Interviews
THE CHRISTIAN LEBLANC INTERVIEW – DAYTIME EMMY NOMINEE
On The Young and the Restless, Christian LeBlanc may be the most respected actor from the A-class acting troupe, who day in and day out, brings us the lives of the characters in Genoa City.
Last week, Christian received another Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, something many were certain he was a lock for. Now he looks to be one of the front-runner’s for the prize. Winning is no stranger to Christian, having walked off with the top prize at the Daytime Emmys both in 2005 and 2007. Will the man who plays the complex Michael Baldwin take home his third when the ceremonies are held in Los Angeles on August 30th? I chatted with Christian to get his thoughts.
MICHAEL:
So, here we are again, Mr. Emmy Nominee! My guess is that you submitted the Christmas episode where Michael does his take on “It’s a Wonderful Life” story. Am I correct?
CHRISTIAN:
Yes, I did. I had to be talked into it, because of the length. I loved it, but since the competition went to submitting only one show, it was going to stick out as being long. Then I talked to Thaao Penghlis (Ex-Tony, “DAYS”) and he said he submitted a 27-minute show. I said, “Thaao, I am not so shy anymore.” It was a perfect show. Everyone in it is amazing and they made me look good. It was hard to put together, and not just for me, but everybody who worked so hard on it.
MICHAEL:
I loved that on CBS.com, they had an online special with you commenting and doing the narrative as the scenes unfolded, giving the user and the fans an inside look at the making of this amazing episode, and your take on the performances.
CHRISTIAN:
I never heard my narrative, and they told me it came out really good. But truly, that was the first time I had seen the episode back. It was fascinating!
MICHAEL:
Why did you choose this show for competition? Did you know that this was the one?
CHRISTIAN:
I was convinced I put up my best work. That is the only thing you can be sure of in yourself. I looked and looked, and I did put the work in. If you are going to play the game, do your homework! I put my actor reel together as I go, because it helps me look back. I put things on it that I like. I tried not to put the Christmas episode in, but it just came back to being the best thing.
MICHAEL:
It was a true ‘tour de force’… a clear, stand-alone performance! Was that written as your Emmy show?
CHRISTIAN:
That doesn’t happen on our show. You will hear that a lot on set, “Emmy time”. Sometime some shows lend themselves to submitting something, and granted I had Ted Shackleford (Jeffrey) in my Emmy reel last year, and it was the whole show of me ranting at Ted in a wheelchair! I think people, as a compliment, say things like, “There is your Emmy reel!” I don’t know if the writers go about that or say, “Let’s give him his moment in the sun,” kind of thing. I think when you have the special combination of wonderful writing, and that I loved the original movie “It’s a wonderful Life”, it worked well. I think it was a happy medium.
MICHAEL:
It was your show, but there were some pretty incredible moments from your cast mates, as well.
CHRISTIAN:
I thought it was an amazing show, but I thought the writing was seamless and they should have put it up for Best Show. I thought everyone was on their best behavior because the actors really got to do a lot of character work, and they were excited. I looked good because everybody else was good, and the writing was amazing! I’ve got to tell you that when you walk in on those characters, those were done in one take. Not many people could have pulled that off, except daytime people.
MICHAEL:
You had discussed this in previous interviews, and if I recall, the scenes were shot out of order and done in one day.
CHRISTIAN:
Yes. For instance, I had to open the front door to the Lauren scenes and had to do the scene outside the door where the magic happens, then wait to get through the door several scenes later. So, you had to recapture the moment of finding Lauren and seeing that she was there after she has slammed the door in my face at the very end. That’s like film work every day. I got the benefit from it, and it got me the nomination.
MICHAEL:
Were you shocked, as so many were that perennial powerhouse “Y&R” did not get Emmy nominations in Show, Writing or Directing?
CHRISTIAN:
I am surprised we are not up for Best Show, but so much is relied upon what you submitted. It’s so subjective, and I am under no illusion that I am the overall best leading actor, EVER! Damn it! (He laughs) Look, it’s an honor, but it’s an honor we give to daytime in general because the Emmys are a business proposition. We want to get people to watch by showing them what our best could possibly be.
MICHAEL:
Where were you when you found out you were nominated?
CHRISTIAN:
I was at my computer, and a friend of mine called from New Orleans going, “Aren’t they today?” I truly did not know this was the day, because it had become so confusing when it was going to be.
So, I was at my computer, and Tracey Bregman (Lauren) called me. Tracy is always the one who knows. She has her finger on the pulse of everything, and it’s always good when your hot TV wife calls you first.MICHAEL:
Are you familiar with the other actor’s work in your category?
CHRISTIAN:
Those are really great people. Thorsten Kaye (Zach, “AMC”) I respect. Every time you say “Thorsten Kaye” to anyone, especially the girls, they go and repeat, “Thorsten Kaye.” It’s so upsetting! Tony Geary (Luke, “GH”)… I always know he is going to have phenomenonal work, and Peter Reckell I don’t know. I have never met him. Bo and Hope are legendary and iconic for “DAYS”… and Daniel Cosgrove (Bill, “GL”) is excellent, too. I haven’t handicapped it yet, but Tracey would know!
MICHAEL:
So, it looks like you have a great shot at the prize!
CHRISTIAN:
You want to be the one, even if you lose where they go, “You were robbed. Why didn’t you win?”
MICHAEL:
I thought it was an interesting twist to use the Christmas episode dream, or ‘time out of time’ shows to refer back to when Kevin was in a straightjacket for his latest dilemma. He was in a straight-jacket in the same room with a padded cell in Michael’s dream. Did you think they were going to use that, moving forward for story?
CHRISTIAN:
I didn’t think so. I was not told. I had no idea they would reference the dream. I did not even know I would comment on having it. I started referencing it, which I like, and I liked they used it later on. I thought it was brilliant. There was no indication that they were going to renew Kevin’s father issues in such a big way, with the Marge kidnapping. That was a
pleasant surprise, and what Maria has been
doing is tying in old storylines and making
it relevant to what is going on the show now,
and it’s terrific.MICHAEL:
Are you going to pick out something to wear for the big event on August 30th?
CHRISTIAN:
From the floor you mean? (He laughs) Joseph Abboud measured me himself for my tux, and I am not giving that one up that easy. It’s a recession, my friend. Maybe I will be on the red carpet with my lunchbox and bring it to the banquet!
MICHAEL:
What did you think about the Emmy broadcast finally landing a home on the CW?
CHRISTIAN:
We can’t afford to be lazy or run lax. I think at NATAS and ATAS no one can afford to feud. Maybe the CW is where we need to be. We need to entertain the people and we need the ratings up. I don’t think that is an impossibility. The audiences are shrinking, and that happens because they don’t see what they want to see. I don’t think it’s about dummying things down. I think it’s about stepping up and being more intelligent and not less. Despite what some may think, the audience does not want to be talked down to. There is a place for daytime. What there is not a place for here are people sitting on their laurels or being complacent. It’s a business, baby! We have to find a way to fill the seats and we will find the answer. And, it’s about a good story!
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.
General Hospital
‘General Hospital’s’ Tabyana Ali Weighs In on Who She Thinks is Trina’s Stalker (Exclusive)

On General Hospital, as Trina Robinson (Tabyana Ali) has launched a music career alongside Gio Palmieri (Giovanni Mazza), it was recently revealed that she actually has what seems like an “obsessed” stalker! How do we know? Well, there is a collage of the young woman that said person is continuing to add more photos to as the weeks and months roll on.
There have been several obvious suspects in the way GH has presented the characters. Chief among them music executive, Simon Craft (Grady Eldridge) who continually has made statements and has been shooting daggers at anyone getting in the way of his prized recording artist.
At the same time the stalking started, Kai’s friend and former college football teammate, Quinn (Jequan Jackson) showed back up who previously had a falling out with Trina. Might he be playing nice, but wants revenge on Trina?

Photo: ABC
KEPT IN THE DARK
Fast-forward and now General Hospital fans learned that two-time Daytime Emmy winner, Alley Mills is on her way back to the show as Heather Webber, who previously was known as”The Hook” killer at one point, and is the biological mother of Trina’s sworn enemy, Esme Prince (last played by Avery Pohl).
Esme perished went she went overboard with Trina’s boyfriend, Spencer Cassadine (last played by Nicholas Alexander Chavez) a few years ago into the steely waters below. Could Esme be the one obsessing over Trina, or could it be someone else completely?
In a brand new video interview out on Tuesday, September 29, Tabyana Ali visited You Tube’s Michael Fairman Channel and weighed-in on who she thinks could be the culprit! However, Tabyana shared she actually has no idea who it actually will turn out to be.
“The crazy thing is that everybody knows who it is except for me! They’re keeping that secret from me,” revealed Ali. “They want me to be as oblivious as Trina.”

Courtesy/ABC
THOSE WHO WENT OVERBOARD AND PRESUMED DEAD
After looking over the potential suspects and with all the theories that have floated about, Tabyana had her top picks! “I would love for it to be Spencer. I would love for it to be Esme. Mostly because I also just want my friends back on set, too. I would love to just see them and hang out with them. I think it definitely could be one of those two,” speculated Ali.
“I think everybody thought it could have been Quinn, or could have been Simon. I think we were all pointing in that direction for a minute, but I thinks that’s too easy”, declares Tabyana. “I think they’re just trying to throw me off, and trying to make it seem like it’s one of them. Now, nobody told me one way or the other about them.”
As soaps go, it’s usually not the first string of suspects who turn out to be the actual person behind the stalking. Tabyana agreed, “If you just know writing in general, if you just know TV in general, if you know soaps in general, you know that’s a game. You know, they set up, set up, set up, and then they really show the reveal. So. I was like, ‘This is just the setup to the reveal, right?'”
As for it being Spencer, it may not because his motives are bad. Ali shared, “It could be Spencer trying to fight his way back to Trina, or Heather trying to get revenge for her dead daughter Esme, or Esme herself. Those are all good ones, I was also playing around with what if it’s Cyrus Renault (Jeff Kober)? That would be kind of fun. Don’t know what his motive would be. I know he passed away. He’s dead because of Joss (Eden McCoy), but it’s like everybody comes back alive on soaps, so…”

Photo: ABC
FROM KAI WITH LOVE
Some fans theorized it could be Trina’s boyfriend, Kai Taylor (Jens Austin Astrup) or one another option being that the real stalker takes him out. “I think that’s kind of happened to all of Trina’s boyfriends,” lamented Tabyana. “They’ve all kind of gone that way. So, hopefully it doesn’t happen that way. Would it be easier if Kai was the stalker? Okay, yeah, maybe. He’d go to jail for a couple months or whatever. Come on out and then what? He would had to have had a brain-eating amoeba that made him do it. Who knows?” (Laughs)
In the end, are Trina and Kai truly in love? Ali shared her viewpoint and gave a tease, “I think they have love for one another, but to love someone it does take gradual time. I think it’s getting to that point. I think with this music situation as well, it is really proving to Trina that Kai is willing to be there with her every step of the way.”
She continued, “He is supporting her 10 toes down, making sure that she has everything that she needs, to going to every live show. I think this portion of their lives will definitely guide them somewhere else. I think, an ‘I love you,’ might come just around the corner.”
You can check out the full conversation with Tabyana now on the Michael Fairman Channel below.
Then weigh-in, after hearing Tabyana’s thoughts on the matter, who do you think will be proven to be Trina’s stalker? Let us know via the comment section below.
Interviews
‘The Bold and the Beautiful’s’ Heather Tom Talks Daytime Emmy-Nominated Scenes and What’s Behind Katie’s Deep-Seated Issues with Dylan (Exclusive)

The Bold and the Beautiful’s Heather Tom (Katie Logan) is heading into the 53rd annual Daytime Emmys next month with a chance to win not one, but two gold statuettes to add to her collection of six!
Heather is once again a nominee for the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Daytime Drama Series, and for the first time a nominee as part of B&B’s writing team in the Outstanding Writing for a Daytime Drama Series category.
Currently, Heather is tied with One Life to Live icon, Erika Slezak (Ex-Viki) as the actresses with the most wins in Daytime Emmy history. An acting victory by Tom would break the tie, although Slezak’s wins have all been for Lead Actress, while Tom literally grew up before our eyes over 35 years in daytime, and has won in all three actress categories: Younger, Supporting and Lead.

Photo: JPI
Whether Tom wins the gold this year, next year is looking even like stronger lock with Heather delivering some of the best work of her career, over the last several months. Who can forget Katie’s showdown with her sister Brooke (Katherine Kelly Lang) over the creation of her own fashion house named Logan, that slap from Brooke, and eventually being disowned from the Logan family by Brooke and their sister, Donna (Jennifer Gareis).
This fall, Katie is in full momma bear-mode and being overprotective of her son Will Spencer’s (Crew Morrow) heart and pocketbook. In story, Katie has a massive distrust of Melissa Dylan, who has made her move on her son, while Will is still trying to deal with the break-up with the love of his life Electra Forrester.
During a live chat this week on the Michael Fairman Channel, Heather opened up on a myriad of subjects, including why Dylan gets under Katie’s skin in such a major way, and what scenes earned her a shot at Lead Actress gold at the October 30th Daytime Emmy ceremony.

Photo: JPI
HEATHER TOM’S DAYTIME EMMY SUBMISSION
In daytime, Heather Tom does it all, she acts, directs and writes for The Bold and the Beautiful. When deciding what material to submit for Emmy competition with its eligibility rules of episodes from 2025, it relayed heavily on scenes with her longtime B&B scene partner, Don Diamont (Bill Spencer).
“I submitted material having to do with the Luna (Lisa Yamada) storyline and having to do with Katie and Bill. I love that Katie and Bill have been really trying to find their way back to each other for, honestly, five years. He’s been trying to woo her back. Katie’s been like, ‘No.’ However, they come together, especially over their son, Will (Crew Morrow) and they have a very real relationship-type of discussion. It wasn’t an argument. It was more about, ‘I know you. Don’t do this.’ That’s always kind of been Katie’s relationship with Bill. The scenes with Don Diamont were about Katie and Bill’s history, the pain, and the drama, and especially about their son, seemed very familiar to me.”
Heather added, “There’s also a couple scenes with Will and Luna, when Katie finds out that Luna is pregnant. Katie was like, ‘Nope! Our son is having a baby with somebody, and we’re going to figure this out. We’ve got means and the ability to do this. I don’t care if we have to take this baby away from Luna because she’s crazy, we’ll figure it out.’ They were some really good scenes that I felt very proud of. I thought to myself, “OK, this is Katie really taking a stand for her son, and having these conversations with Bill where I just felt they were real and honest.”
In conclusion to standing by her choices of scenes, Heather explained, “It was nice to see Bill and Katie operating as a parental unit and have her be like, “Yep, we’re not doing this. You know, you can’t force Luna to do anything, so let’s just figure out how we’re dealing with this.” Katie was kind of the adult in the room. Then, the scenes where Bill says to Katie, “You have to come back to me and I need you,” while Katie shed a few tears, she still didn’t take him back, not yet.”

Photo: JPI
DYLAN BROKE THE ‘GIRLFRIEND CODE’
There are specific reasons why Katie has it out for Melissa Dylan. In fact, Dylan went so far as to get her mother Darcy Dylan to town to shut down Katie’s suspicions of her, but it still isn’t swaying Katie away from her stance on the matter. Heather revealed how she is playing the scenes.
“So, here’s the deal. It’s multifaceted,” began Tom. “This girl pushes Katie’s buttons. She reminds her of her sister, Brooke (Katherine Kelly Lang), and what Katie’s going through with her sister right now is very unpleasant. I think she looks at this girl and says, “This girl is going to crawl over anyone to get what she wants. And right now, she wants my son, and she’s willing to throw her best friend (Electra) under the bus.”
Heather also said, “Honestly, there’s something known as the ‘girlfriend code.’ Would you like to know what the girlfriend code is? ‘The girlfriend code’ is if your girlfriend, who is also your best friend, dates a guy and is especially in love with him, it doesn’t matter if you break up, that guy is off limits. You need to find yourself another guy.”
KATIE’S TROUBLES WITH BROOKE AND DYLAN MAKE HER TAKE A STAND
Katie clearly draws a similarity to her sister Brooke and Melissa Dylan which is also driving her attitude, which Heather confirmed. “So to Katie, it’s like Dylan broke that code. She is someone who follows her heart just like Brooke and leaves carnage in her wake,” said Tom.
She continued, “I think Katie looks at her and goes ‘Okay, one, you were living in your car. You didn’t call your mother who clearly loves you and ask her for help, but you were more than willing to take help from this, lovely rich guy.’ I think Katie feels like the fact that Dylan has been so expressive of how in love she is with Will, I think she finds that a little weird. She’s telling him that she’s e in love with him, and he doesn’t say it back to you. So, clearly he’s in not in love with you.”
In story, Katie can’t trust a young woman, who knows her son doesn’t feel the same way about her and yet is still hanging around. Heather shared Katie’s viewpoint to Dylan: “He’s clearly in love with your best friend. So, isn’t it a little unsettling that she kind of keeps saying she’s in love with him? So that’s my multifaceted reason why Katie doesn’t like her. It really has nothing to do with the fact that she came from humble beginnings because Katie did too. That being said, the Spencers are billionaires, so she would have to also look out for that. However, I don’t think that’s the main reason why she doesn’t like this girl or doesn’t trust her. I really don’t.”
You can check out the full conversation from our livestream conversation on the Michael Fairman Channel below.
Now let us know, are you rooting for Heather Tom to win the Lead Actress Daytime Emmy? What did you think of the scenes she submitted? Will Katie be proven right about Melissa Dylan, or will her distrust blow up in her face and she will wind up respecting Dylan when all is said and done? Weigh-in via the comment section.
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