Interviews
Jordi Vilasuso Previews His New Role Of Rey On The Young and the Restless
He’s played a young man growing up in a Mafioso family, a well-respected doctor, and a brother with a questionable past and future during his daytime career, but now Jordi Vilasuso takes on a mysterious new role on the top-rated The Young and the Restless, who we only know thus far by the name of “Rey”.
When Vilasuso debuts on tomorrow’s Friday, August 16th episode of the CBS daytime drama series, viewers will start to see just how his new character unveils itself, while we get to see one of our favorites back in action.
From his roles on Guiding Light, All My Children, Days of our Lives and his primetime and movie roles, Jordi brings his unique charm, acting chops, and sex-appeal to every role he plays.
Michael Fairman TV chatted it up with Jordi for this tease of what’s to come when he hits Genoa City, what it has been like working with his new co-stars, nabbing this sought-after role, and reflecting back on the journey that got him here. Check out what he shared below.
When the news broke that you were coming to Y&R, fans of the genre were really excited. I thought it was a great testament to you.
JORDI: It’s great. I mean, the way that the show has announced me and has been pushing me… from the promo that was just released this week, to my discussions with Mal Young ((EP and head writer, Y&R). Everybody has just been asking me if I’m good, and the network is really responding to my work. Because, you never know, right? You put it out there, but when you get that feedback, it’s like, “Okay. I’m doing the right thing here.” There’s been a lot of reassurance, which is always great for people to get in a workplace.
Do you feel pressure now to deliver to Mal and to the audience?
JORDI: Of course. I always do. What do they say? Innocence is bliss? Naiveté is bliss? I didn’t know what the hell I was doing when I first walked on to Guiding Light! It’s such a great place to be in as a young kid. I was just like, “I’m an actor. I’m going to create a character…”
And you won an Emmy!
JORDI: And I won an Emmy … and then it’s “I’m going to go be a star, and I’m going to be in a pilot.” I signed with a huge agency, and it was fantastic, and then reality sets in. You get a couple of notches on your belt, and you get kicked in the ass a bit. You learn, and then you crawl out of there, and you gain a lot of character doing that. Really, in the last couple of years I’ve seen there are reasons for all of this stuff. The lens that I’m looking through now is that of a father. I just want to give them tools that can help them deal with life. If they want to become actors, awesome. Go for it. I will support them. Whatever it is they want to do, there are going to be ups and downs, and that’s all part of the journey. For me, I think God has been molding me into the kind of man that I’ve always aspired to be. .
From the Y&R promo this week, it looks like Rey is looking into what happened to J.T. (Thad Luckinbill)?
JORDI: Yes. That has been revealed in the promo. Rey is getting to know the heavyweights in town, and asking a lot of questions.
Speaking of heavyweights, what was it like working with Eric Braeden (Victor, Y&R) for the first time?
JORDI: It was cool. There was a little bit of that being in “awe” of him. I never worked with him, but I always saw him on the cover of magazines. I heard he’s very warm and open with other actors, which I got. Playing with him on set, he kind of goes off the page a bit, which is fun. After talking to him for about a minute, I felt like, “Okay, I get who this guy is.” He’s very professional.
Will your new character be connected to anyone in Genoa City?
JORDI: You never know. It’s a soap!
I would assume if you’re on the number one soap, Rey might have a lover interest. Who would you like to be in a romantic story with, if they should write it?
JORDI: All of the women! (Laughs) All of them have so much to offer from Tracy E. Bregman (Lauren), to Sharon Case (Sharon), to Melissa Ordway (Abby). I know I may be a little bit cryptic, but I have to say, everybody has been extremely lovely to work with.
What can you say about the character in a broad stroke?
JORDI: I think Rey knows what he wants. He is very serious about his work, and he has a lot of ways of working through different situations. Whether it’s a smile or knowing something about you that you may have not known… he may bring you into his orbit in that way.
He’s a mind reader!? (Laughs)
JORDI: He can really read people, I think! He’s very adaptable. He can be put in any situation and have a conversation with anyone. From Victor Newman, to Sharon, to Michael… he can talk to whoever is thought of as having the most status. He has that knack.
Is Rey street smart, or intelligent smart?
JORDI: I would say both. I think Rey grew up very quickly, and I think a lot of that is street smart. I wouldn’t say he is an intellectual philosopher. I would say he leans more towards street smart for sure.
Were you informed on what the long term trajectory of your storyline would be on Y&R? Other actors on the show have talked about how Mal Young tells them where the character is going, so it better prepares them when they are doing their scenes.
JORDI: Yes. I found out on a Tuesday that I got the job, and I was asked to come in on Wednesday to wardrobe, and start work on Thursday, and I did four shows that week. I sat down with Mal for an hour. I had only met him at the screentest and there were a lot of heavyweights there up for this part. He told me about his history, where Rey came from. He showed me what he was doing on the show, how he was trying to change things, and some really exciting things that he was doing. Mal was an open book, and then he did break down what he saw as the next couple of months for my character would be, which I fell in love with. I was like, “Yes! This is so cool. This is a meaty story. This has roots in a lot of things that I can pull from, that I am passionate about, and that are meaningful I felt in a sense, that it was collaborative. Even though he is steering the ship, he was interested in what I had to say as well and very open to questions.
How does Rey stack up against your other daytime characters: GL’s Tony Santos, DAYS Dario, and AMC’s Griffin?
JORDI: Man, it’s so funny, because somebody actually had sent me some clips of Tony the other day, and I was like, “Oh my God, that was crazy long ago! Look at the clothes! It was so mafioso,” but it was so cool and so fun. There only will ever be one Tony Santos. Then you go to Griffin Castillo who was a doctor and just starting to open up to Kendall (Alicia Minshew) and get that whole romance kicking on All My Children. And as for DAYS Dario… God bless Dario … that poor guy. What can I tell you about Dario? He just couldn’t seem to make it work in Salem. He couldn’t find his way, so he said, “You know what? I’m going to run away!” So, he just ran away, and who knows maybe he’s in Mexico running from the law, where I guess he resides now.
You were recently at the All My Children and One Life to Live reunion event. What did the fans say when you got to inform them that you were coming on to The Young and the Restless?
JORDI: They were so happy for me. There was a lot of joy and a lot of happiness. That was the one thing that I got from it. I think they get what the business that we are in, which I really appreciate. It’s such a hustle. You wait for that other gig to come down, and when you get it, it’s a great moment to share. They get it. A lot of that empathy was shared from the fans, and I really, really appreciated that.
Your former AMC co-star Rebecca Budig (Ex-Greenlee) was there, too. How was it seeing her again?
JORDI: I did see her, but just for a second! I think she was so caught up with seeing everyone. She’s beautiful! She hasn’t aged.
When do you think viewers will know what Rey is up to in Genoa City?
JORDI: Sooner rather than later. We have very good pacing for his entry on to the canvas.
We are wondering if Rey might be an adversary to Nick. Did you know Joshua Morrow (Nick Newman) before you came to Y&R?
JORDI: I wonder of Rey and Nick will be nemeses too! But no, I didn’t know Joshua. He’s such a dude’s dude. From the get go, he said, “Do not look at me when you’re on set, and are you ready for my breakfast order?” (Laughs) I kind of bowed down and said, “You know, you’ve been on this show for twenty years. Are you a vegetarian, or can I throw some ham in your omelet?” (Laughs)
So, are you excited to see what goes down when Jordi debuts tomorrow on The Young and the Restless? Do you hope Rey is on the right side of the law? Which woman in Genoa City do you think would make a good romantic pairing for the guy? Share your thoughts via the comment section below.
Let’s face it. The show has been batting ZERO with recent additions. Shauna? Nate? One’s more repulsive than the other. Mr. Vilasuso was very good on GL years back, so I’m reserving judgment. But I am so sick of all these handsome guys like Billy Miller, Josh Swickard, Joshua Morrow, et al, sporting these grubby beards that just make them look unkempt…and much older than they are. When is THAT grooming trend gonna die?
Yes, he looks better in that photo where he’s clean-shaven. I guess it’s supposed to show he’s rugged. Whatever.
And you know Shauna will seduce Devon and those two are like watching grass grow! And speaking of grass, I think the casting director was smoking it when he or she hired the guy who plays NATE!
Hey, Timmmy,
Never thought of that happening….my mind didn’t go there. But, now that you mention it, Shauna and Devon hooking up is not so far fetched, is it? It’s a soap. But, T, she’s a minor….Devon could get into trouble with the law……does he have enough integrity to sway from the perversion?
She is young. She could be on the cusp of 18 OR she could accuse him of misconduct and Lilly somehow would be the one to witness that Shauna set him up? That brings him and Lilly back to at least being civil.
Anything is possible, T……Devon is in a lot of pain and the sense of loss could steer him in either direction…..give into temptation or become completely numb.
As far as Lily working her way back into his good graces is sort of iffy at this juncture. Devon’s anguish is suffocating him….which is the crux of the situation.
He would not be so bestial with Lily if he were not suffering……although ‘bestially’ is how Lily treated Hilary, at every turn.
Hilary had been trying to make amends for the longest time…..yet, Lily was on such a hard-arsed spree, she couldn’t see the forest for the trees.
You know, T….I realize this is a soap but, I abhor those who think they are ‘better’ than others…..to me, what makes a person is what’s in one’s heart, not in the palm of her/his hand, as it were. Lily did her best to make herself seem superior and Hilary less than. Such hypocrisy, considering her husband’s history and progenitor—Colin and his stellar reputation, she was always over the top.
However, Lily’s fate seems kind of harsh. Prison for twenty years??
I asked my parents about the accident ( although it’s a soap) …..they both said that there was no intent, so this prospect sounds steep……it also depends on the state.
It’s silly to me. Yes, Lily was hatefully out of her mind….all the anger was thrown in Hilary’s face, which made her lose any sense of where she was, what she was doing, and that there were kids in the car……but, it was still an accident.
Sometimes, I wish the writers would stick to reality and facts as much as possible.
❤️
You know C, the had a longer send off for Hillary than they ever did for Kathrine! Hillary was an evil bitch! Katherine was royalty!
LOL, my T….my grandmother doesn’t agree with you about Katherine…..she reads these comments…..and, sometimes she COMMANDS me to ‘say’ what to say:
So…..she told me to tell you that Katherine DROVE ( in caps) her husband to his death. She said Katherine was a low-down drunk who did things worse than Hilary. LOL.
I agree with you….Hilary was a B. But, she repented waaaay before she died…..the winds had changed. It was, actually, Lily who lost all sense of forgiveness and compassion—-which I found incredibly ‘pot/kettle’ blackish-like transformation.
I was an avid fan of Lily’s. She was no longer the Lily I knew ( she and I are of an age) ….I identified with her…..no more. The writers should have never paired her with Caine….
Perhaps, she will go back to her old self?
❤️
Grandmother knows best!
Will he be hired by Nick or Victor to look into JT’s disappearance? or did JT’s ex
wife hire him for the same purpose.
Good guess, my lady….why does he have pictures of the Newmans? And, why of Phyllis? I guess my interest is somewhat piqued….minimally, LOL.❤️
Sweet CeeCee,
Minimally is right.
Can’t wait to see him on TV again! Have enjoyed his work since “Guiding Light.”
I want to see him paired with Sharon
No, not excited. I do not like this actor. I was glad when he left Days. Not happy he’s joining Y&R. I hope it’s for a short time.
Michael you are a good interviewer,however you ask to many character questions.I cannot figure out does jordi have kids,a wife,where did he grow up?what ethnicity is he?does he like california.Please start asking more personal questions of these actors and actresses.
I really dont care. The show’s writing is so bad and the Winter’s clan has hogged up so much of the show, I dont think Rey is really going to matter at this juncture!
So right…and so sad, Timmm. For the first time in over 40 years of viewing, I’m reading a book during the show. It’s that bad.
That’s so funny, Soaphound……I was actually helping my little girl with her addition/ subtraction flash cards…she’s four. I could not get into the episode.
This Billy/Summer nonsense makes me want to barf. Thompson is not exactly the type of man a girl would drool over. C’mon!!
I never imagined I could ever be bored by Y&R—-I was today.
I agree with Momo. I do not like the characters Jordi plays. I cannot, no matter how hard I try, get a feel of or for him……
DAYS was a flop ….and I think Y&R will prove to be the same.
Celia, dear, can imagine if Billy M. were still playing Billy Abbott? Heck, I’d COMPLETELY understand amoral Summer’s obsession. The blonde hair, blue eyes, knee-weakening smile, deep voice….phew! THAT’S a guy you’d wanna steal! This version of Billy is so snarky and judgmental…my guess is that if he DID consummate with Summer, his only response would be, “I’ve had better. Now get back to work.”
Summer serves no purpose, from what I can see, Soaphound. She is not the typical femme fatale….she’s too young and she does not have the sensuality….the oomph. And, with NuBilly? Mother and daughter are fighting over him?????
However, I do think that Kyle has a point. Summer is infatuated with infatuation and to see how far she can go to win Billy just to prove a point to herself and to her mother.
Why was she brought back? To break up Billy and Phyllis?
Hmmmm. Mayhap….I see the writing on the wall. Jack and Phyllis??
Been gone as usual. Hard to know how to negotiate the new setting. From my last viewing I remain not very interested in anyone. The new people have not been viewed by me.
However, going backwards, Hillary’s passing was handled with grace. Devon’s pain has pulled beyond the outsides of normal, and families must sometimes pull together regardless of the pain. His Lilly animosity is too painful
I need to reset on the entire program. What was times ago looked for was a one unit or person holding the show together for stability. Then, let the rest roll.
The original characters are growing older, but someone must become stable.
Nick looks uncomfortable suddenly showing up in a suit. What a negative name: DARK HORSE.
There could be some overall positives with opposites working together, and letting the underlying stories travail minus destroying the overall effort.
Still always want to watch. I am forever behind the rest of you.
You say it best, Tani, as usual. Y&R looks to be gaining more and more the ‘attributes’ of a Gothic revelation…..I, simply, do not get it….I mean I get IT, but why?
There has always been good versus evil in any soap—-as a well-written piece should—yet, it seems that no one is redeemable.
Jack is not Jack; Phyllis is confused; Summer’s head is in the wrong end; Nikki is afflicted, unless there’s a young stud to stir her senses and fancy; Nick does not the executive make—-a complete fallacy…..all of it.
The topper is the Summer/Billy/Phyllis ‘Triumvirate’…..how dumb!!
I really don’t want to cry on my own parade, Tani, as this is my fave soap…..of all time. But, what the hey?
There’s just one little, big thing I may not see the same way as yourself….that is, DARK HORSE. I, actually, see it as an encouraging positive.
Isn’t a dark horse someone whose capabilities are swept under the rug, but out of nowhere, he/she wins the ‘race’, as it were?
This is all about showing Victor, “So there”— the underestimated son, THE DARK HORSE.
Will Nick show his father a thing or two? Hmmmm…..Victor is the devil incarnate; “El Conquistador”!! I wonder, my friend.
Stay well, Tani.
Thanks Celia regarding DARK Horse. Had not taken the time to think about what the name inferred. It immediately struck me as not necessarily appealing as a consumer. Of course it depends upon the product. I am so far behind in viewing. Enjoy your comments.
❤️
I enjoy your comments, as well, my friend. I have missed way too many episodes, myself…..
One small correction: should read….rain on my own parade….
Something should be done with these characters….especially the adults, who act like teens in the first throes of young love.
Phyllis and Billy need to part, posthaste….
Mariah is the only one who seems to have her head screwed on sagaciously!!
Celia, again, subsequent to your comment, I do think the writers gave much thought into the title of “Dark Horse.” I just did not! Interesting, and wonder how much I have missed as I close down my evening viewing and recuse my thoughts of the day. Thanks again.
I would LOVE to see him with Phyllis!!!
Days Of Our Lives
Days of our Lives Star Blake Berris Chats On the Everett Lynch/Bobby Stein Mystery, Working with His New Co-Stars, and the Last Christmas Episode with Bill Hayes
On Days of our Lives, the return of Blake Berris is making for some very intriguing drama, with the audience guessing just which way the story will go.
When Berris arrived back on Days of our Lives, after previously playing Nick Fallon, he was taking on the new role of Everett Lynch, who has a past with Stephanie Johnson (Abigail Klein) and Jada Hunter (Elia Cantu). Only, as it has been revealed, the past he had with Jada was under the name “Bobby Stein,” who from what we can tell was far from a nice guy.
Blake visited the Michael Fairman Channel for a livestream interview this week, where fans in the live chat were weighing-on what could be the truth about the guy – is he a split personality suffering from Dissociative Identity Disorder? Did the accident that cost him a year of his life in a coma, never happen? Recently, someone set fire to the beloved Horton house. Fans are suspecting it would have been “Bobby” who is working for Clyde Weston (James Read). Others believe that Everett/Bobby could actually be Clyde’s son. With upcoming therapy sessions with Dr. Marlena Evans (Deidre Hall) about to start, things are about to get more juicy in Salem.
Here are just a few excerpts from our conversation with Blake on a myriad of Everett/Bobby subjects. Make sure to check out the full interview for more.
Did you know that they were going to make Everett Lynch a Jewish character? This is only the second time in the history of the show that they have even had a Jewish character on the canvas. Didn’t they reveal this at the Horton family Christmas episode?
BLAKE: No, they never asked me. I am half-Jewish on my dad’s side. There was never like, ‘You’re Jewish, right? We can call you Jewish on the show?’ At the Horton Christmas, “They made a real point of it, yeah.”
And now the new ‘character’ is “Bobby Stein” …
BLAKE: “Right, and that suggests more Jewish, and then Lynch must be coming from somewhere else, maybe the mother. I was so curious because I think the show has been historically, I’m gonna say, Catholic more than like Wasps. With the Bradys there’s this sort of Irish influence, and then the DiMeras, that’s Italian. So, we’ve got Catholics sort of on both sides that are dominant. Now I, “represent”.
What has it been like working with Abigail Klein?
BLAKE: I think she is extraordinary. We start off sort of frosty, or she’s frosty with me, like she doesn’t want to let me in. And then, for a while things are going really well. I just could not adore Abigail more. She’s such a good actor. I could always rely on her to bring me back into a scene and be there in this emotionally, supportive way.
Everett and Chad seemed to be becoming friend-ish, when all went awry when at the PCPD interrogation room, Everett let him know about Elia and Bobby Stein, and Chad let him have it for worming his way back in to Stephanie’s life.
BLAKE: Billy would call us the ‘disgusting brothers’ and that’s a reference from Succession, because all of a sudden they’re just so chummy with each other. It’s like all of a sudden we just had this like ‘Bernstein and Woodward’, sort of dynamic duo. I think that Everett really started to think of Chad as a friend and feels sort of disappointed, and he feels, “Oh, it’s that easy? I just needed to have some other identity and now you’re a fair-weather friend?”‘
In recent scenes, Jada sees Bobby Stein for the first time, and we see you and Elia Cantu share scenes with each other for the first time. What is it like working with Elia?
BLAKE: She’s fire, man. She comes in hot and she tells you the way it’s going to be. I think early on, we were trying to suss each other out and the more we worked together, the more comfortable you get with somebody. I think actors do this sometimes with each other; if there’s spice on screen, you like to keep some of what you have on-screen in your (real-life) interactions because it helps … it helps the work. Eventually, we just sort of wore each other down and we’re like, ‘I actually totally get you, and you’re great.'”
Did you know that they were going to make Everett Lynch a Jewish character? This is only the second time in the history of the show that they have even had a Jewish character and didn’t they reveal this at the Horton family Christmas episode?
BLAKE: No, they never asked me. I am half-Jewish on my dad’s side. There was never like, ‘You’re Jewish, right? We can call you Jewish on the show?’ At the Horton Christmas, “They made a real point of it, yeah.”
And now the new ‘character’ is “Bobby Stein” …
BLAKE: “Right, and that suggests more Jewish, and then Lynch must be coming from somewhere else, maybe the mother. I was so curious because I think the show has been historically, I’m gonna say, Catholic more than like Wasps. With the Bradys there’s this sort of Irish influence, and then the DiMeras, that’s Italian. So we’ve got Catholics sort of on both sides that are dominant. Now I, “represent”.
You were on set and in the annual Horton Christmas episode which sadly marked the last for Days of our Lives legendary Bill Hayes, who passed away in January of this year. What do you recall of that tape day?
BLAKE: It was the Christmas episode when we were watching Susan (Julie) and Bill, say ‘Merry Christmas.’ And there was something about it that just felt like it could be the last time. I mean, it wrecked us all on set. Bill gets so choked up and there was something really profound about the moment. They kiss each other as they have so many times before on the show. It was just beautiful. It felt beautiful to be there for that last Christmas. He’s just such an icon. Every time I’d see him, he was so with it … he knew my name, he knew his lines. What an incredible, incredible man.
Fans will get to see Everett in therapy sessions with Dr. Marlena Evans (Deidre Hall)? Would you say she is helping the guy?
BLAKE: Deidre’s always making jokes about Marlena, ‘She’s the worst therapist in the world’ (Laughs) I remember in the first therapy session, we almost couldn’t get through the scenes because it’s just so clear that Everett has a litany of very profound psychological issues that he is going to have to work through. He’ll keep coming back. This guy’s gonna pay the bills!
Viewers are waiting to see how they mystery of Everett Lynch/Bobby Stein plays out. What can you say as a tease for what’s to come?
BLAKE: As far as a tease, I would say, you have all these characters sort of, trying to wake up the ‘sleeping giant’ in a way. I think it’s safe to say that like if you poke a bear, the bear might wake up.
Watch the livestream chat with Blake in full below.
Now let us know, what do you think is going with Everett/Bobby? What has happened to him in his past? Share your theories in the comment section below, and make sure to catch Days of our Lives next week on Peacock for more to his story.
Interviews
Y&R’s Melody Thomas Scott Talks on 45 Years as Nikki Newman, the Keys to Playing Drunk, And Those Genoa City Relationships
February is ‘Nikki Newman Month’ in soapland as the The Young and the Restless iconic Melody Thomas Scott celebrates her 45th anniversary in her leading role.
My how time flies! Nikki has had numerous marriages, and some to the same man, battled her addiction to alcohol too many times to count (and we loved it all), and faced so much heartache in the process.
Currently, on all-new episodes of the top-rated CBS daytime drama series, Nikki can’t quite get a grip as Jordan (Colleen Zenk) is out there and in the middle of her next master plot to make Nikki suffer, all the while Nikki is drinking again. Thanks to the heinous plot concocted by Jordan and Claire (Hayley Erin) that revealed itself last November.
In a special conversation for You Tube’s Michael Fairman Channel, Melody shared her thoughts on a myriad of subjects including: her current story, those long tape days at Victor and Nikki’s weddings, why she plays drunk better than anyone on television, plus we take a mini-deep dive into Nikki’s past.
Y&R fans were stunned when the powers-that-be had Nikki kidnapped and then hooked her up to an IV of booze. Just how much did Melody know of the story going in? She elaborated, “I knew Nikki would be terrorized. That’s all that I knew. I thought that sounded like great fun. I didn’t know for a little bit that she was going to fall off the wagon in the process of it. And then when I heard how it would happen, I was thrilled to bits. I did kind of want to have a little leader (or crawl) down at the bottom of the screen saying, ‘Hey, people don’t put an IV with vodka in your arm because that will kill you.’ But, poetic license, I suppose.”
Melody also weighed-in on if she thinks Nikki will stop drinking anytime soon, expressing, “She just can’t get out of this. Then of course, Jordan’s not letting her out very easily. Just when Nikki thinks she is mentally strong enough to never take another drink, well, of course she does, because something else happens. I think it’s also a learning point for people who are watching the show who may have an addiction problem. Now, I could be wrong, but I think it’d be highly unusual for somebody to be just mentally strong to be able to stop.”
If you wondered if Melody enjoys playing a drunk Nikki, look no more, “I do. That’s simply for selfish reasons,” she shared. “That’s for my enjoyment. I take great pleasure in it. It’s fun for me, and just the process of pretending to be drunk. I love the end result. I try not to do too much because there’s nothing worse when an actor is overplaying drunk. So you have to kind of keep it a little bit underneath (the surface). However, sometimes because of Jordan, Nikki does get much sloppier than I normally would play it.”
In recent episodes, it seems that Jack (Peter Bergman) and Nikki are gravitating more to each other, as both are drawn together through their shared experiences with addiction. Victor (Eric Braeden) is not happy that his arch-nemesis is helping Nikki try to stay sober. Could Melody see Jack and Nikki becoming romantic again? “I love Peter. I mean, Peter was my second favorite husband on Y&R. It would be wonderful, but I don’t know if the fans would go for that,” she explained. “They’re so invested in Niktor that I think they would really be upset about that unless Victor did something really crummy, then I could buy that.”
One of the more ‘out there’ stories during Melody’s 45-year run, was when Nikki was paired with Crazy Edward, and he took her home to meet his mother … who was in an urn! You would think maybe Melody didn’t like the story .. but think again! “Bill Bell (co-creator, Y&R) was writing the show in those days, and Bill kept that information pretty tight. I don’t remember us knowing even a week in advance. Maybe, we would get our scripts, three or four days in advance and that was it. You knew nothing about future story, but I loved the story,” she raved. “It was almost Hitchcockian, shall we say. The actor who played Crazy Edward, Paul Tulley was so magnificent and such a sweetheart. We loved working with each other so much, but man, when that red light came on the camera, he scared the you-know-what out of me. He was absolutely terrifying. But then, the minute the scene was over, we’re fooling around and laughing and everything. He was so good. So good!”
According to Melody, the pairing of Victor and Nikki was not something she, nor Eric Braeden, initially thought would made sense: “I was a little terrified when I heard that he and I would be doing scenes. I thought, ‘What, what?’ He also wondered, ‘What am I going to be doing working with that young kid, that snotty kid?’ We had no idea what Bill Bell saw. He had a vision with us and somehow knew that we would have chemistry. It didn’t take Bill long to show us in the scripts why he put us together. Then, we started to see it. Although, it was hard to imagine at first, certainly we knew it worked by the time Nikki had baby number one during the ‘Who’s the father?’ storyline. Nikki and Victor weren’t even married yet. So, we did figure it out pretty early on.”
From her early years as Nikki Reed, Melody reflected back on some major story points in her character’s history, relating, “I actually did like her in the very beginning when she was just a little brat living with her sister and her father, who of course ended up trying to rape her… and she had hit him over the head with a lamp … and he died. I did not care for the stripping storyline at all. Only because I knew that I didn’t have the natural dancing ability. I wasn’t fluid enough to really look good up there stripping. I know they hired wonderful choreographers and everything for me, but I just didn’t feel worthy of being up there … I guess is what it was. Of course, now I look back on it and I think, ‘Oh, I guess it wasn’t too bad.’ Later, there was a strip she did in the Colonnade Room. At the time, she was married to Jack. Victor’s sitting there with some other woman and she’s drunk. I saw that scene recently, and I thought it was great. I didn’t at the time, but looking back, I thought, ‘Wow, that was good.'”
Watch the full 45th anniversary conversation with Melody below.
Now let us know, are you enjoying Nikki being back on the bottle? Would you want to see Jack and Nikki try their relationship one more time? What has been your favorite storyline of Melody’s over the last 45 years on Y&R. Let us know in the comment section.
Days Of Our Lives
Days of our Lives Legendary Susan Seaforth Hayes Talks on the Horton House Fire Storyline, Mourning the Loss of Husband Bill Hayes & His Near-to-Final Performances
It has been an emotional time for longtime fans of Days of our Lives and beloved veteran, Susan Seaforth Hayes (Julie Williams). On-screen, the iconic Horton home was burned to the ground in what appears to be a storyline-dictated decision that shocked many. In real life, Susan is mourning the loss of her husband and DAYS enduring favorite, Bill Hayes (Doug Williams), who passed away at 98 in January. Over the weekend, during the 2024 SAG Awards In Memoriam tribute, Hayes was remembered along with other motion pictures and television stars whom we lost over the past year.
Since the Peacock streaming soap opera tapes months ahead of air, the Horton home fire and its aftermath are currently playing out in all-new episodes with more on this story featuring Susan to come. Bill Hayes also appeared in several of these episodes making it all the more touching and heartfelt.
When Julie came back to the Horton home to see what remained of it after the fire, Days of our Lives fans were treated to a heart-tugging episode that streamed last Wednesday, February 21st. In it, newly-taped scenes of a young Tom (Zach Chyz) and Alice (Sydney Kathrann Smith) Horton telling the story of how they came to live in the house to raise their children, juxtaposed with Julie and Doug (and members of their family and friends), surveying what’s left of the beloved house, brought many a tear.
Michael Fairman TV talked with Susan Seaforth Hayes for this very candid and heartfelt conversation to get her feelings on the Horton house fire, and being given the opportunity to have a storyline at this point in her storied career. In addition, Susan provides some insight on what it was like for her ailing late husband to tape scenes at DAYS shortly before his death, what the series plans to do about writing off the character of Doug while honoring the legacy of Bill Hayes, and how she knew she had the greatest love affair that anyone could hope for in their lifetime, which in turn, has inspired all of us.
I was shocked when they decided to burn down the Horton house. Were you at first devastated … and did you know that there would be a big story surrounding it?
SUSAN: I did not know how big a story was with it. I knew that many years ago, another regime had planned on trashing the set and getting rid of the set because nobody cared about the Hortons anymore. It was stopped by one person, and I was eternally grateful for that. This time I thought, “Oh, my goodness! I guess I’ll be meeting people for a cup of coffee at the Horton Square. No home, no roots, no reason to be called in,” and thinking that’s the end of Julie. That’s the end of Doug and Julie. Then, when they began to structure a story around it, I think all of this came up during the writer’s strike. So of course, I was curious to see how this was going to turn out. I enjoyed the aftermath, because in the aftermath, and a little bit before the fire, if you saw the show, I get to talk a bit about the history of the household and the people in it.
In the special episode that aired last Wednesday, Julie gave Leo (Greg Rikaart) the family tree history of the Hortons for his story in the Spectactor.
SUSAN: I’ve had a couple of good long soliloquies about the past. I’m fated to be the character that does that because I’m the one still standing. I must say, I do enjoy doing them. Emotionally, all I have to do is rerun some of the actors and my own family in my mind and the emotion starts to come, you know, the emotion starts to flow.
Julie talks to Maggie (Suzanne Rogers) immediately after the fire. She is upset that the Horton family Christmas ornaments are gone. Fans were not happy that they could possibly have burned up. Thank God! There was a happy ending when they were located and unscathed, or there would have been hell to pay!
SUSAN: I knew that they were in the prop room and that they still existed. But how much they were going to put a story around their loss, I did not know. We don’t get to ponder the plot. We just get to show up and start doing it. I think on this particular matter, something as important as a structure of the original set of the show, there’s been quite a bit of interest. So, I can appreciate that.
I was thinking, ‘Did they decide to burn the house down, because they were finally retiring the old Horton home set?’ What was the purpose of it?
SUSAN: They’ve done everything to make quicker set changes, which is remarkable and very efficient right now. The set designer said, “I’ll be interested in your input,” which was nice. The one thing that I loved that had been done, didn’t work. You couldn’t shoot into it. It was a federal mirror over the mantle. I loved it. The size was perfect. I was just delighted. And then, we tried to shoot it, and because of the roundness of the mirror, you got a perfect view of camera one and camera three. So, it came down.
This is Julie’s project to renovate the home. She’s determined to bring back all the memories and redo it?
SUSAN: Absolutely, which is another nice note to play for my character. She’s determined to make the house something that her grandparents would recognize and still feel comfortable in.
What did you think of the episode that just aired where the show incorporated flashbacks of a young Tom and Alice Horton?
SUSAN: Well, I set it up. They had their own their own lovely scenes. I read them, and I’m sure the audience was charmed.
What do you remember when you first came to DAYS, and you were in that house, in that set?
SUSAN: What did I notice about the set? I noticed that it was a strange shade of green. (Laughs) It was explained to me that that dull color meant that your face would pop on color TV. I understood that. I loved the little window up the staircase. I’ve always loved that. And at one time, there was a model of the house that sat on the set on its own little pedestal, a little playhouse of the exterior of the house. Whenever the house was on (and remember this is when we were a half-hour and practically live, but not live, because there was no editing), there would also be the sound of a barking dog whenever we reached the Horton house neighborhood. We never saw the dog, but I’m sure his name was “Spot”, and I’m sure he belonged to someone.
You shared so many scenes with Frances Reid (Alice) and MacDonald Carey (Tom) in the Horton living room set and up till they passed. Did they get along well with Bill? Looking back, how was your relationship with them?
SUSAN: They loved him. Well, Mac and Billy had worked together before in theater. Mac was very kind to me at the beginning and helpful. Frances was as well. As Frances got older, she got a bit testy. When someone says, “You’re not going to read the line like that … are you?” It catches your attention. (Laughs). I got peeved at Frances from time to time, but her intent was always to make everything as good as it possibly could be. I saw her come back from her stroke. learn to talk again, learn to do it all again. Not do it easily, but to do it at all was wonderful, and the same with Mac. In his last shows, he was very frail, but we’re actors. We liked being there.
During the taping of the episodes surrounding the Horton house fire, Bill was mostly in them with you. How was Bill doing at the time you taped these scenes?
SUSAN: He was okay. He was up for it. He had difficulty moving at that point. So, they restricted his movement a lot. Bill always enjoyed coming to work a lot, and it was extremely difficult for him because he was blind, and didn’t move very well. And now, to do a scene with people who may or may not, have rehearsed with you, who may or may not, give you the exact cue, and when they are attempting to have you look each other in the eye, you can’t see who’s eyes they are, that was the hard part. The easy part was working with him, which was lovely and was a gift. It was a gift from Corday Productions that he was able to work within three weeks of his death, which I thought was super and extraordinary.
That is amazing. Did Bill understand everything that was going on at the time of the tapings?
SUSAN: Absolutely. He understood what was going on. He just couldn’t see it or touch it.
The timing couldn’t have been easy for you with Bill’s declining health, and that the show was going to burn down the Horton home where you shared so many scenes and memories.
SUSAN: Well, it hasn’t been my greatest stretch. But I knew that life would be like this. I’ve had five decades of an absolutely wonderful, blessed marriage and a chance to work and a chance to live in my own home and travel, all good. And now, we’re going to have the epilogue. And the epilogue is the hard part, seeing rapid change around you and losing the people that were the center of your life. I’ve just been very fortunate to have cultivated some wonderful friendships, and to have a wonderful large family of Hayeses.
You do realize that you and Bill were the gold-standard of what we all should be lucky enough to have in our lives. What an incredible, beautiful, passionate, loving marriage that the two of you had. You don’t see marriages like that anymore. We were all just in awe of the two of you. To us, it was the greatest love affair. You got to have that which is so extraordinary.
SUSAN: I know, and it was all Bill. I mean, any idiot could have been married to Bill Hayes and been deliriously happy. The guy was so perfect in every way that you really would have to pick something and blow it out of proportion to ever complain about any of his traits of character. He was just all good character, goodwill, and good humor. I just followed along and tried to live my life for him, with him, and follow his style, which I hope to carry on. I hope to be as good to people as he was to people, and, not be selfish.
I always remembered how the two of you would come to the studio with your suitcases, ready to work no matter what material, large or small, they gave you. You showed up. You just had such great work ethic and you don’t see that as much anymore.
SUSAN: At the moment, it’s hard to find it everywhere. I think it’s probably generational. You cannot get too angry at people that are still holding up their phones in the one rehearsal that we have. I think it’s more convenient to receive your work electronically, but somehow it doesn’t seem quite as real. You don’t have a script in your hand anymore unless you print one up yourself. Sometimes you haven’t met the person you’re working with. Well, that’s not unusual, but no rehearsal at all, that’s kind of marvelously new.
Does Julie lean on anybody for emotional support as she tries to rebuild the Horton home. Who’s there for her?
SUSAN: As far as I can tell, nobody. I’m supposed to be the wise woman, and Marlena (Deidre Hall) is supposed to be the other wise woman. I haven’t had any scenes with Marlena for help. I would think Marlena would be the person I would be going to for grief counseling, for friendship, for all of that. I haven’t seen it in the scripts, yet. I’m still deeply entwined with Chad’s (Billy Flynn) storyline.
How is Billy Flynn to work with?
SUSAN: A pleasure. Billy Flynn has grown a lot as a human being and as an actor since I’ve known him. I’m really enjoying his company and really enjoying doing scenes with him. We rehearse and then we get on other subjects and laugh and talk and inform each other. We’re interested in a lot of the same things. He’s a new parent. He’s really devoting himself to that, to that experience in the best possible way. So, I’m lucky.
Do Julie and Chad try to figure out who set the fire?
SUSAN: Oh yeah.
I kept thinking about how Julie got burned in the kitchen fire years ago and her face was scarred, At the time, your mother Elizabeth Harrower was writing DAYS and wrote that for Julie. Did you hate that story?
SUSAN: Well, I know where the story came from. It came up from something in mother’s own life. I knew the people involved, and I wasn’t crazy in love with the idea. Then, when it was supposed to go for six weeks and went on for months and months, I was concerned. Mainly, I was concerned that my face was going to be affected because of the appliance, the scars, that I was wearing. I was told by a dermatologist, “You’re going to have a little beard after this. Ripping your face every single day to get this off is going to be hard on you.” But, I seem to have survived.
Has the show even addressed with you how they plan to handle writing-off the character of Doug Williams, and how they want to honor Bill?
SUSAN: Only in the smallest way. I had a conference call with the producers and our head writer last Friday. I was informed about the immediate, immediate future. I’ve also been promised that they’re going to keep me busy. It’s a cast of over 40 people. I’ll be happy to show up and to be included.
I was just hoping that whatever they decide to do with the character of Doug that they were going to run it by you, first.
SUSAN: They have, and they have been very sweet about it. I’ve got to tell you, this regime, they have a sign up on the wall now, that says, Things we expect on this stage.” The first one at the top of the list is “kindness.”
Have you watched your work back all these years? I know some actor’s never like to watch the scenes they taped.
SUSAN: I think you learn by watching yourself, if you have an open mind, and if you are not hypercritical, or dismissive. I cannot be dismissive of a character that has given me such a wonderful life. I’m still interested in Julie, perhaps I wouldn’t have been if I’d been on the show for three years and never returned to it. But I’m quite interested in her now, and what she has to offer as a member of this ensemble.
Julie’s ties to the whole history of Days of our Lives from this point on are very important. How do you feel about that?
SUSAN: There are those that don’t care about the history of the show. I know that. I know there are those that only care about continuing with something snappy to keep eyes on the screen through action, adventure, drama, death, kidnapping, missed opportunities, all that, which I suppose that’s what the audience craves. But, that’s not just what the show can do. What the show can do so well is character. There’s a lot of people over 70 who are still on the show now. I’m the oldest one, but I’m not the only one. We’re coming up on the 60th anniversary. I don’t think the show is worn out. And if it is, it’s had a remarkably successful six decades.
Lamon Archey (Eli) is back on DAYS for a stint. What has it been like to work with Lamon as his on-screen grandmother?
SUSAN: I think he’s terrific and visually he is so beautiful, so appealing. I think both Eli and Lani (Sal Stowers) are very appealing as characters. I’m delighted to be connected to Eli as a family member. That was a lucky break for me.
Do you think DAYS fans are going to continue to be emotional in the aftermath of this fire and all the story that comes out of it? Do you think we’ll be touched by what Julie goes through to get the remains all cleaned up for a new house?
SUSAN: I think anybody in America who’s gone through a disaster, and have unfortunately had the disruption of their home, will be sympathetic and interested in how it all turns out. It’s a nice note to play. We haven’t had to do that very often. We just go from one lovely apartment to another without much discussion. I think this is the one set that meant a lot to people. I was very sorry to lose “Julie’s Place,” as it turned into kind of a sandwich shop. I still loved having a business, a tangible place to be, and an alternate place for people to meet.
Upon reflection, what was your favorite scene with Bill? Was it when Julie and Doug got married on-screen, or was it something else that was much more intimate?
SUSAN: I think our last scene is going to be more important, emotionally. I think the first wedding was beautiful, but the material around the time of our second wedding, when Brenda Benet (ex-Lee) came back on the show and Doug stood up to her and says, “I’m not going to be manipulated anymore,” was also strong. There has been a lot of very important times – when Doug was killed-off by James Reilly, and we met in the tunnel of light. That was a day. That was a difficult day, which I certainly can’t revisit right now emotionally. When Julie found out Doug had run off and married her mother, Addie, that was a day. It was a day because, I went to the producer at the time, Jack Herzberg, and said, “Is this it? Am I not going to work with him anymore?”And he said, “Right! That’s it. You’re not working with Bill Hayes anymore.” We were not married at the time, and I thought I was going to go through the floor! That wasn’t a happy day.
In terms of Bill’s final day on the set with you, did you know that it was his last, and what would turn out to be his last scene?
SUSAN: Well, they didn’t know. But I knew. I had been allowed to rewrite it. So, I can’t tell you Bill’s last line now, of course, but I will in time.
What do you think about the sentiments shared by Susan on her late husband, and this storyline? How do hope the show properly honors Bill and Doug Williams when the series writes-off the character? Are you enjoying the Horton house fire story arc or does it upset you too much? Share your thoughts via the comment section below.
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