The 51st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards will be held on Friday, June 7, with the ceremony airing live on CBS starting at 8 p.m. ET. Soap Opera Digest chatted with the nominees to get the scoop on how they found out, what episodes they submitted, and more as we count down to daytime’s biggest night!
Howard Wise/jpistudios.com
Outstanding Supporting Actor
Bryton James (Devon, Young and Restless)
What did you submit?
“I started the reel with this scene that I did probably the longest ago. It was really early last year when I confronted Tucker [Trevor St. John] the first time I actually realized or found out that he was kind of conniving and trying to take over Chancellor-Winters. I go into his hotel suite and Ashley’s [Eileen Davidson] in there, and I just have it out with him and tell him off and then storm out. And then a scene where Nate [Sean Dominic] and Devon are making up after about a year and a half of a lot of drama and hate between them. And then the rest is just the continuation of the storyline where Devon is trying to split the company into the Chancellor-Winters and Lily [Christel Khalil], he’s going head to head with Lily about it, and then they finally make up the night that they reveal the new Winters’ Jazz lounge. Then I ended it with the last scene I ever did with Mishael Morgan [Amanda Sinclair on Y&R]. We kind of resolve our differences and what we did to each other. For the most part, it’s the storyline of Devon wanting to split the company, and two scenes that are a little bit outside of that story.”
How did you find out you were nominated?
“I got a call from our publicist, Matt Kane. He called me right after 9 a.m. when they were announcing it. I was actually already up. I had woken up a little early and I knew they were going to come out. So I was kind of just looking at my phone saying, ‘When they were going to start posting stuff?’ and then I got a call.”
Did any of the messages that you received stand out?
“I mean from just about everybody and they always stand out. I think the first one I got was from Lauralee Bell [Christine on Y&R], and getting a message from Peter Bergman [Jack on Y&R] always makes my day. Everybody, just everybody. Anybody whom I admire, these people I work with, and everyone in the daytime community. It takes a lot to do what we do. And yeah, any acknowledgment I get there, of people thinking that I’m doing a good job. It really means everything to me.”
Did you do anything to celebrate?
“I think I worked that day, so that was the best thing I could do.”
What does the nomination mean to you?
“It means to me that people that I admire and that I respect immensely in this daytime world, that they think that I’m doing a decent job and that means the world to me, that I make the daytime community proud, especially The Young and the Restless family.”
Will anyone in your family be attending?
Yes, I’m going to be bringing my mom. I think she has been only a handful of times that she has actually come with me. She was there when I won the first time in 2007, and I think the last time she came was in 2019. So yeah, this will be great.”
Are you a “prepare a speech” or wing it kind of person?
“I’m always a prepared person. Winging anything is my least favorite thing to do. And I know what the feeling is like when they actually call your name and everything in your head goes out the window. And I was very happy that I had something prepared the first time. So, if there’s an opportunity for me to have to walk on stage and talk to people, I will never not be prepared.”
Will you bring a lucky charm?
“I don’t actually. I used to think that the tie that I had on the first time I won, this gold tie was lucky, and I wore that a couple times since when I’ve been nominated. But I think I lost that tie in a hotel room a couple years ago. So that ain’t going to come with me this time. But now, I mean, bringing my mom is the luckiest charm I think I could bring.”
How do you feel about Y&R’s other acting nominations?
“I am biased, of course, I imagine that all of us are going to win. I know that the Supporting Actress, it’s a great competition with Courtney [Hope; Sally] and Allison [Lanier; Summer]. I think they were just phenomenal this year. I want to see Linden [Ashby; Cameron] take away the Guest Actor. I want to see Michelle Stafford [Phyllis] win. She deserves one every year.”
