Days of Our Lives' Eric Martsolf Reflects on Real and Reel Parenting

It’s hard enough to be a parent in real life, let alone having to deal with all the drama on Days of Our Lives. Brady (Eric Martsolf) certainly has a mountain of drama as his son, Tate (Leo Howard), deals with the impending birth of his and Sophia’s (Rachel Boyd) baby. Brady’s been hit with the one-two punch of his father John’s death and the upcoming issues his daughter Rachel (Alice Halsey) is dealing with, because she saw Johnny (Carson Boatman) hold a gun to EJ (Dan Feuerriegel) on the night he was shot. Martsolf opened up about parenting on the show and in the real world.

Real world informed reel world

Days of Our Lives’ Eric Martsolf recently sat down with Soap Opera Digest to discuss how he approaches being an on-screen parent. The actor has twins named Chase and Mason, who are 19 years old, so dealing with Tate on the show should be old hat for him. He’s taken inspiration from having to deal with his sons, and explained, “I’ve been able to extrapolate my own experiences and just stick them right into the puzzle.” He finds it fortuitous to be able to tap into his own emotions to use for Brady.

Often on set, the actor remarked that he’ll see Howard and think to himself, “I just had this conversation with my son three days ago.” He remarked that sometimes he forgets that his kids aren’t little anymore, and likened that to his character’s experience. “It just creeps up on you, and that’s what happened to Brady,” he stated. He did, however, note that children in soaps age much faster than in life, but was glad to have been through the experience of fatherhood to inform his performance.

He learned from the best

On Days of Our Lives, Brady recently had to deal with the death of his father, John. In much the same way a parent will hear their own parents’ words coming out of their mouth, Martsolf has the same experience. “There have been moments in the script where I can just hear John Black talking to his son Brady,” he stated, adding, “and now Brady’s talking to his son Tate the same way. It’s the way it should be. It honors him.”

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Martsolf noted that Hogestyn would always encourage him to make his own decisions, rather than tell him how to deal with a situation. In the same way, Brady did that with Tate when they learned Sophia was pregnant. He stated that Brady, “Allows Tate to make his own decisions at the end of the day. And that’s something I balance with my sons as well.”

Days of Our Lives can be found on the Peacock app.

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