Cherie Jimenez Opens Up About Childhood Housing Struggles and DAYS Fan Backlash
The actor traces her journey from fashion shoots and Sundance Institute work to daytime television.
Cherie Jimenez opened up about a childhood marked by housing instability in New York and the fan backlash she faced after joining Days of Our Lives, sharing the story during an appearance on the CBS podcast SOAPY with hosts Rebecca Budig and Greg Rikaart. Jimenez described how her family survived difficult periods thanks to the kindness of friends, offering details she said had never been shared publicly before.
The Days of Our Lives star also traced her unlikely route into soap opera acting, which began not in a traditional theater training path but through high fashion photo shoots and acting experience gained at The Sundance Institute. Jimenez spoke candidly about how those early, seemingly unrelated experiences shaped her approach once she landed her role on the long-running NBC soap.
Much of the conversation centered on the pressures that came with stepping into a beloved soap universe, including how Jimenez managed criticism from some fans following her casting on Days. She discussed the emotional toll of that reaction and how she worked through it as a seasoned performer navigating a genre with a famously devoted audience.
SOAPY, hosted by Budig and Rikaart, bills itself as a weekly celebration of the soap opera industry, and the episode featuring Jimenez continues that focus by pairing her personal history with an inside look at the realities of joining an established daytime cast. The episode is available on CBS's YouTube channel and through the Audacy app.
