Days of Our Lives Exclusive: Are Justin and Bonnie the Next Doug and Julie? ‘Those Are Big Shoes to Fill,’ Says Judi Evans
Every daytime series needs those enduring couples who just make sense in the romance department. On Days of Our Lives, that means dynamic duos like Doug and Julie Williams (Bill Hayes and Susan Seaforth Hayes), but could Justin Kiriakis (Wally Kurth) and Bonnie Lockhart also be lining up to make that loving soaps’ list? Judi Evans liked that idea when Soaps.com presented it to her, but she also reminded us that “those are big shoes to fill and hard acts to follow.” She definitely isn’t opposed to the idea, but she thinks Bonnie would “need some tips, though.”
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Laughing that Justin “doesn’t need any romantic tips” because he is “great with romance,” Evans thinks Bonnie might require some help in the relationship department to ensure her marriage is forever like Doug and Julie’s union. “Bonnie probably needs to smooth out the edges, but her heart is in the right place,” she says while advising that her character needs to “take the foot off the accelerator a little bit” because her approach is “a lot at once.” Of course, Evans has the perfect solution for Justin and Bonnie: “a little couples’ therapy” so they can keep those lines of communication open. “I think they’re probably pretty good in the romance department and what one lacks, the other one fulfills,” she adds.
More: Judi Evans shares an unbelievable story from the ‘Another World’ set.
What Evans loves about the on-screen relationship is that Bonnie is with a man who “sees her,” which means she’s finally “confident for the first time in her life.” She continues, “He also likes her wild side, so she doesn’t want to tame that too much. That’s what he loves about her. I think she’s finding a security she’s never had, and it has all to do with heart, she’s just never been around anybody who accepts her, loves her, and is patient with her in the way he does.”
For any fan who is thinking about where Bonnie’s former love Mickey Horton fits into all of this, Evans has an answer that should satisfy everyone. “Mickey was sweet, but they just didn’t have a lot in common. Bonnie and Justin are a lot closer in age, so I think they have a lot more in common. Mickey was very good to her, too. I know she loved him in a way, but this is completely different,” she explains. “Justin is her first reciprocal true love ever — friendship and love.” It’s exactly why Justin and Bonnie should fit right in line behind Julie and Doug, and Victor and Maggie — it’s a special Salem romance that deserves long-lasting happiness.
Evans gives us more Days of Our Lives insight on whether Adrienne Kiriakis would ever return from the dead, plus her thoughts on the possibility of Another World ever being revived. Check out the entire interview above, then visit the photo gallery below where we take a look at Bonnie Lockhart’s most outrageous moments.
