DAYS: James Scott Interview

[maconrich]

I think JS brought up valid points, and imo the main one was the US soaps tend not to do hard issues well (rape, murder, incest, executions, etc). Because of this I'd rather they stay away from these subjects and stick to the things they know best: adultery, kidnapping, abuse, lying, cheating and everyday things like that.

That said soaps have, for as long as I can remember, gone into the more difficult issues: and since Days is the main show I've watched this would be where I've seen these things. Some storylines have been done better than others; and some are sure to offend some people no matter how they're portrayed. Such is life. We have the power to decide what we watch and what we opt to turn off. So I don't see a problem -- as long as no one attempts to impose their brand of morality or censorship on others. When that happens I do have a problem; and I don't care if it's a special interest group, the government or a group of soap opera fans. The end result is the same.

I also resent being told I'm morally deficient because I like several characters on Days who have done horrid things. Or that I'm insensitive and shouldn't voice my opinions because I surely don't have the ability to know what I like and don't like; and that I don't know the difference between right and wrong. Or even that I don't know how rape victims feel when a rape storyline is done on tv. Well, welcome to reality, I DO know and I sure as hell wish I'd been given an option to agree or disagree!! That doesn't mean Days has handled this particular scene well, or for that matter that they've handled any of these stories over the years well. They haven't. But the difference between being raped and watching a soap - or any show - deal with rape is as different as day and night. I'm sorry, but reality can be a lot worse than anything they show on soaps, and I don't watch soaps for reality. I watch to be entertained - to be able to escape life for an hour a day by watching my favorite fictional characters, in my favorite fictional town, doing things that make me laugh, cry, sit on the edge of my seat, get angry and everything else that goes with watching a soap. I don't watch so I can be bored to tears or end up with a headache over annoying characters or writing; and I don't even expect Days to care what I want to see - I realize I'm just not that damned special.

I have seen so many positive changes in Days the last couple of weeks and am honestly excited about the show. I love to read what others say about it and how they feel; but some topics are just plain old: the words never seem to change and the insults keep flying. I enjoyed reading James Scott's interview and respect what he said; I also felt his comments about the changes on the show sound great. The same goes for the BD interview. They both made excellent observations and statements.

With that I'm off of my soapbox, and will state out loud that if EJ raped Sami; rape might not be romance, but together EJ and Sami are romance personified!

[IMissAremid]

I agree with this. The show needs to stop dancing around the elephant in the room all the time. If the show has finally, truly settled on yes it was rape after dancing around the issue before this summer when the dialogue (if not the emotional impact) was all rape, all the time, then give EJ and Sami a REAL conversation and REAL moment confronting exactly what happened, why it happened and how it made both of them feel. So 9 months later maybe the show can FINALLY start to move on. There is no reason for this to not happen NOW unless they are going to attempt to retcon the whole thing with some flashback footage that sheds a whole new light on exactly what happened in that car during the commercial break between EJ kissing her ear and Sami zipping up her sweater. But the thing is... at this point I'm not even convinced such a development would be necessary or helpful to trying to make EJ and Sami the next supercouple or something, if that's their goal.

Because the truth is EJami fans have already forgiven EJ for what happened even though (whether they call it rape or not) they know it was wrong and mean to Sami, and I think many EJami haters would just feel insulted if a scene they have so long and so firmly and fiercely decried as horrific rape that should smite the possibility of EJami from this earth was wiped away so suddenly.

I really think if the show wants to catch up to viewers they should show Sami coming to terms with it SOMEHOW just to do the character justice. I personally think it would be perfectly in character for them to show Sami forgiving, thought taking a long time to forget, by delving into Sami's rich dysfunctional history as herself a bad, willful, selfish girl who has caused huge pain to people she claimed to love in the name of love and family, as a rapist herself, and as a codependent woman with a predisposition for unhealthy relationships who has already forgiven and fallen in love with a man who had previously psychologically tortured her and nearly got her killed more than once.

It would also help, since all fans recognize what EJ did was wrong (whether they call it rape or not), if they really are going with the EJami thing that they gave the character of EJ a period where he deeply contemplated the gravity of what he did, for more than one or two episodes and beyond how it hurt his chances with Sami. Maybe he could go through a period of self-doubt and despair where his ego was so wounded by Sami's truth that he thought himself unworthy of her and had somewhat of an existential crisis when it comes to all of his actions. Yet at the same time Sami could be shown having her own struggle as she attempted to fight her growing feelings for EJ and tried to figure out how to reconcile them with both her concerns about what those feelings would say about her and how those around her would judge her because of them.

If they attacked all the angst and dysfunction of the characters in a real way head-on and tapped into the serious acting talents of Alison Sweeney and James Scott while at the same time the storyline perhaps dictated the two of them couldn't avoid each other or their problems as they lived in their arranged marriage to end the feud, then all the better. It would be delicious, angsty soapy goodness watching the two as their feelings changed over time and the characters grew, and I think it could be a very interesting story from which either a classic DOOL couple or simply a tragic romantic tale or maybe even both, could emerge.

[DevotedToAMC]

I read the part about the interview where he says that her royal highness JHC assured him a few weeks before being notified he would be blown up that she was bending over backwards for him and that he was in fine condition with the show....then a few weeks later he gets told they are killing him off. How fair of JHC to just be a colossal liar to him. You know I did not mind JHC but after reading what James said, I think it is time for her a$$ to get canned.

Felicia Minei Behr, where are you to take over as EP of AMC?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

[SpiritualJunkie]

I like Sami & EJ okay (I'd like them better if the story wasn't so damn shallow) but that was such a refreshing interview to read. I love reading actors give their honest opinions (even if it does end up insulting the writers they are at the hands of) about their storylines rather than dancing around poor writing to score points with the execs.

Andrea, the level of enjoyment someone has having sex is not the only aspect of rape just like having wings is not the only characteristic of a bird. Whores have sex willingly (whether they enjoy it or not). In the Sami/EJ case, Sami clearly did not want to have sex with EJ.

[RuAsRuAnAu]

I wish more thespians & crew members would discuss their shows to the mainstream press, not the soap rags. Y&R is popular enough to be written about in publications such as The New York Times, Chicago Sun-Times etc.

[JackPeyton]

okay i wont lie. first off i am a huge sami/ej fan... but heres what i think.

was it rape? no. not because he didnt hold a gun to her head, not because he didnt slip her something, not because she did have an attarction to him.. i dont think it was rape, but i also dont know what to call it. yes he gave her an option and she took it - sleep with him or lucas dies. she didnt really have a choice, IMO. and that was proven moreso today when she said she cant let another member of her family die if she could have stopped it by marrying ej. i really dont know what to call it. but i woudltn say rape. I think lucas anbd the bradys use rape because he is a dimera therefore he is evil. i think sami uses the word rape because everyone else does, and i think ej uses the word rape because he knows he pretty much left her with no choice and now feels bad.

now, he did pretty much force her into it. yes. so typicaly id ray that was rape. but idk... it just... i really dont know. but thats what i think so go ahead and tear it apart and all that. but it doesnt have anything to do with the fact that i like ej/sami. because if i thought it was rape id say yeah sami fell for her rapist, but they still rock and i lvoe them. i wouldnt deny it.

i ahve a feeling im going to regret posting this but whatev.

[Shawn]

Its funny that having a gun pointed in your face is considered "foreplay" by so many people here.

Sami isn't into kink. She was forced. Plain and simple.

[Tishy]

Anytime force is used, be it physical or psychological. It's rape.

You can be attracted to someone and still not want to have sex with them. If they force you, That's rape.

[Shawn]

You contradicted yourself. How can you acknowledge that he forced her into sex and then say you don't think she was raped?

[Shawn]

Exactly. Many women and men who are raped become aroused due to automatic body reaction. It doesn not mean they it was mutual sex.

[NeoAngelicLiz]

It wasn't rape....just cuz an actor says doesn't mean its 100% right.

The only reason he probably said that was because Days and the execs have decided to jus stick with a "version of the story" instead of letting all this confusion and debate go on.

Its far easier to just say "yeah we messed up" and preserve Sami's innocence in the whole situation by making EJ out to be the big bad villian. When in truth anyone whos watched the episode can see that this is was nothing short of an exchange of favors. Sami chose to give EJ what he wanted and EJ chose to give Sami what she wanted.

Sami had a choice. And she choose to sleep with EJ to save Lucas. Its just not rape.

[dragonflies]

Sorry but it's rape, the actors have all said it, they had NO reason to say it was if it wasn't.

It was written as rape, Sami had to have sex with EJ AGAINST HER WILL. It's not like she said "come here big boy so I can have my way with you"

[IMissAremid]

Regardless of what the actors say now, none of their statements throughout this whole mess have been consistent and the show CONTINUES to send mixed messages about what happened as Sami says in today's episode of DOOL that she is Sami Brady and no one can make her do what she doesn't want to do.

[Loretta3938]

I still think of it as a deal EJ and Sami made. Dr. David Hayward and Gillian Lavery made a similar deal on AMC back in the 90's. Gillian didn't want to sleep with David any more than Sami wanted to sleep with EJ. Gillian did it for money she needed to save Ryan, while Sami did it to get EJ's help to remove the beam from Lucas.

Loretta

[Andre]

EJ raped Sami.

Sami raped Austin.

They are both hideous, and therefore, in my mind, the slate is wiped clean.

Also, people keep saying he held a gun to her. EJ owns a gun, and it was likely in the car with him, but I never remembered him holding one to her until I was told he did. Is that a rewrite? Is there a link online where I can rewatch it?