is not immediately thrust into a romance. Already four months into his tenure, Smith insisted that he "legitimately" did not know who his love interest would be but he was excited because it was all people were talking about. Smith added that giving Sonny a love interest would make him much more "dimensional" as a character. "Everyone on the show has a boy or a girl, and I am like the fifth wheel" he joked. However, Smith came to appreciate the waiting period. "It was important for people to get to know Sonny as a person and not just as this gay character on the show, who is dating another gay character." One consistent theme with Sonny is that he is very open about his sexuality. While his parents are worried about how others will react—particularly Sonny's great uncle Victor Kiriakis (John Aniston) -- "Sonny is very comfortable. He'll tell anyone" Smith said. Smith explained that Sonny "just wants his friends and family to accept him for who he is." Victor's support is something Sonny never questions because of how close they are. While said it would have been cool to do a coming-out story with Sonny he appreciated how comfortable Sonny is with being openly gay because "It showed that it's great to have a support system. It made it easier for him to come out." Not only does Sonny's introduction make him the only representation of a gay character on daytime television at the time as All My Children's iconic lesbian character, Bianca Montgomery (Eden Riegel) made her final appearances when the soap went off the air in September 2011, he was also the first "official" gay character in Days of Our Lives's 47-year history. Gay bashing (2012) Upon his arrival in 2011, Sonny's life seemed very easy going and Freddie Smith hinted that "At some point, there will be conflict in Sonny's story." Meanwhile, his uncle Victor's only concern is how other people will react to his nephew. In the summer of 2012 during an interview with Outlook Media Smith revealed that Sonny would be involved in a bullying storyline. Smith previewed the storyline during and interview and said "it's told very well, and I think it's important to show storylines like that because it happens in real life all the time." He insisted the importance of showing "how [bullying] affects people." When Brendan Coughlin reprises his