This is by far one of my favorite in-depth interviews Shelley has ever done. It speaks volumes of her experience on the show and how she’s still shaping herself to become a legend, we all know she can achieve that! You can also sense the deep connection/respect she feels/has for Stephen (ex-Patch) and Mary Beth (ex-Kayla) her TV parents.

Admin Note: Out of respect for WLS I’m only going to include some highlight blurbs from the interview and then link you to the entire story.

We Love Soaps was on the set of DAYS OF OUR LIVES recently and had the chance to speak with several members of the cast including Shelley Hennig (Stephanie). In this interview Hennig discusses how Stephanie has changed over time, the rape storyline, her first day on set, and more.

We Love Soaps: In the short time you’ve been playing the role of Stephanie, she has been through a lot.
Shelley Hennig: A lot. Starting with the broken heart of Jeremy…

We Love Soaps: How did you approach playing the role in that story?
Shelley Hennig: There are different ways. It’s kind of secretive, [but] you use certain things. I’ve never had to go through something like that so you use other things that brought in that same guilt and disgust, desperation, and shame. I would pull from my imagination a lot. Noel Maxam was one of our directors and producers and he was great. He would just say one word and I was there. But I broke down the scripts and did what I learned in acting school. It was 5,4,3,2 – camera. I had to pull if off and I did in one take.

We Love Soaps: What would it look like to see the Steve Johnson come out in Stephanie?
Shelley Hennig: Hopefully we will see in the next couple of months. I think she’s battling being her mother and being her father. Stephanie has all these morals, and she’s perceived as this good girl. But she’s been through so much it’s starting to go out the window. She cannot be that good girl anymore because she’s not going to get what she wants. A part of her starts to use a Steve mentality, thinking, “How am I going to get what I want?” It may cause some morals going out the window. But there’s still that genuineness and vulnerability that she’s battling in her own head.

We Love Soaps: That makes it all worth it.
Shelley Hennig: Totally! Because we do put ourselves through a lot of emotional distress. My body doesn’t know the difference. I know the difference. When I leave here I know I don’t have this crazy life as Stephanie Johnson. But your body doesn’t know the difference. So I’ll go home and get indigestion from crying so much or a headache. I think Rachel Melvin [Chelsea] is the same way. She would put her heart and her soul into every scene. And that’s the way I am. I can’t do it half way. It’s all or nothing.