Exclusive: Greg Vaughan On Working With Babies (Real And Fake) On Days Of Our Lives

XJJohnson/jpistudios.com

Oliver Twist: Greg Vaughan (Eric) forged a fast bond with little Oliver McLarty (Jude).

Days of Our lives fans had to do some suspension of disbelief when, for months, the role of baby Jude — the center of the show's front-burning baby-switch storyline — was not actually played by a real infant. So, too, did Greg Vaughan (Eric), whose character was raising the little boy with his deceitful wife, Sloan, unaware that Jude was really Nicole's biological son.

"It was the longest-running joke [on set], carrying the baby doll around in a blanket," chuckles Vaughan. "There were so many times that I had to bend over in the crib or in the rocker and push that stroller around with the fake baby, a doll wrapped in a blanket. It was like, 'Oh, great. Where's the baby?!' "

Of course, Vaughan made it work. "It's just part of the craft and part of the fun," he notes. "You've just got to try to make it look as realistic as possible! You have to act it out with no baby in the crib and you're talking to this blank space that nobody knows is empty. Like, there's nothing there! I'm just looking into an empty crib or an empty carrier! It's funny. It's a challenge, but you just work through those challenges because [shooting DAYS], time is of the essence and we have to get through a lot each day."

As much as he knows it comes with the territory, "It is much easier to work with a real child," the actor allows. But we don't have all the time in the world to [shoot our episodes], and a newborn can be incredible or it can have a bad day and be tired. Plus, they have to find twin babies because one can be sad and fussing while the other one is happy [and more comfortable being on set]. But I just love working with a real baby because there's such a realness, a connection that's so different. It's in the way that they look at you and they give back to you, even though they don't know what's going on — they're just standing under all these big lights with all these strangers holding them, and you're trying to look silly to keep them happy [ laughs ]."

In May, Oliver McLarty made his DAYS debut as Jude, and Vaughan thinks the show struck gold with its choice. "He is so cute and playful," Vaughan grins. "I developed a very quick connection with that baby, that little boy. We were shooting this one scene in the DiMera mansion and Ari [Zucker, Nicole] was having problems with the baby [who was fussing] and it was just so funny because he came to me and he was fine! He was quiet and just, like, right in his comfort zone. It was like, 'Just give the baby to Greg!' He was just a joy to be around."

Vaughan points out that he's no stranger to being around children, both in real life — he raising three sons — and on soaps. "I think over the course of my own journey and through all the daytime that I've done and working with real kids, kids that are young, it's just so fun to see them exploring and then, as actors, some of them become contract players and it's fun to see them growing and getting better. But I love babies, love kids. I mean, that's why I'm a father of three!"