How DAYS’s Raven Bowens Gained Real-Life Inspiration from Her Co-Star for Chanel’s Pregnancy Storyline

On Days of Our Lives, Chanel and Johnny are currently dealing with a high-risk pregnancy. And it’s all thanks to Paulina’s radioactive rescue during Salem’s Great Springtime Blizzard of 2024. Now, the newly wedded couple is concerned that there may be an issue with their baby. Unfortunately, they probably won’t know until the birth.

Raven Bowens Looks to her DAYS Co-Star for Inspiration

Playing out the ramifications of this story excited Raven Bowens (Chanel). She recently told Soap Opera Digest that it’s her “favorite storyline that I’ve gotten to do so far.” This pregnancy arc happened to come at a time when her co-star — Carson Boatman (Johnny) — and his wife were becoming new parents in real life. (Check out details about Boatman’s recent acoustic performance here)

“We have a lot of stuff that comes up that was very personal for him because he was able to connect to where he was at during that time.” Bowens went so far as to consult Boatman’s wife, Julana Dizon, and took inspiration from her experiences. “That was part of the research process for me. I found myself being more interested and curious about what is going on with a pregnant woman.

“Carson’s wife had a really, really easy pregnancy,” Bowens added. “So, I learned from her that there were many variations of how I could do it. Most people that I know were throwing up, they were sick, they were this and that. [Julana] didn’t get sick. It didn’t get hard for her until [the end].” (Check out Soap Hub‘s two-week breakdown for DAYS)

As a result, Bowens feels this pregnancy phase has really affected her and Boatman’s performances…in a positive way. “It’s definitely intensified us as a couple,” the DAYS actress said. She also believes that Johnny and Chanel’s experiences hit different now that they are in their second marriage.

“Some stuff that’s going to happen soon is going to deepen things even more. I think that now you’re getting to see what Chanel and Johnny are both made of, because they’re dealing with difficult grownup situations. I feel like last time it was fun. This time it’s mature.”