What can you say about Alison Sweeney? She is simply amazing. When our site went down a couple of weeks ago, Ali generously agreed to do a new interview with Second Chances and told me to send along questions for Bryan and Christopher as well.

I want to thank my late night question thinker uppers-Sonnie, Bevvy and Linda, who helped me come up with questions at two in the morning.

Thank you to Bryan and Christopher for agreeing to the interview. We love you both.

Most especially, I’d like to thank Ali for once again proving she is one in a million

Note: Linking to this interview is fine, taking it off site is a no-no. This is a Second Chances exclusive.

Lumi has been a long time in the making. With their volatile history, how do you approach their underlying feelings for one another? Have they been there all along or are they something new? Was there any one event or incident for Lucas and for Sami that made them realize that they had "those" kind of feelings for one another?

Ali: I think there were always 'feelings' between them. It's why they were able to hurt each other so much, because they at one time had been so close. If you really don't care about someone, you're not 'hurt' when they hate you, etc.

When Lucas came back with Will from Africa, Sami started letting Lucas get 'close' again - not in a romantic way, but he was always around, making her laugh, etc. So, he definitely really hurt her when he helped Brandon find out the truth. But, by then, she'd kinda let Lucas back into her life again, so after the 'fight' they had, he slowly regained her trust.

What was your initial reaction when you found out that Days was going down the Lumi path?

Ali: I was totally excited. I've always enjoyed working with Bry, and I was really looking forward to this very different type story-line for Sami.

Bryan: It's been a long time coming. There's always been something between these two, a lot of unfinished business, when I left a few years ago, that was my one regrets, that they never settled things between Lucas and Sami, so now I'm really glad they are playing it out between them.

How has fan reaction been to your storyline?

Ali: It's been really fun for me to lurk online and see what all the Lumi-fans think of each episode.

Bryan: Yeah, you Lumi fans are intense!! I love when Ali tells me what you all are saying about a certain scene or something. And the sweet-tarts!! Those sayings are so cool. Thanks!

Chris: I've only been recognized by kids in my school so far... The parents of the kids watch the show, and so that's how the kids found out. Now they're like "Oh, hey, there's Chris!"

How do you see Lumi’s's romance progressing? Do you envision them as a traditional supercouple or can we look for something a little more unconventional?

Ali: Sami and Lucas are "definitely not your mother's supercouple"!! lol. I think they are going to break all the rules, and do things their own way - or rather, struggle along their own way.

When all is said and done, what do you want for LUMI?

Bryan: Lucas needs to get through to Sami - He already knows what he wants. He feels very strongly about creating a real family for Will, and aside from that he knows that he loves Sami. But he knows she's a bit wild - and unpredictable, but he's willing to put up with it.

Ali: "Put up with it"??????

What do you all like to do in your down time from the show?

Ali: My husband and I enjoy going away on little weekend mini-vacations. Either to the desert or a beach community nearby or something. I usually end up with a lot of work to do to catch up with stuff, hang out with my girl-friends, etc.

Bryan: I spend as much time as possible with my son, Gabe. He's such a great kid and we have so much fun together. Just recently, I bought Finding Nemo the DVD. And I got the living room all dark, and made popcorn, to watch it with Gabe. I told him "We're going to watch Finding Nemo now". I got the blankets all arranged and comfy, we're watching the movie, and like 10 minutes in, he jumps up, points at the screen and says "There he is! There's Nemo. I found him!" and he runs off to play.

Chris: In my free time at home I like to make movies with my little brother. We use like toys, like 'stop action' pictures. And when I'm tired I play video games, my favorite is 007. But schoolwork takes up a lot of my time. If it wasn't for homework life would be so much easier!

Will any of your co-workers admit to being Lumi fans?

Ali: Oh yeah - everyone is turning into a Lumi fan. Garry, one of the hair dressers, keeps asking me "when are you two going to get together already??" They keep getting confused by the fantasies we do, they'll say "was that real?" "no... sorry, it was Sami's dream" and he get's all mad... "come on already... just tell him you love him!" It's funny.

Has anything you've read from the fans changed the way you see your characters reacting to others?

Ali: Well, you definitely find all our bad habits! I didn't really notice "What da hell" until I read it here, and it was hard to keep a straight face in scenes after that.

What are the key issues that you think LUMI needs to deal with? Are Lumi ready for a more intimate relationship or would it be better for them to wait a bit longer?

Bryan: Bring on the "intimate relationship"!!! Hot and Heavy!!! No, seriously, yeah - they don't really trust each other yet, they can't even seriously admit their feelings. And, they have to be very careful to not get Will hurt in all this, so that is making them extra cautious, They both come from broken (or messed up in some way) homes. So as much as they are fantasizing about each other, it'll probably be a while before they are ready to really 'go there'.

What kind of role do you see Kate playing in the LUMI saga?

Ali: Well, she's certainly quite a peeping-tom!!!

Bryan: She'll definitely be trying to create problems for Lucas and Sami. We'll just have to see what they are.

Days has had some interesting guest stars over the years. What was it like to work with Sharon Osborne? And who goes camping in the greater Chicago area in the dead of winter?

Ali: We were all laughing about "camping" with snow on the ground. That's Salem for you! Sharon was so sweet... and very cool to work with. It was a really neat experience.

*Bryan is busy doing his Ozzy impression*

Chris: It was really awesome, it's really cool that you get to meet and work with people you've seen on shows. I've watched her talk show a couple times and I really like it.

And now THE question that Second Chancers would like to have answered Has Sami signed those darn annulment papers yet?

Ali: Lol! I have no idea. There haven't been any scenes where Sami signed the papers. And I've had dialogue that goes back and forth between "getting him back" and "trying to be a single mom". so... we'll just have to wait and see!

Just for Chris!

What were the reactions of your family and friends to your getting the role of Will? Has is changed how people treat you?

--My friends treat me the same because they're used to seeing me as an actor. Before I got Days, I hadn't gotten a job for a year, so my mom was really happy for me that I got Days. I tried out for Will three times before I got the part, so I was really excited when I found out I got the job.

What do you see as Will's role in getting his parents together?

---It's like his life motivation - his life's goal is to get his parents together. He has all these different plans, and if one fails, he just thinks up a couple more.

Which parent does Will take after most?

---Well... I'm starting to get a little mischievous like Sami, but at the same time, Will stays strong like Lucas.

 

Once again, thank you all so much for granting Second Chances this interview.  You guys ROCK!

February 17, 2004