Days of our Lives is about to get even soapier, which is hard to believe, but true! The NBC drama series is bringing back the deliciously devilish character Vivian Alamain, and this time around, they've recruited daytime veteran Linda Dano (ex-Rae Cummings, General Hospital/One Life to Live/All My Children; ex-Felicia Gallant, Another World; ex-Cynthia Haines, As the World Turns; ex-Lena Kendall, Guiding Light) for the role!
Soap Opera Digest reports that the Los Angeles native has already been spotted on set at DAYS, and she is set to air in early 2021.
Dano has a long history in daytime television, beginning with her 1978 role as One Life to Live's Gretel Cummings, a character she later took to General Hospital, Port Charles, and All My Children under the name Rae Cummings. Dano also played As the World Turns' Cynthia Haines from 1981 to 1982, Another World's Felicia Gallant from 1982 to 1999, and Guiding Light's Lena Kendall in 2000.
Dano seems to have taken a break from acting after her role as Grandmother in the 2007 film Reservation Road, as her next credit following the Joaquin Phoenix drama is 2019's Chronicle Mysteries. As Soap Central previously reported, Dano joined DAYS' Alison Sweeney (Sami Brady) for the Hallmark series. We're not sure why there's such a gap in her résumé, but we're sure glad that she's decided to return to acting -- and soap operas!
DAYS' Vivian has had several reincarnations over the years, but one thing about the villainous Salemite remains constant: she is always played by legends. Prior to Dano taking on the role, her portrayers included Louise Sorel, who originated the role in 1992; Marj Dusay, who temporarily played the role in 1993; and Robin Strasser (ex-Dorian Lord OLTL), who played the role in 2018. Sorel returned as Vivian on June 30, 2020, and wrapped up her stint on July 20 of the same year.
How do you feel about multi-soap veteran Linda Dano stepping into the role of DAYS' Vivian? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.
