From romancing an orangutan on Passions to battling EJ for Sami's heart on Days of Our Lives, Galen Gering's career as a soap actor in Hollywood has been anything but dull.  Here, he shares his thoughts on those early days at Passions, his multi-tasking co-star Alison Sweeney and the EJ/Sami/Rafe love triangle.



You started out on Passions, a show which was a bit more extreme and wacky in its approach to storytelling than Days of our Lives. How was the transition from Passions to Days?

Well, most of the time on Passions I had more conventional storylines and so I wasn't involved in a lot of the storylines that had to do with witchcraft. Yes, there were some outlandish storylines that I was involved in, like having an orangutan being a love interest [laughs]. Yeah. There was some weird stuff. That was more of a shock than it was to go to Days. I mean, Days was a much easier transition for me in many ways, one of the major [reasons] being that I had nine years under my belt in the business and had worked very hard to become a better actor and understand the business and understand the genre. There's a lot of stuff that goes with working on a soap day in and day out that you can't learn anywhere else except being in the trenches. So to answer your question [the transition to Days] was a lot easier.

You're working with a few of your former Passions cast mates (Lindsay Hartley and Eric Martsolf) on Days, which must be nice. Did that happen by coincidence? How did that come about?

No coincidence at all actually. Our executive producer now was the director on Passions, so he thought the three of us-Eric and Lindsay and myself-could bring something to the show. Originally Lindsay wasn't on the show when I came in. I was the first person to come in and I knew that Eric was also most likely going to be brought to the show. When he first got there it was totally surreal for both of us we'd just look at each other and go, "Weird, right?" Also, when we got to the show they were talking about cancelling [Days of our Lives]. There was a big negotiation going on and we were freaking out, like "Oh my God. If they cancel the show after 45 years and we're new guys that came here…clearly they're going to point the [finger] at us. We're the only new thing there is, you know?"

So obviously they haven't cancelled it and that's great news, and Lindsay's there [now]. When it was new for all of us it was very surreal and we'd trip out. Now that we have a little time under our belts it's less of that than it was before. I think now it's weird for us to a certain degree but also weird for people who were on Days [before]. There were people who were leaving the show when we came to the show and that was also a little weird too. I thought, "Oh my God are they going to resent us or me and is it going to be weird?" And you know, everyone's been very gracious and welcoming and nice and it's been a fantastic experience.

So it's a nice atmosphere on the set then? Are the cast and crew a tight-knit group?

Yeah it's a great atmosphere. At Passions for whatever reason…the show was fairly rebellious and I don't know if a lot of people wanted to come to work there. It was just such a different mentality. Everyone at Days knows their job and is on time and professional [and doesn't] complain. Everyone just does it. [It's] a real team effort, whereas on Passions there was always a lot of arm-twisting. And I mean I'll admit it, I was guilty of that too. I have a totally different mindset than I did before. At times to be honest with you that was because of the storytelling and trying to wrap your head around it. You know, not necessarily wanting to make out with a monkey. 

I can understand that.

Yeah. [Days] is a really a great place to work. It's a total team effort. And I don't think that actually they could produce the show-the amount of material we produce-were that not the case, because it really takes cooperation from every department for it to happen.

What initially drew you to the role of Rafe?

Well, first of all as an actor in Hollywood it's always great to be offered a job and have people interested in you. So there was that, and the obvious thing being a paycheck, but above and beyond that I really loved the way that the character was written. He was funny, he was smart, he was quick-witted, and knew what he wanted. [This] was another good guy role for me, which the character that I played before (Luis) was as well. But [Rafe was] just a little sharper.

I was excited to work with Ali (Sweeney, Sami) in the beginning, who I had known for many years and that was a great thing. I didn't think that we would work [together] as well as what we do. So that was a really great surprise. And I think it was a surprise to many people so that was a total added bonus for sure.

It's obvious that you [and Alison Sweeney] have chemistry. It must be nice to have such a great working relationship.

It really is. The funny thing too is when I came to the show she was maybe seven or eight months pregnant and also working a lot on The Biggest Loser and our show, so [she] was totally slammed. I can barely hold down one job, let alone three. I mean I don't think I could even handle a pregnancy to be honest with you so that's kind of weird for me [laughs]. But she was awesome and I became a huge fan of hers during that time for so many reasons but those three obviously being the main ones. I could count on my hands how many times she's complained. She just likes to be proactive and that's a really awesome quality in a person. I'm very lucky.

What are your thoughts on the EJ/Sami/Rafe love triangle? How do you see it playing out?

Well obviously I think that Rafe and Sami are meant to be together and would hope that they are, as do a lot of fans out there. And obviously a lot of fans feel that her and EJ should be together, there's no question about that. But the relationship that these characters have is a very special one and I feel were it not for some insanely difficult extenuating circumstances that were forced upon them that they would be together. So in other words, had the baby not died and Sidney not been kidnapped and all this major stuff, these characters would totally be together and in love. They just have had these crazy hurtles, so how do you not root for them? How do you not think they should be together? Of course you do, and I think they have a special connection and certainly I think the future holds big things for them.

What you would like to see happen next for Rafe?

At this point that Rafe is in prison and will eventually get out of there hopefully [laughs]. And when he does…find the truth with regards to what EJ's done. To discover that and tell Sami, "I told you so," and get her back, you know? Have her back where she rightfully belongs. So hopefully that'll happen.