Days of our Lives fans saw a different side to Leo (Greg Rikaart) when he visited his mom in prison.
Thanks to some therapy sessions with Marlena (Deidre Hall), Leo has been searching for answers about why he is the way he is.
This led Leo to a face-to-face with his mother, Diana Colville (Judith Chapman), which, in true soap fashion, didn’t go well.
Their visit has Days fans buzzing about Diana, who has been off-screen for years but has a sordid Salem past.
So, it’s time for a refresher on Diana, who made her Days of our Lives debut in 1987. Back then, the character was played by General Hospital fan favorite Genie Francis.
Let’s take a look at what we know about Diana.
Who is Leo’s mom on Days of our Lives?
Diana Colville is a con artist herself. She came on the canvas pretending to date Victor (John Aniston) for information about a rare and valuable mineral. Eventually, Diana fell for Roman (then Drake Hogestyn), who later became John Black.
When Victor learned of the scam, he teamed up with Diana’s mom, Serena (Valerie Karasek), to steal Diana’s fortune. Roman had to rescue Diana from the scheme and several other things.
Roman and Diana broke up a few times, including when she framed Victor for a crime he didn’t commit. They called it quits for good after Diana got jealous that Roman wouldn’t give up his quest to prove Marlena was alive, which she was.
Years later, Diana resurfaced thanks to Sonny (then Freddie Smith) and Will (Chandler Massey), who were trying to get Leo out of their lives. The relationship between Leo and Diana proved to be toxic, even abusive, as she blackmailed him into respecting her.
However, Diana did decline to help Will and Sonny after she learned the whole story about how they thought they killed Leo but didn’t, so Leo blackmailed Sonny into marriage. Only in Salem, right?
During her last stint in Salem, Diana desperately wanted John, previously Roman, away from Marlena. Diana convinced John that Leo was his son. She also tried to poison him, and it, of course, backfired, leading to her arrest.
Before she was carted off to prison, Diana admitted to switching the DNA test and confirmed Leo was not John’s son.
Who is playing Leo’s mom?
The talented Judith Chapman took on the role of Diana when the character came back in 2019 and continues to play her sporadically. Judith needs no introduction to soap fans because she’s seriously a legend.
In an interesting turn of events, Judith also plays Greg’s mom on The Young and the Restless, where she plays Gloria, and he plays Kevin.
Playing Diana isn’t Judith’s first stint on Days. The actress previously played Anjelica Deveraux on the hit Peacock soap.
Even though her latest appearance on Days of our Lives was just one episode, Judith remains open to coming back to play Diana anytime the show wants.
“My phone works, not that I’m hustling and looking for jobs but if DAYS were to call, I’d go back with pleasure. I love the work,” Judith shared with Soap Opera Digest.
It was a treat to see Diana in all her crazy glory on Days. The writers are clearly gearing up for a Leo storyline that is different from his past ones, so keep watching.
Days of our Lives airs weekdays on Peacock.