Alison Sweeney. Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images
Alison Sweeney is always “thrilled” to return to Days of Our Lives for an episode arc — and come 2025, fans will get to see her back in action.
“I love playing Sami and I am always happy for the chance to come back,” Sweeney, 47, told TVInsider on Tuesday, August 6, confirming that she has started to film new episodes as Sami Brady. “We always have to figure out scheduling and such, but, if at all possible, I’m so glad to make it happen.” (Her episodes will begin streaming on Peacock next year.)
The actress made her Days of Our Lives debut in 1987 as a young Adrienne Johnson in a flashback. It wasn’t until 1993 that she began portraying Sami on the soap opera. Sweeney exited the show in 2014 after 21 years, but she has continued to make cameos on the series, the latest being in December 2022.
Many celebrities have soap operas to thank for launching their careers. Before becoming an Oscar winner, Julianne Moore got her start on As the World Turns in 1988. She portrayed sisters Frannie Hughes and Sabrina Hughes, which scored her a Daytime Emmy in 1988. Moore eventually exited the series to kickstart her film career. Like […]
“We were all trying to figure out how long it’s been; no one could remember!” she teased. “I remembered Sami’s grand exit storming out of the DiMera mansion. I was interested to hear how and why they were bringing Sami back to town. With Sami it could be anything.”
Sweeney played coy about why Sami is coming back to Salem, but she hinted it will live up to her dramatic standards. “Well, it was definitely an unexpected storyline they pitched me,” she said. “I have to tell you, of all the ideas, I was pretty shocked.”
The soap star added, “I am so glad that Sami is still such a part of the town. It’s fun for me.”
When soap opera stars leave their roles, it can be as shocking as their shows’ plotlines. Alison Sweeney surprised longtime Days of Our Lives fans in 2014 when she announced she’d be exiting the series after 21 years. “I’ve been on Days of Our Lives since I was 16 years old, and I have never […]
While Sweeney is excited to get back to her soap roots, she confessed, “I definitely get nervous” returning to the show’s format.
“I always wonder if I can still memorize all these lines,” she explained. “I mean, when I’m doing the movies for Hallmark, we film eight or nine pages at most. Today I have 30-plus pages. It definitely pulls on different skills. And everyone at Days is used to doing it every day. I don’t want to be the one they’re waiting for.”
Despite a few back-to-work jitters, Sweeney said she enjoys stepping back into the role of Marlena Evans (Deidre Hall) and Roman Brady (currently played by Josh Taylor).
Josh Taylor, Alison Sweeney and Deidre Hall in ‘Days of Our Lives.’ NBC
“It does feel like a time capsule in some ways,” she shared. “The dressing rooms, the photos in the hallway, the make-up room is essentially the same as when I started in 1993.”
The whole experience was “very nostalgic” and filled with “so many memories,” according to the actress.
Sweeney originally exited Days to focus on other projects, including her long list of Hallmark movies which feature The Wedding Veil franchise and the Hannah Swensen Mysteries. Her worlds, however, have never been that far apart.
The Hallmark Channel has become the one-stop-shop of holiday movies and light-hearted rom-coms over the years — with many fans tuning in to see their favorite leading ladies. Whether it’s When Calls the Heart’s Erin Krakow or Sweet Autumn lead Nikki DeLoach, the network is full of talented women telling heart-warming stories. Hallmark’s long list […]
“I already had the opportunity to invite Kristian Alfonso, who played Hope [on Days] to be in one of my Chronicle Mysteries [films],” Sweeney exclusively told Us Weekly in October 2022, referring to one of her earlier Hallmark and Days crossovers.
She also recalled having Farah Fath, who played Mimi Lockhart on the soap opera, in an “early” Murder She Baked movie from Hallmark Mystery.
Sweeney told Us that she’d “absolutely” have more of the Days family join if possible. “I really do try as much as possible to keep those doors open and encourage crossovers whenever possible,” she added. “I think it’s so much fun.”
New episodes of Days of Our Lives drop on Peacock every weekday morning at 6 a.m. ET.
