Longtime fans of “Days of Our Lives” were thrilled to have Jack and Jennifer return to Salem, even if it was only for a brief time. Now that they’ve handled some family business, grieved the loss of John Black, and checked in at The Spectator, they’ve returned to Boston, and they are already missed.
Matthew Ashford sat down with Soap Opera Digest to discuss his return as Jack and his hope for more time in Salem. “It really is my hope to come back,” says Ashford.
There Is a Lot for Matthew’s Character to Do in Salem
If you watched Days back in the late eighties or nineties, then you’ll remember Jack and Jennifer in their prime, getting into all sorts of trouble at the newspaper. Ashford sees plenty of opportunity right now to work some of that old-school magic again.
“I’d be happy to reignite some of the old days craziness at The Spectator. I think there are a lot of new young actors who haven’t found themselves yet, and the show hasn’t exactly figured out what they’re going to do with them, and it would be a great opportunity for Jack [to get involved].”
Ashford would love to see Jack step in with some of those characters. “Well, yeah. Vern (referring to the late Wayne Heffley, who played the editor of The Spectator) got to do a lot of crazy things, and I could do the same things. And Jennifer doesn’t necessarily have to be there, since we have another newspaper elsewhere. We’ve got enough roots in town to do different stuff. And there’s a lot of stuff Jack could do.”
Jack’s Recent Return Has Left Matthew Ashford Wanting More
Matthew’s recent time on “Days of Our Lives” left him hungry for more. Jack’s visit to The Spectator and his interaction with Leo Stark while there gave the actor a lot to think about.
“I was like, ‘Oh, I like this,’” explains Ashford. “Leo’s never been Jack’s cup of tea, to say the least, but in spite of this, Leo’s actually starting to grow on him. So it was fun. I thought it would be great for Jack to come back and be a mentor to some of the young people, the same way that Vern was a mentor to Jack. Let’s redo the eighties and the nineties. Let’s find some young people who don’t know where they’re going in their lives, and Jack could say, ‘What about this?’ Let them find their way and work, and if a relationship develops between them, good. Let Jack be the taskmaster. I’d be glad to be able to do that. I don’t know what the Leo thing was or where that’s [going to go], but I’d be game for that.”
