As reported exclusively in TV Guide Magazine, Dan Gauthier will make his Days of Our Lives debut as Peter Blake on December 19.
Peter, originally played by Jason Brooks from 1993 to 1998, is an attorney and the adoptive son of Stefano DiMera, as well as the son of Rachel Blake, a.k.a. “The Woman in White.”
Peter arrived in Salem in September 1993, determined to keep his sister, Kristen Blake (then played by Eileen Davidson, now Stacy Haiduk) from pursuing her love for John Black (Drake Hogestyn) because she was already set to marry her then-adoptive brother, Tony DiMera (Thaao Penghlis), to honor Stefano’s dying wish.
While in town, Peter fell for Jennifer Horton (then played by Melissa Reeves), who was reluctant to get involved with him, since she was still married to Jack Deveraux (played first by Matthew Ashford and later Mark Valley), who had left town. After Jack sent divorce papers to Jen, she began dating Peter.
Peter continued to carry out nefarious tasks for his father, including stealing Sami Brady’s (Alison Sweeney) diary, in which she discussed finding her mother, Marlena Evans, having sex with John, information that later confirmed Belle Black’s (later played by Kirsten Storms and Martha Madison) paternity. Stefano held onto the information, which was revealed at Belle’s baptism in front of everyone.
After months of Peter’s machinations, Kristen and Tony tied the knot. Peter helped Stefano fake his death and manipulate John, who had past ties to Stefano. Peter also began trafficking drugs and laundering money through his jazz club, The Blue Note. Laura Horton (Jaime Lyn Bauer), Jennifer’s mother, uncovered his criminal operation, forcing Peter had to work quickly to neutralize her. To that end, he hired a man named Daniel Scott, who had Laura’s office painted with a toxic substance that affected her emotional state, making any accusations against Peter seem unreliable. Because Laura had a history of mental illness, her family was concerned and considered recommitting her to a sanitarium. Ultimately, the poison paint was discovered, Daniel was blamed and hightailed it out of town.
In 1994, Peter, Jennifer and their friends went to Maison Blanche, a DiMera property in New Orleans, where they found a presumed-dead Hope Brady. At the end of the trip, the house burned down. Tony lost his eyesight trying to retrieve a computer from the blaze that contained information about John Black’s past.
The next year, Peter took Jennifer to Aremid (that’s “DiMera” backward!) and proposed. They got engaged, even though Jack had returned to Salem, hoping to reunite with his ex. Jack worked to discredit Peter in Jennifer’s eyes, but she remained committed to Peter, and the couple planned to marry in Aremid.
Tony secretly regained his eyesight and discovered that Kristen and John were still involved. After Jen and Peter wed in Aremid, Tony manipulated events so he was shot and “killed” (he later turned up alive), and John was blamed. Peter prosecuted John, who was sentenced to death by electrocution. He was cleared when Tony’s diary, detailing his plan to frame John, was found.
Meanwhile, one of Peter’s cohorts, Jude St. Clair (Jeff Griggs), was blackmailing Peter, threatening to expose him. Jack suspected there was a connection between them and told Jen. Matters escalated when Jude kidnapped Hope Williams Brady (Kristian Alfonso). During the rescue, Jude shot Bo Brady (Peter Reckell), and Peter then shot Jude, claiming he was trying to save Jack, effectively silencing Jude’s threats. In 1996, Jennifer became wise to Peter’s schemes and tracked down Daniel Scott, who told her the truth about her husband. Jennifer served Peter with divorce papers.
A desperate Peter decided to kidnap Jen and her daughter, Abby. Jack caught Peter, and the two struggled over a gun, which went off, wounding Peter. Stefano sneaked into Peter’s room in the hospital and the two cooked up a scheme to fake Peter’s death and blame Jack. At Peter’s funeral, a stunned Laura discovered both Peter and Stefano, who were presumed dead. They abducted her and had a doctor erase her short-term memory, before releasing her. Laura continued to insist Peter was alive.
Jack was found guilty of murdering Peter and sentenced to life in prison. Kristen had Peter’s body exhumed and discovered he wasn’t in the coffin — Daniel Scott was. Kristen had Daniel’s body cremated. Jack eventually escaped from prison.
Peter, who had recovered from his gunshot wound and was hiding out to avoid detection, was bitten by a tropical mosquito and developed “Jungle Madness,” which made him violent and unhinged. He attacked Laura and Hope during his episodes.
Jack and Jennifer hid out with a traveling circus while searching for Peter to prove he was alive and clear Jack’s name. Hoping to lure Peter out of hiding, Jennifer faked her death. The plan worked, and an ailing Peter showed up at the church, where he was arrested. Stefano visited him and injected him with an antidote to his “Jungle Madness.” Peter was sent to a minimum-security prison in 1998.
Peter wasn’t mentioned again until 2019, when Abe noted that Peter had been missing since being released from prison. Later, during a battle for power at DiMera Enterprises, Peter lent his support to Kristen from afar, and that was the last time the character was mentioned.
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