Soap star Judi Evans Dishes on ‘Days of Our Lives’ and Opens Up About Managing Grief After Losing Her Son and More

With the casting almost complete for the Days of Our Lives soap within a soap Body & Soul , veteran soap opera star Judi Evans’ character, Bonnie, is taking the lead as “Kassandra” in a campy, meta storyline that’s offering viewers a peek behind the scenes of making soap operas.

The Daytime Emmy-winner, who also got into the drama on Guiding Light , Another World , and As The World Turns spoke to WW/FFW about her 42-year run in daytime, creating romance with Wally Kurth , and getting goofy with pals like Deidre Hall . Evans also opened up about how her husband, her friends, and Bonnie Lockhart's wacky adventures have kept her going in the wake of losing her son in 2019.

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Four decades of soap opera stardom

When Judi Evans landed the role as Guiding Light ’s Beth Raines back in 1983, it put her on the map and earned her a 1984 Daytime Emmy at just 19. After three years of hustling and studying acting, that first role was a game changer… sort of.

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“Getting that job was a dream, but I can't tell you how many people said, ‘You'll never make it. This is not for you. You should do something else,’” she recounts. “Since I was 22, I've heard nothing but, ‘There are not a lot of roles for a woman your age,’ so it's always been an uphill climb. I just keep scraping along.”

Evans’ determination took her to Days of Our Lives , where she assumed the role of Adrienne Johnson-Kiriakis in 1996 and after many epic adventures, also created the role of Bonnie.

Along the way, there was a sidestep to Another World , where she played Paulina Cory from 1991 to 1999, as well as a stint as As the World Turns’ Maeve Stone — and four decades later, Evans is still making us laugh and cry as Salem’s beloved Bonnie.

“I have so many wonderful memories,” Evans marvels. “I’ve played such dramatic, angst-ridden characters. Bonnie is a great diversion from that, even though she does have that emotional side. She's been through a lot, she’s struggled, she's made bad decisions, she's had to pay for them. Hopefully, she's learned from them, but she's still a little bit wacky. It’s so fun.”

How circus life prepared Judi Evans for soap operas

Evans has been actually performing since her childhood on the road with The Evans Family Circus — and it turns out her days of clowning around with her family were the perfect preparation for soap operas.

“In a traveling circus, you're entertaining people in a new city every day — whether it's death-defying emotions or wacky, wild comedy,” she explains. “Much like a soap, you're basically doing an entire play or movie every day, and even though you’re doing similar stuff, you have to make it very different to make it interesting for yourself and for the audience.”

Growing up in the circus also prepared Evans to think on her feet.

“In the circus, you’ve got animals pooping on you and you’re falling all over each other,” she laughs. “You’re always ready for an accident. And you know what? I’ve actually had animals pooping on me on soaps, too! See, it’s pretty much the same.”

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Romancing Wally Kurth and other soap opera favorites

While Evans has played two very different characters in Salem, both Adrienne and Bonnie ended up with the same handsome local, Justin Kiriakis. That means the actress has spent much of her career creating romance and drama with Wally Kurth, who also does double duty as General Hospital ’s Ned Quartermaine.

“I adore that man,” Evan shares. “We're always in each other's lives, even when we're not working together, because we’re very good friends. It's been wonderful to watch a great young man turn into a great gentleman, a great friend and a great partner. We've had a lot of adventures . . . but not nearly enough!”

Evans admits she’s gotten lucky with her leading men – including Michael Luciano, who she married in 1993.

“I also worked a lot with Bryan Dattilo, Vincent Irizarry, Tom Eplin . . .” she lists. “It's like I hit the lottery with friends that I've worked with, so I feel pretty fortunate.”

Judi Evans talks Bonnie, Hattie, and soap icon Deidre Hall

For the record, that lottery doesn’t just include soap hunks! In addition to making girlfriends as she soap-hopped around, Evans has come of age with a powerhouse cast of Salem women — including icon Deidre Hall, who plays both Marlena and her doppelganger Hattie.

When Evans learned Bonnie would join Hattie in the show’s soap within a soap, Body & Soul , she immediately called Hall to celebrate their onscreen reunion.

“We got so excited and tickled,” she shares. “Normally we’re moving so fast we barely say hi on set, but this gives us time to sit together and run lines. And yes, we ARE really running lines, but we also just get to have fun and be mischievous! Deidre’s such a wonderful friend, so working together is like eating ice cream with a topping on a topping.”

Coping with grief

Having recently turned 60, Evans is doing her best to enjoy life, but she’s not exactly celebrating. While she’s recovered from a serious accident and a COVID battle that almost cost her her legs, she doesn’t expect she’ll ever get over losing her son, Austin, who died in 2019 at just 23 years old.

“I miss him every single minute, every single day,” Evans shares. “It’s always there, but it doesn't stop me from helping other people enjoy life, or from enjoying it with them. My husband and my animals, they give me some purpose and certainly joy. And I'm lucky to have great friends who pull my focus. I would go to the ends of the earth for them, and they've gone to the ends of the earth for me.”

Like many Days of Our Lives fans, Evans also finds solace in escaping into her stories. “I'm always grateful for work, but even more so now, because it gives me a distraction,” she says. “I get to be someone else for a little while, which is a great relief. When I'm in an emotional storyline, it lessens my therapy bills. I love it when I get to cry every day! But also, it's great to get to do comedy.”

What to expect from ‘Body & Soul’

Evans has also found joy in the Body & Soul reboot — which, in classic Days of Our Lives camp, has Salem locals taking on unexpected roles in their favorite soap opera and featured Bonnie stumbling and then nailing her audition for Kassandra.

“This has been quite a challenge, because it's a character playing a character,” Evans says.
“But I've got some scenes coming up with Rob Wilson Scott, who plays Alex, and we had a blast! We were tickled . . .  and I hope the audience will be, too.”

With Bonnie, Hattie and Leo involved, the Body & Soul story promises to be a wild ride, but Evans tells INSERT MAGAZINE it’s also a chance for Days of Our Lives to share some insider laughs with fans.

“In a way, we’re showing a bit of the behind-the-scenes of making a soap, but we’re also poking fun at our business,” the daytime vet explains. “Sometimes, soap storylines are hard to relate to, so we laugh a lot. It’s a way to let that go, so we can fully commit to what we're doing.

“Now, we’re letting the audience in on our joke, so I hope you like it . . .  and if you hate it, I hope you’re still entertained, because that’s what we’re here for!”  Evans says with a smile. Her positivity against all odds and her joy in her work is truly infectious, and we can’t wait to see what she does next on Body & Soul .

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