Beyond the Gates
Outstanding Lead Actor in a Daytime Drama Series
Eric Braeden (as Victor Newman), The Young and the Restless
Steve Burton (as Jason Morgan), General Hospital
Scott Clifton (as Liam Spencer), The Bold and the Beautiful
Thorsten Kaye (as Ridge Forrester), The Bold and the Beautiful
Christian Jules Le Blanc (as Michael Baldwin), The Young and the Restless
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Daytime Drama Series
Linsey Godfrey (as Sarah Horton), Days of Our Lives
Camryn Grimes (as Mariah Copeland), The Young and the Restless
Beth Maitland (as Traci Abbott), The Young and the Restless
Trisha Mann-Grant (as Leslie Thomas), Beyond the Gates
Amanda Setton (as Brook Lynn Quartermaine), General Hospital
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Daytime Drama Series
Sean Dominic (as Nate Hastings), The Young and the Restless
Timon Kyle Durrett (as Bill Hamilton), Beyond the Gates
Michael Graziadei (as Daniel Romalotti), The Young and the Restless
Roger Howarth (as Matt Clark), The Young and the Restless
Mike Manning (as Bradley “Smitty” Smith), Beyond the Gates
Lawrence Saint-Victor (as Carter Walton), The Bold and the Beautiful
Outstanding Emerging Talent in a Daytime Drama Series
Braedyn Bruner (as Emma Scorpio-Drake), General Hospital
Al Calderon (as Javier Hernandez), Days of Our Lives
Alice Halsey (as Rachel Black), Days of Our Lives
Giovanni Mazza (as Gio Palmieri), General Hospital
Ambyr Michelle (as Eva Thomas), Beyond the Gates
Arielle Prepetit (as Naomi Hamilton Hawthorne), Beyond the Gates
Outstanding Guest Performance in a Daytime Drama Series
Jasmine Burke (as June Hughes), Beyond the Gates
Jeff Kober (as Cyrus Renault), General Hospital
Eva LaRue (as Natalia Rogers-Ramirez), General Hospital
Christopher Sean (as Paul Narita), Days of Our Lives
Ray Wise (as Ian Ward), The Young and the Restless
Outstanding Writing Team for a Daytime Drama Series
Beyond the Gates
The Bold and the Beautiful
Days of Our Lives
General Hospital
Outstanding Directing Team for a Daytime Drama Series
Days of Our Lives
General Hospital
The Young and the Restless
Outstanding Casting for a Daytime Program
Beyond the Gates
General Hospital
The Young and the Restless
Outstanding Daytime Talk Series
3rd Hour of TODAY
The Drew Barrymore Show
The Kelly Clarkson Show
Live With Kelly and Mark
TODAY With Jenna & Friends
The View
Outstanding Daytime Talk Series Host
Joy Behar, Whoopi Goldberg, Alyssa Farah Griffin, Sara Haines, Sunny Hostin & Ana Navarro, The View
Kelly Clarkson, The Kelly Clarkson Show
Tamron Hall, Tamron Hall
Jennifer Hudson, The Jennifer Hudson Show
Sherri Shepherd, Sherri
Outstanding Entertainment News Series
Access Hollywood
Entertainment Tonight
Extra
Outstanding Daytime Personality (Daily)
Mona Kosar Abdi, Derek Hough & Terri Seymour, Extra
Cassie DiLaura, Denny Directo, Kevin Frazier, Rachel Smith & Nischelle Turner, Entertainment Tonight
Scott Evans, Zuri Hall, Kit Hoover & Mario Lopez, Access Hollywood
Star Jones & Corey Jovan, Divorce Court
Outstanding Arts and Popular Culture Program
Beyond the Gates: Welcome to the Neighborhood — An Entertainment Tonight Special
Off Script With The Hollywood Reporter
Variety & CNN Actors on Actors
Variety Studio: Actors on Actors
Working In the Theatre
Outstanding Music Direction and Composition for a Daytime
Beyond the Gates, Episode 103
Have Guitar Will Travel World
The Kelly Clarkson Show Episode 5033
Let Frankie Cook,” Getting the Band Back Together
Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
Outstanding Technical Direction and Video for a Daytime Program
Beyond the Gates, Episode 104
The Bold and the Beautiful,” Episode 9511
Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade”
The Jennifer Hudson Show, ” Episode 4041
Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade”
Outstanding Hairstyling and Makeup for a Daytime Program
Beyond the Gates, Episode 103
General Hospital, Episode 15719
The Kelly Clarkson Show,” Episode 5033
The Young and the Restless,” Episode 13273
So, what do you think of the 53rd annual Daytime Emmy nominations? Who are you happy to see receive a nomination and who do you think was snubbed? Weigh-in via the comment section.
Monday on Entertainment Tonight, the second set of nominations for the 53rd annual Daytime Emmy Awards were announced which included the highly-coveted Outstanding Lead Performance in a Daytime Drama Series – Actress and Outstanding Daytime Talk Series.
ET followed suit after Extra announced the nominees, as previously reported, in the Outstanding Lead Performance in a Daytime Drama Series – Actor and Outstanding Daytime Talk Host.
Now, five leading ladies of the soaps are vying for the gold for Lead Actress and the category marked the first-ever nominations for CBS daytime’s Beyond the Gates when two actresses made the final cut. Only General Hospital is not represented among the actresses this year after Nancy Lee Grahn (Alexis Davis) took home the trophy last year.
Photo: NATAS
THE FIVE LEADING LADIES OF THE SOAPS ARE …
The 2026 Lead Actress nominees are: Stacy Haiduk (Kristen DiMera), Days of Our Lives, Karla Mosley (Dani Dupree), Beyond the Gates, Michelle Stafford (Phyllis Summers), The Young and the Restless, Heather Tom (Katie Logan), The Bold and the Beautiful, and Tamara Tunie (Anita Dupree), Beyond the Gates.
This marks the first Daytime Emmy nominations for Karla Mosley and Tamara Tunie. In addition, this marks the first-time in her career that Stacy Haiduk had received a Lead Actress nod after two Supporting Actress nominations.
Meanwhile, Michelle Stafford had previously won 3 Emmys – 2 for Lead Actress and 1 for Supporting, but this recognition makes it her 11th overall nomination.
Heather Tom currently is tied for the most all-time Daytime Emmy wins with One Life to Live alum and General Hospital guest star, Erika Slezak. The B&B star has 19 nominations throughout her career.
Photo: ABC
DAYTIME TALK SERIES
In the Outstanding Daytime Talk Series category, the nominees are: 3rd Hour of Today, The Drew Barrymore Show, The Kelly Clarkson Show, Live with Kelly and Mark, Today with Jenna and Friends and The View.
“We’re proud to honor the extraordinary talent and creative teams whose work continues to define and elevate daytime television,” NATAS president and CEO Adam Sharp said in a statement on the nominations. “As the Daytime landscape evolves and new forms of storytelling emerge, we remain committed to recognizing the innovation happening across the industry.”
The rest of the nominations will be revealed tomorrow on Tuesday July 14 starting on The View and then the full list of nominees in both the main and creative arts will be released by NATAS. The 53rd Annual Daytime Emmy Awards are slated for October 30th in Hollywood, California.
So, what do you think about the women who are vying for the Lead Actress Daytime Emmy? Happy with who got in? Who do you feel got snubbed? What do you think of the nominees for Daytime Talk Series? Weigh-in via the comment section.
It’s Daytime Emmy nomination week, and as previously reported things kick-off on Monday, July 13 when Entertainment Tonight (7pm ET) will announce the nominees for Lead Actress category and Daytime Talk Series for the upcoming 53rd annual Daytime Emmy Awards. In addition on Monday, Extra (7pm ET) will reveal the nominees for Lead Actor and Daytime Talk Host.
On Tuesday, The View (11am ET) starts things off with their announcement of Daytime Drama, Entertainment News program and Outstanding Daytime Personality-Daily. That is followed by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) full reveal of all the categories beginning at 12noon ET/9am PT on their website and their official social handles on X and Instagram.
Then, Tuesday night at 8pm ET/5pm PT join Michael Fairman as he hosts his 12th annual Daytime Emmy Nominations Special 2026 live on You Tube’s Michael Fairman Channel where he will chat with some of the just announced nominees as we celebrate the hard work of the men and women in front of the camera who will be going for gold.
WHEN ARE THE DAYTIME EMMYS?
This year, the 53rd annual Daytime Emmy Awards will be handed out on October 30 in ceremonies in Hollywood, California (Venue yet to be revealed). At that time, as like last year, both the major categories and creative arts will be presented. There is no word yet on a broadcast partner for the annual celebration of daytime programming, or if it will soley be streamed on NATAS’ watch.theemmys.tv and various apps and platforms.
WHO WILL BE APPEARING ON THE DAYTIME EMMY NOMINATIONS SPECIAL 2026?
Throughout Tuesday, keep an eye on Michael Fairman TV’s social media handles on X, Facebook and Instagram, for updates of who will be expected to appear on our live show.
If you have a question or comment for one of the nominees, or on the nominations, we can encourage you to join us in the live chat on Tuesday night.
So, who are you hoping lands a nomination from Beyond the Gates, General Hospital, Days of Our Lives, The Bay, The Bold and the Beautiful and The Young and the Restless? Let us know via the comment section. More Tuesday!
53rd Annual Daytime Emmy Nominations Announced: ‘The Young and the Restless’ Tops With 18, ‘Beyond the Gates’ With 16
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GENERAL HOSPITAL: Jason Reconnects with Danny; Tristan Roberts Arrives in Port Charles, Lots of Nods to #16
53rd Annual Daytime Emmy Nominations: Outstanding Lead Actress Drama Series
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GENERAL HOSPITAL: Jason Reconnects with Danny; Tristan Roberts Arrives in Port Charles, Lots of Nods to #16
GENERAL HOSPITAL Spoilers Promo: Jason’s Back, Drew Begins to Make His Move, Portia Goes Into a Labor
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