Vivian returned to Days of our Lives, wasting no time stirring the pot by feeding Rafe and Eli a tidy little lie about Dimitri staying under her roof and nudging them straight toward the wrong conclusion about the crypt camera mess. It was classic Vivian behavior, delivered with that familiar mix of confidence and plausible innocence, and it put Louise Sorel right back where she has always thrived, slipping into chaos with a smile. Sorel recently reflected on what it meant to return once more, why Vivian keeps finding her way back, and how a character this odd has managed to hang around for decades without ever smoothing herself out.
Key Takeaways
- Vivian returned by misleading Rafe and Eli about Dimitri, steering them toward the wrong conclusion.
- Louise Sorel described her return as familiar and comfortable; more reunion than reset.
- She never expected Vivian to last this long, noting how the role kept circling back.
- Sorel credited the character’s longevity to her unapologetic oddness and chaos.
- She remained open to returning again, with no hesitation.
Coming Back to Vivian
Sorel spoke with TV Insider about stepping back into Vivian’s shoes, and she described the experience as immediately comfortable, more reunion than reset, surrounded by people who knew exactly how fast and strange the work could get. She talked about liking the atmosphere, where everyone was juggling a lot, moving fast, and still clearly happy to be doing the work, which meant more to her than anything flashy or showy.
She admitted she never thought Vivian would stick around this long, laughing that the character had been written out more than once and somehow always found her way back. “They kept firing me,” she said, adding that soaps have a habit of dropping you and then ringing later as if nothing happened.
When others stepped into the role during absences she couldn’t avoid, Sorel described the strange balance of attachment and letting go that comes with a part that long, noting that COVID forced pauses she wasn’t willing to push through. (Does Vivian have a plan to break up Gabi (Cherie Jimenez) and Philip (John-Paul Lavoisier)?)
Why Vivian Still Works
Sorel looked back fondly on Vivian’s earlier years, especially the scenes with Ivan (Ivan G’Vera), recalling the energy and deliberate silliness that gave the character her edge and made the relationship feel both ridiculous and essential. She credited the writing of James E. Reilly for leaning into that madness. She explained, “Jim was such a madman and wrote wonderfully wacky storylines.”
She spoke about the current storyline with Rafe (Galen Gering) and Eli (Lamon Archey) as another reminder that Vivian functions best when she is slightly ahead of everyone else in the room, smiling while other people scramble to catch up. Vivian does not need to shout or threaten; she simply adjusts the facts and lets the rest unfold.
Away from the show, Sorel had been pouring her attention into writing, publishing a collection drawn from journals, travel, poetry, and dogs, and she spoke warmly about finding both creative satisfaction and unexpected love through that process. Acting still sat close to the bone, and when asked if she would return again, she didn’t pause. “I fell in love with Vivian,” she said, and it showed in the way the character still moves through Salem, leaving just enough mess behind to make her absence noticeable when she’s gone.
