Heated Rivalry’s Franco Lo Presti is about to set pulses racing with a guest role on Days of Our Lives.
“It’s Days of Our Lives. How could you not go on Days of Our Lives without a steamy scene?” Lo Presti, 36, exclusively told Us on Saturday, September 12, at the Celebrity Travel Lounge presented with Travel By Peta.
The actor, whose limited daytime TV stint commences on Peacock on Monday, September 14, added that stepping into the role of Dante Vitali on the iconic soap was “incredible” despite an unfamiliar on-set vibe.
“Honestly, you know, you’re told how fast they shoot these things, and yeah, it was really fast. Literally, like one take, and moving on. So it was a very humbling experience, but so much fun,” he told Us. “The cast and the team behind Days were just so welcoming and so great to me. I had so much fun, and I think viewers are going to be in for a ride with Dante Vitali, so stay tuned.”
Lo Presti, a former pro soccer player and model who found Hollywood fame in HBO Max’s Heated Rivalry, also chatted to Us about season 2 of the hit ice hockey romance series, which is currently filming.
“I think the introduction of new characters is going to be really appealing to fans, especially people who have followed the book and those who haven’t,” Lo Presti said in reference to the bestselling novel by Canadian author Rachel Reid of which the TV series is based upon. “You’re going to get some other storylines that are really important, and also just seeing how Ilya and Shane navigate their relationship is going to be very, very intriguing for viewers.” (Ilya Rozanov, played by Connor Storrie, and Shane Hollander, played by Hudson Williams, are sporting rivals and the central romantic couple of Heated Rivalry.)
Amid Lo Presti’s introduction to Days of Our Lives, the actor is also adapting to a new norm at home after recently welcoming his first child with wife Emily Alatalo. He revealed during a recent interview with TV Insider that Alatalo gave birth to the pair’s daughter, Stella, on August 23, opening up to Us on Saturday about how things are going at home.
“It’s a big time for me. [Stella’s] going to be three weeks on Sunday. We’re just so in love with our little girl, and it’s the best feeling in the world being a dad,” he said, adding that becoming a father has felt like a dream.
“It’s very hard to describe, but one word I could put is it was surreal. Seeing this little being that my wife and I created, and looking at her in her eyes for the first time, and touching her hand, and kissing her forehead. It was super special,” he told Us. “My wife is a trooper, and she is my superhero. My biggest inspiration is that woman and seeing what she did, bringing our daughter into the world for the rest of my life. I’ll always look at her with just infinite love.”
New episodes of Days of Our Lives airs on Peacock weekdays at 6:00 AM ET.
