DAYS Star Dan Feuerriegel on EJ’s Johnny Dilemma and Big Rachel Reveal (Exclusive)

Since getting shot and awakening from his coma, EJ DiMera has been a changed man… or so he’s tried to convince the people around him. Yet the Days of Our Lives antagonist could resort to his old ways now that the DiMera family has gained control of Salem University Hospital — and not only that, but he’s learned that his niece, Rachel, witnessed Johnny pointing a gun at him the night he was shot. Dan Feuerriegel (EJ) spoke to Soap Opera Digest about his character’s latest coup and the predicament he’s in with Rachel and Johnny.

Soap Opera Digest: EJ has been kinder and gentler since being shot, which is a major switch. What’s that been like to play?

Dan Feuerriegel: I like bringing in different kinds of personality styles for EJ, like when he’s with his mother [Susan] or when he’s being cutthroat or when he’s with Johnny. I really do like this [transformation], and it makes absolute sense based on what he’s been through. That’s why I really enjoy it. It’s not just coming out of the blue. It’s fun, and it gives me something different to do.

Digest: A lot of people aren’t buying the new and improved EJ. Does that fuel his fire to prove he really is a changed man?

Feuerriegel: Yes and no. It’s kind of interesting, because the way I was approaching it was that EJ was genuinely, from the bottom of his heart, trying, and no one believed him. Everyone has kept snapping at him and dismissing him. Over time, that builds up and every now and then old EJ pops through. I see that as a defense mechanism, because he’s been living his life a very specific way. Me, personally, if I was genuinely trying hard and everyone just dismissed me, I would get irritated. But I also would have to keep it in check, because I’d completely understand why they would be that way. That’s been the fun part about playing the character. I can be frustrated by it, but I have to maintain my composure. I have to accept it. I have to look at their perspectives based on my past.

Digest: One genuine thing about EJ has been his commitment to protecting Johnny, despite remembering him pointing a gun at him before he was shot. What would you say is driving his fierce protectiveness of his son?

Feuerriegel: It just goes to show that EJ will do anything for his family, especially for his direct bloodline. The fact that he’s going so heavily to bat for his son, even though he is suspected of doing what he’s done, really goes to show that. It’s like, “Look, I do love you as much as you hate me. And I’m going to love you ’til the day I die.”

Art Imitates Life? EJ only wishes to be having as much fun with son Johnny as Feuerriegel and Carson Boatman do once the cameras stop rolling.

Digest: Why do you think EJ has been keeping this to himself as opposed to telling Johnny what he remembers?

Feuerriegel: Quite possibly he’s just waiting for the right time. And maybe Johnny’s already got enough on his mind that he doesn’t need this as well. It’s, “If I just let sleeping dogs lie, then we could potentially just move on with life.” It could also very well be a tactic of EJ’s. He’ll wait until a situation comes along where Johnny’s like, “You don’t love me, blah, blah, blah.” Then EJ can try to get back into Johnny’s good [graces] and spoon it out to him. He can say, “Look, I knew about this and I said nothing to protect you. That’s how much I care about you.”

Digest: This new,contentious version of the EJ and Johnny’s relationship has been interesting to watch.

Feuerriegel: It’s been fun to play, because it gives [their relationship] somewhere to go. It gives a destination to reach. EJ has to earn Johnny’s love back, and Johnny has to trust EJ. It gives us a new rich environment to work with.

Digest: Aside from dealing with the aftermath of his shooting, EJ has been on a mission to gain control of the hospital and so has Xander. How have you liked leading that charge for the DiMera family?

Feuerriegel: That’s been fun. It’s also great that I get to work with some other actors, because sometimes you get kind of stuck working with the same actors the whole time, which is not a bad thing. But when they spread the story all around, you get to work with people who you haven’t in a long time and only get to see in the hallways. So it’s just opened up a whole thing.

Digest: Is there anyone in particular that you’ve enjoyed sharing the screen with?

Feuerriegel: Mary Beth [Evans, Kayla]. She’s been on the show for a while. She’s a vet. She’s one of the OGs, as they say. There will be stuff coming up as well, working with Deidre Hall [Marlena], and it’s just fantastic. It’s wonderful watching people, watching the veterans and how they work. You just take little bits and pieces from their work and their preparation and how they are on set. You take that in, absorb it, and add it to your arsenal. You learn a lot from people who have been doing things for a long time.

Digest: Ultimately, the DiMeras end up in charge of the hospital. What’s EJ’s reaction, and is he hoping this might change his status in the community?

Feuerriegel: Obviously he’s excited. He’s like, “Yeah. It’s in the right hands.” EJ’s thinking a whole gamut of things. It’s like, “Okay, people can view me differently. I get to prove that I’m a changed person.” He can kind of change his reputation. But in the end, has EJ really changed? That’s all I’ll have to say about that [laughs].

Digest: While the hospital situation is good news, EJ also receives some bad news: Kristen informs him that Rachel saw Johnny pointing a gun at him the night he was shot.

Feuerriegel: EJ’s immediate reaction is, “Oh my God, poor Rachel.” Because that’s his niece, she’s a little girl, and that must have been a horrible thing to see. EJ would never do anything to her directly, but he does lay it on a little bit thick with Kristen. “Hey, you make sure nothing’s said.” It just reignites the feud between Kristen and EJ.

Digest: Kristen’s amenable to keeping quiet, if he returns her missing mother, Rachel Blake.

Spill The Tea: EJ wants to make sure that Kristen (Stacy Haiduk, far r.) keeps Rachel (Alice Halsey) from disclosing what she knows about the night EJ was shot. Also pictured: Eric Martsolf as Brady

Feuerriegel: Everybody always has something that they need to gain. Obviously, he’s very resistant to that at first. And I do believe if he was to succumb to Kristen’s demands, he would have worked behind the scenes to make things fall in his favor. Because the whole point of her mother going away was to protect EJ from getting in trouble. So it could be along the lines of like, “If I tell you where your mother is, then she can’t do this, she can’t do that.” There’s a compromise.

Digest: Is he really genuinely planning to return her mother, or is he just trying to stall for time?

Feuerriegel: It’s a little bit of both. He knows that it’s probably a good thing to not necessarily return her mother, but he could let Kristen know where she is. It’s stall, stall, stall, so he can think of more things to make sure that this doesn’t blow back on him.

Digest: What’s his level of concern about this little girl placing Johnny at the scene of a crime?

Feuerriegel: Obviously the concern is pretty decent. He wants to protect his son, and that’s another witness. But I guess there’s also, “Okay, are children reliable?” There could be that element of thought process going on too.

Digest: Does EJ confront Rachel directly about keeping quiet for Johnny’s sake?

Feuerriegel: Not like that. I do have a few scenes with [Alice Halsey, Rachel] here and there, but I don’t have any direct scenes just me and her. There are always other people there. EJ would probably see it as a little bit distasteful to threaten a child.