Every Days of our Lives fan knows that where there's a DiMera, there's always drama. Take Chad DiMera's recent wedding, for instance. What was supposed to be a beautiful double ceremony for him and Abigail as well as Sonny and Paul turned into a nightmare experience for all intended spouses-to-be. Fortunately, Chabby made the best of the dreadful situation and still managed to tie the knot. But then Sami Brady stormed back into town and planted a kiss on Chad's lips -- basically before the ink on the couple's wedding certificate was even dry. But if you think that was stunning, wait until you hear what portrayer Billy Flynn has to say about the surprise kiss, Chabby's post-wedding future, and where Chad will go from here.
soapcentral.com: So first things first, because everyone is talking about it: Sami and Chad kissed last week! Like, what the hell?
Billy Flynn: My phone has been blowing up over that! As an actor, it was fun, because I always joked around with her when I first came on that she could come and give Chad a hug if she was lonely, before the Chad and Abigail thing, in order for her to get back at E.J. I always used to joke around about that with her. So it was fun to see it come full circle, and we laughed about it. It was a bit weird, though, because for camera purposes and for drama effect, you've got to let the kiss linger and go on a bit, so in my mind, I was like [as Chad], "I should be stopping this!" But he can't because they need it -- the kiss has to last awkwardly long in order for it to play right.
soapcentral.com: Alison Sweeney said in an interview that the kiss happened because Sami misses E.J. so much, and he and Chad are kind of similar, so she let herself kind of fall into it. Can you talk about Chad's feelings about the whole thing and what the kiss meant to him?
Flynn: That's an interesting perspective from her side, because I just thought Sami did that to be a shit to Abby! [Laughs] It's tough to say. I was oddly nervous because you joke around about it for so long, and then it's like, "All right, here we go. Alison Sweeney." The idea that it's her kind of creeps in, you know? And maybe fans won't like it, but there was a moment I played with when Abigail walks in, I sort of chuckled and wasn't really that mad about it, because it was like, "I didn't do anything! She did it. But it's kind of funny, because you slept with my brother." Ultimately, I was just kind of like, "Let's just chalk it up, you did that, and let's just call it even at this point." That was in my mind, as kind of a joke. The thing is, Chad and Abigail are comfortable with each other; she knows where his heart lies. But the fact that Sami tried to get revenge for so long, and then she comes back and just does it? I played the moment as chuckling a bit, with Chad being a bit like, "See? Doesn't feel good, does it?!" [Laughs]
soapcentral.com: Even though it wasn't a serious kiss, could it have opened the door for a future connection between the two characters?
Flynn: Oh, wow! I would have a hard time thinking that it's going to, but then again, what do I know? Ultimately, on a soap, there's always a possibility. I don't think Alison would want to do that storyline, just because I don't see what would be in it for her, unless she just really wanted to work with me. Because she's kind of done it all. But I think it would be fun! But I also think her heart lies with E.J. and Sami, as mine does with Chad and Abigail. So if they were going to do it, it would be interesting to see how they would do it.
soapcentral.com: What was it like for you kissing Alison Sweeney? I heard you actually had a crush on her!
Flynn: We used to joke around, and when I first started, it wasn't really a crush; it was more like a joke, because we did have great chemistry. I remember one time when she went to slap me and I grabbed her hand, and I think it was just the blue eyes and blue eyes or just something about it that was just kind of fun, so I played it up quite a bit. Like I said, it's Alison Sweeney: she's beautiful, and she's talented, and she's been on the show forever. She's an icon. So I was a little bit nervous. I think we were both actually a little bit nervous. I remember both of us being like, "Why is this so weird?!" I think for her, she was coming back [after being gone for a while], and for me, it was like, "I'm about to plant one on Sami Brady." The whole thing was fun, and actually, we had to do a couple of takes. Something kept happening where something kept messing up. The cameras were going off or something like that, so we had to do it like four or five times.
soapcentral.com: That's like so many men's dream right there, Billy. You're living it up!
Flynn: Hey, same with Chad DiMera! He's no [frog]!
soapcentral.com: So how does Abigail handle this kiss? It's her brand new husband and her arch nemesis!
Flynn: I think ultimately, at least the way I saw Marci play it, she just kind of swallowed it, you know? She knew what Sami was doing, and I think she just kind of chalked it up to, "Maybe she's grieving, maybe it's this, maybe it's that." You could see the fire burning underneath Marci playing the part, but because she's so good and so layered, underneath all that fire, I think she just kind of swallowed it, like, "Okay, I'm going to let that one slide. You do it again, though, and we're going to have some trouble."
soapcentral.com: Well they certainly started their marriage out with a bang!
Flynn: Yeah, it's a DiMera man. Crazy stuff happens!
soapcentral.com: So how do you feel about the way the double wedding ended, actually? Do you feel like Chad and Abigail got the moment they deserved?
Flynn: It's interesting because I think the romantic part of me, as Billy, that loves the character, wanted them to have their own moment, especially after everything they had gone through and the falling-out that they had had. Selfishly thinking, you have all these other iconic couples -- and they're iconic, and I'm not putting us in that category -- but they had their special day, and I felt like Chad and Abigail sort of had so many things coming up on their day, and I just felt like, can't they just have their own special wedding where nothing goes wrong?! But I think for purposes of moving the storyline along, they kind of had to do it that way for story purposes, and I think [head writer Ron Carlivati] did a great job with it. The whole wedding, especially the stuff with Abigail and Ben [Robert Scott Wilson] was amazing. Bryan Dattilo also killed it; the whole thing was really great, and I was happy to be a part of it all. At the end of the day, I think I played it like, "Oh, you're not here for us? Okay, carry on, and we're going to go finish this thing."
soapcentral.com: A lot of soap opera couples get really boring after they get married. Do you think that will be the case for Chad and Abigail?
Flynn: I always hear that your story goes on the back burner. Ours did for a beat, but I've got to say, I actually enjoyed [the post-wedding stuff] almost as much if not more than when they were together before. It's fun to play that, because that's the side you don't often see, and that's the side that's harder to play. To be two people in love, to be angsty or brooding and chasing the woman, you know that sells. But as an actor, it's a lot harder to sell a couple that is happy and in love, and to play the humor and the little goofy moments that they have between them, like a real couple has. The looks that they share and even the arguments. Two people can be doing well and be happy, but they just have an argument, and it's different than these big blowups, and I think that was a fun test for us, and we had a good time. I think people are going to like it. There's some stuff coming up where we're happy for a bit, and we had a good time with it; she and I had fun.
soapcentral.com: So there are some on-screen moments of their happiness?
Flynn: Yeah, definitely. Obviously it's a soap, so things are going to happen, but they definitely allowed [some happy moments]. I kind of compare it to Patch [Stephen Nichols] and Kayla [Mary Beth Evans], how they have their cute moments. Chad and Abigail have these really cool little things they do, these special moments. And I think as actors, that's the fun part. You know how soap fans are: they always want the angst and they always want the chase, so the question is, can you keep people interested and invested when it's two people sitting around eating popcorn and talking about how much they love each other?
soapcentral.com: Have you and Marci been able to organically insert your own little moments? Or are most of them written in?
Flynn: Oh, yeah, definitely! It's a lot of us. I think it helps that we're both married. And I think she's kind of the same way with her husband as I am with my wife, as far as our goofiness and our play. You try not to take it too seriously, you know? Love is easy for both of us, and our partners. But with the little things that you do, I'm always kind of mindful to not do specifics that I do with my wife. And I think she's probably the same way. So you find alternatives and put that into it.
soapcentral.com: I can see how if you show love a certain way in real life, that you could accidentally do the same thing on-screen. Like putting your arm around someone the same way or something. It's actually never something I'd thought about before.
Flynn: And a lot of people might not. Like I said, I'm always really mindful. Even when it came down to the wedding, getting married on the show. I had gotten married on the show the first time before I was getting married in real life, and I was mindful to still give everything and keep the moment truthful and give everything I had to the story, but at the same time, I didn't want to give the moment that belongs to my wife. That moment when I first see her and marry her. And we're actors, so that's our job, to kind of figure out what moment is enough to do the job but not [step into real life].
soapcentral.com: Your wife (Gina Comparetto), is also an actress, right? So is she fine with you doing all these soap opera love scenes and kissing scenes?
Flynn: Yeah, she is an actress. But I don't think it's ever easy; it's always kind of weird. But at the end of the day, it's just a job.
soapcentral.com: How do you deal with her doing kissing scenes?
Flynn: She came on the show and had to kiss [John-Paul Lavoisier] Philip! She came onto DAYS for a small part and had to make out with him. I wasn't in, but that was kind of like a fair's fair kind of thing.
soapcentral.com: Good attitude! So every actor that I've talked with praises the show's head writer, Ron Carlivati. I'm wondering how you feel about what he's penning for the show and Chad?
Flynn: He's amazing. He was tasked with sort of an impossible feat, which was getting everything back on track. And I think he understands who Chad is, and he gives room within his writing to kind of write for the actor. So there are nuances or little jokes, and I can be kind of a goofball, so he allows that stuff and even writes for it. I can't say enough great things about him.
soapcentral.com: How do you think he sees Chad in the grand scheme of things?
Flynn: I think at the end of the day, you have your icons and your vets, and they obviously deserve to be written for. But I think Chad has grown a lot as a character, so hopefully he sees the layers that I've put into him and he respects that. But I think based on all the writing, he sees the importance of the character.
soapcentral.com: You've been with DAYS for a little over three years now, so have you thought much about whether or not you want to stick around when the end of your contract comes up, if you want to keep bringing life to Chad?
Flynn: Yeah, I'd love to play Chad as long as I can. This show kind of changed my life, and I owe them my heart. The people here are amazing, and there is always an interesting story to tell.
How do you feel about Chabby's marital moment? What are your hopes for the couple as newlyweds? What did you think about Chad and Sami's kiss? Would you like to see that connection further explored? 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.
