"I didn’t look at Theo that way. I approached his story line, and got an understanding of autism as a social awkwardness and the social not connecting. I get that way in my day-to-day life so I make sure to pay attention, and figure out if Theo would feel that way, and play more onto that." The actor also did his own research to prepare for the role -- "I talked to people who interacted with autistic people," specifically Higley. He stated "It was challenging to step into, but it's something I look forward to as an actor and it's fun." Longtime scriptwriter and former head-writer Ryan Quan took special care in crafting dialogue for Theo. In 2016 he said "Theo is the biggest challenge because there is a great responsibility to portray his autism as honestly as honestly and accurately as possible." Autism In June 2008, Days of Our Lives announced a partnership with Autism Speaks for a storyline in which young Theo—aged 3 -- is diagnosed with Autism. The actor's mother, Katrina Ransom explained that she wasn't aware that her son would portray an autistic character until after Terrell was hired. The plot was actually the network's idea. Executives were pitching potential storylines ideas and when the subject of autism came up, head writer Dena Higley discussed her personal experiences with her son Connor, then aged 20, who like Theo, was also diagnosed at an age 3. The network bosses were immediately sold. "I never would have pushed the story uninvited" Higley admitted of how painful it would be for her family to discuss. NBC's Senior Vice President Bruce Evans praised the decision and said "We are hopeful that this storyline will serve as a resource for our viewers." Alison Singer, Executive Vice President of Communications and Awareness for Autism Speaks said the story "realistically portrays the emotional trauma every family faces when a child is diagnosed with autism." Singer also praised the show for its commitment to raising awareness about the "autism crisis." The plan was to have the story play out long term, with viewers seeing Theo and his parents deal with his condition throughout his life. To help with craft the story, the producers brought in a researcher from UCLA to help out on set. Days would become only the second soap to address the issue of autism after ABC Daytime's All My Children which