Exclusive Interview

Peter Porte On His DAYS OF OUR LIVES Exit

December 20, 2023 11:05AM

Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images

For the second time during his DAYS OF OUR LIVES tenure — first, on 2021’s BEYOND SALEM special and now on the main soap — Peter Porte’s alter ego, Dimitri von Leuschner, has been carted off to prison, which means that the actor’s six-month run on the Peacock series has come to an end.

“I didn’t see it coming,” admits Porte, referring to the exit story that had Dimitri turn himself in to the cops to save Leo. “It was pretty powerful. I loved it. It’s always sad when your storyline comes to an end, but I think that it was a very smart way of wrapping things up. Ultimately, so much of what we saw between Dimitri and Leo was these comedic antics, yet they were very much in love. So to ground it in that way, that Dimitri had to finally make an ultimate sacrifice of himself in this display of love for Leo, was a very passionate and beautiful way to wrap things.”

Porte, who resurfaced on DAYS last May, enjoyed the many stories he got to play as Dimitri, starting with the character being revealed as a member of the DiMera clan and working with his TV mother, Miranda Wilson (ex-Megan). “It’s always fun to be part of a preexisting family that has a lot of very exciting, lascivious attributes,” says Porte. “There’s a lot to play in that. We share a very fun DNA family line. And Miranda is great. She’s a pro. She’s been doing this for ages and really understands the genre, so it was really fun to not only get to work with her, but also learn from her.”

Porte felt much the same way about the opportunity to share the screen with co-stars Greg Rikaart (Leo) and Emily O’Brien (ex-Gwen; Theresa). Notes Porte, “I knew Greg very well before [intersecting on DAYS]. We met my first week at THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS,” where Porte played Ricky and Rikaart plays Kevin. “We only ever shared one very brief interaction on [Y&R]. I walked up to the bar that he was working at, asked for a drink and he ignored me. That’s it. It was such a bummer that being as close as we were, friends for over a decade, we never got to work together. So when this came to be at DAYS, we were both thrilled.

“And as far as Emily goes, I had heard of her before,” continues Porte. “We have a lot of mutual friends, because Emily is a beautiful singer, and I work in the theater as well. I’d heard of her and actually heard her singing voice, but I’d never gotten to work with her. So I was very excited to finally meet her in person.”

Once Porte, Rikaart and O’Brien began working together, it was pure magic. “The way that story unfolded with the love triangle with Gwen and Leo,” muses Porte, “was so tasty and so fun to play. And [they are] two of my favorite people to play with on the show. I was very lucky to be paired with them.”

And, in turn, very lucky to amass some memorable highlights along the way. “Once we were off to the races with Greg and I on the lam, that was probably my favorite time on the show,” offers Porte. “Also, any kind of THREE’S COMPANY scene with Emily O’Brien, where we were trying to hide our affair from her, was very fun to play. But I think perhaps my favorite scene was when Dimitri and Leo get into the car crash and then have to figure out how to effectively deliver a baby on the side of the road. That was very fun to shoot with Ari [Zucker, Nicole], who’s incredible.”

Porte has fond memories of Dimitri and Leo’s many plights and predicaments. “Shooting the double wedding was a lot of fun,” he says of the Gabi/Stefan and Dimitri/Gwen nuptials. “And when Dimitri and Leo were [masquerading as] ghosts in Horton Town Square. I loved that. I actually kept that sheet. I was like, ‘Can I keep this sheet?’ And wardrobe was like, ‘I guess, yeah.’ [I kept it] as a memory from DAYS.”

Since leaving the soap, Porte has kept busy with a couple of film projects. “I essentially did my last day on the soap, and then, the next day, got a phone call that I was going to Vancouver to shoot a Hallmark movie [NOTES OF AUTUMN],” he explains. “And my love interest, funny enough, was named Leo. I was like, ‘I can’t get rid of this guy!’ I also was able to very fortunately sell a Christmas movie, the first one that I’ve ever produced as well as acted in. It’s called YULETIDE THE KNOT and aired internationally and in the US on UPtv.”

As for a possible return to DAYS, the actor reveals, “What I’ve been led to believe is there may be a future for Dimitri on the show somewhere down the line, but in what capacity, I don’t know.” And Porte would definitely be up for it. “I had a great time. I mean, not only did I get to play with and hang out with my friends, that I would choose to do for free, but I was getting paid for it. And the commute is 10 minutes from my house. That’s a win-win. This show is so special, because things really click along. The amount that I was able to cover, even in six months, was pretty incredible. It really was a great experience.”