Rory Gibson (Noah, Y&R) says TV mom, Sharon Case (Sharon), has gone the extra mile to help him acclimate to the show. “Sharon and Josh [Morrow, Nick] are so similar in the overall positive energy they give off as people,” Gibson explains. “I had never met Sharon until the day we were going to be on set together. I was nervous because it had to work because Noah hadn’t been home in a while and the characters have really missed each other. I was outside eating lunch and our scene was coming up in an hour or two and Sharon came out looking for me. When she found me, she sat down with me for an hour and we just talked and got to know each other. She was so sweet and I was thinking, ‘I just met this person and I feel wildly comfortable with her.’ By the time we did those first scenes, I already felt like I was talking to someone I had known for a long time.”
Few people were happier than Marci Miller (Abigail) when Melissa Reeves returned to DAYS as her TV mom, Jennifer. “I adore Missy,” says Miller. “I don’t know that anybody who’s ever met Missy could deny the fact that there is something really special about her. She contributes to every environment positively. It’s so fun for me to have her. She’s maternal. She’s also like an older sister. She’s the ideal co-worker in every possible way. I’m always so happy to see her. Cady [McClain, who filled in as Jennifer] was amazing, too, in her own unique beautiful ways, but Missy was my first mom. She’s the mom that my mom watched on television. There’s something where the roots are just a little bit deeper for me.” Miller has one particular memory of working with the actress. “It was when I first starting working there, and Abby had come back to Salem,” explains Miller. “She hadn’t seen Thomas yet and was urging her mom to bring him to her. I remember really struggling with those scenes. I couldn’t relate to them. I couldn’t get there emotionally.” During a 10 minute break from taping, Miller remembers feeling “frustrated and overwhelmed, and I just lost it. I started bawling,” she says. “Missy came over and gave me the pep talk of all pep talks. She picked me up. It was one of the most beautiful, authentic conversations that she and I have ever had. Then we went and shot the scenes, and it was awesome. It’s one of my most favorite moments that I’ve ever shot on the show.”
In September, GH said good-bye to Theo and Erik Olson, who began sharing the role of Wiley back in 2018, when they relocated with their family to France. Their on-screen mama, Katelyn MacMullen (Willow), shares, “Their mom told me, ‘Yeah, we’re moving,’ and I was like, ‘No!!!’ It was sad because they’ve grown up with us, you know? They were such a pleasure to work with and part of such an amazing family, so it was definitely sad, but I was also happy for them at the same time because their mom is pregnant with a girl and so I knew they were kind of stating a new chapter in their lives. It seems like it was an exciting prospect for them. Eventually, they would have had to be recast anyway, because they always have to age up the kids, so I was like, ‘You know what? If this is the way it goes down, at least it’s a new chapter in their personal lives and one that sounds exciting.’ All of the Wileys have been great, honestly. I feel like we’ve been really fortunate. Being on camera at that age can’t be easy!”
Matthew Atkinson (Thomas) has a most memorable B&B moment from the past year has nothing to do with him or Thomas. “It was when Thorsten [Kaye, Ridge] was giving his speech at Steffy’s wedding to Finn,” Atkinson recalls. “[As a father of two daughters in real-life], I think Thorsten added his own special take to what was already written, and he even brought a photo of when Jacqui [MacInnes Wood, Steffy] when she was a kid, just to make it that much more real. It was such an honest and tear-filled moment. I don’t know even if I was on camera at all during those scenes, but watching this unfold, I was in tears. I was crying! Everyone in the scene was in tears, even if they weren’t supposed to be. Thorsten really thought it out, and he deserves all the credit for that emotional and powerful moment he got for that. It was truly moving for all of us.”