Paul Telfer joined the Days of our Lives canvas in 2015, playing Victor Kiriakis' never-before-seen nephew Xander Cook, a role he has played since that time. For the first few years he was on the canvas, Xander was a recurring villain who would pop in and out of story. However, when Xander became Sarah Horton's love interest in 2019, he began morphing into a leading man.
Xander now considers himself a changed man who wants to be a husband and father that Sarah and their daughter, Victoria, can be proud of. That new life is supposed to start with a new marriage at a double wedding in Horton Town Square, where Alex and Theresa are also set to become husband and wife.
Over the last nine years, fans have heard about Xander's mother here and there, but the most we knew was that she had a drinking problem and that she and Xander were estranged. However, he gave Sarah the go-ahead to invite his mom to their wedding. They just didn't think she would show. When she does, it surprises everyone.
Xander's emergence as a shades-of-grey Salem hero is what made Telfer think his character needed to be anchored to the Salem canvas more. Last year, fans learned Xander was Victor's long-lost son, not his nephew, and now his mother has arrived.
"I've been kind of begging for something like this for a long time," Telfer told Soap Opera Digest. "I've been wanting to explore Xander's paternity and the family beyond. I always felt like being brought in as the nephew and the black sheep and all of that, it worked for a while, especially as a recurring villain, but now that I'm a more consistent part of the show, it just felt like the actual family relationships, as far as Xander's concerned, are pretty tenuous, especially when nobody seems to like him."
When Telfer learned DAYS had cast British actress Serena Scott Thomas in the role of Xander's mom, Fiona, he was thrilled.
"I saw Serena play Princess Diana in a British miniseries years ago, and so I knew that she was a fantastic actress and I was just so excited that they really got such a fantastic actress who hasn't done daytime before," Telfer explained. "And at first I was just hoping that it would be somebody British. As long as she's British, that's all that really matters for consistency's sake."
While Telfer can't detail exactly what's coming up, Xander doesn't yet know he is Victor's son. With Fiona's arrival, that explosive secret is bound to come out.
What will Xander do when he learns the truth about his paternity? Do you hope his mother sticks around for a while? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.
