from daytime royalty
daytimeroyaltyonline.com/topic/8548976/1/Daytime Royalty interview with Judi Evans
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Daytime Royalty had the opportunity today to speak with Judi Evans (Adrienne, ex-Bonnie). We discussed the upcoming changes, her onscreen son Sonny, and her opportunity to work again with Wally Kurth.
Evans told us that she does not know much about what the show has in store for the viewers in the upcoming months. “We’re pretty much in the dark and looking forward to the changes as much as anyone else. We’re very excited to see what happens.” As for the term “reset” being used, Evans had not heard that word used yet, but she says that the show will be bringing back characters that have been off canvas for a while and getting back to the core families and core values that were so popular on the show in the past. She admitted to us that she was a little concerned when she heard about the impending regime change. “Everyone has their own ideas, and you don’t know honestly if you’re going to be a part of that or not.” However, she said she firmly believes that when one door closes, another door opens. “Whatever happens, you can’t really worry about it. It’s the way life’s supposed to be.”
Evans’ onscreen brother Matt Ashford has been announced as one of the upcoming returns. When asked if she would be working with him, she said, “I hope so. I used to really love working with Matt, so I hope we get a chance to.” When we expressed our frustration that the show can’t seem to get all three Johnson siblings on at once, Evans laughed and cryptically responded, “I know, but you never know…”
Evans is currently on recurring status with the show. Evans said she likes being on recurring status because it allows her to work at her fulltime, 40 hour a week job. “They’re so efficient at the studio that when I work it’s usually not so many hours. Basically, I don’t have weekends any more or days off.”
We discussed the upcoming storyline with Justin (Wally Kurth) and Adrienne’s son Sonny (Freddie Smith). Evans wasn’t able to give us much information about the “gay storyline” which is supposedly in the works. “I actually haven’t been working with him (Smith) lately. I don’t know how that [story] is progressing, but I hope very well.” So far, though, Evans has liked the way her character has been portrayed. Evans said “I love that they just love their son, and it doesn’t define who he is. It’s just a part of who he is. And they love him no matter what.”
When asked what she loves most about Adrienne, Evans was quick to respond. “Her heart is always in the right place. She’s a real family person and kind of a hopeless romantic.” Speaking of romance, Evans also had good things to say about the pairing of Justin and Adrienne. “They have a tremendous mutual respect for each other and care for each other individually as much as they do as a couple.”
Evans had just as much praise for her co-star Kurth. “He’s just the sweetest. He has the greatest heart. He’s very easygoing. We’re very similar in that work is work, but we also have our lives. Our families are number one. Our spouses and our children mean more to us than anything.” Evans told us that if Kurth were asked the same question about her, his answer would probably be the same. She joked, “We’re almost exactly alike, except he’s a boy and I’m a girl.”
Evans and Kurth recently hosted an event together: Justin and Adrienne’s wedding reception! The proceeds benefited Kurth & Taylor’s Foundation for Children. The event was special for fans who missed out on seeing the characters remarry. “It was a very good time. We wanted to do a benefit to raise money for Wally’s charity. There was a lot of fan reaction that they didn’t get to see Justin and Adrienne’s wedding, so someone asked ‘Why don’t you do a reception?’ The fans really liked it. Wally and I try to give back to the fans. Without them we would be nowhere. We wanted to let them know that they are number one.”
Evans told us that the fan reaction she has received so far has been very favorable. “They love us together, and they love the family dynamic between Freddie, Wally, and I.” Evans agreed with the fans: “We love Freddie. He’s adorable; he’s sweet, and he’s a good actor and very professional.”
Speaking of fans, Evans told us that she has been lucky so far and hasn’t had any crazy fan interactions. She believed this is due to the character she plays. “I think a lot of times when you’re a nice girl, you tend to generate nice fans.” She isn’t unfamiliar with some of the stories about such things, though! “One woman I know was smacked down in a grocery story. She was the nicest lady, but she played such a bad girl.” Though Evans hasn’t been spat on yet, she joked with us, “I’d probably like it.”
Evans can actually be counted among the many Days fans. She told us that she kept up with Days when she was on Another World. “Our lunch break came when Days was on. We’d all gather in the green room and watch the show together. We were all big fans of it. It was the possession storyline… awesome.”
Evans had fond memories of some of her own previous work. “The Greek wedding was always my favorite. We had to shoot it in Greece, and it was beautiful. The wedding was just tremendous.” She also had some funny memories about Bonnie Lockhart, the other character she has played on Days (from 2003-2007). In particular she loved the scenes with Max the dog. She laughed as she told us, “The dog was a crack up. He could have asked me to marry him. I probably would have. I had scars on my legs from him trying to hump me.” We had to ask her if she knew what happened to Max. Her answer was not quite what we expected! “He’s running around Salem. He’s impregnated several other dogs. There’s little Max puppies all over.”
Evans had two messages for the fans: “Keep watching. We’ve always got great stuff up our sleeves. But most of all thank you for your support and your loyalty throughout the years. We only hope that we can keep entertaining you.”
