Tamara Braun (‘Days of Our Lives’) aims for Daytime Emmy win for scenes involving mental illness and assault

Actress Tamara Braun has earned five Daytime Emmy nominations spanning exactly 20 years, three different characters, and two different soaps. She’s a two-time winner, both times for Best Supporting Actress. Now she’s gunning for her first victory as a leading lady, for her role as Ava Vitali on “Days of Our Lives.” But did she submit a performance reel worthy of the win? She discussed with Soap Opera Digest the scenes she submitted to Emmy judges.

“I submitted two scenes with Steve Burton when we were at Bayview. Ava was talking about her hallucinations and her mental illness, how she was dealing with that, and the pain that her mental illness has caused her and others,” Braun explains. She also “submitted the scenes where Gil tries to rape Ava.” Lastly, “I submitted Ava and Harris in Paris. It was kind of light, silly and goofy.” Those are often the keys to a winning Emmy reel: showing voters work that has a strong emotional impact and shows dramatic range.

Braun started her soap career on “General Hospital,” where she assumed the role of Carly Corinthos after three-time Emmy winner Sarah Joy Brown vacated the role. That performance earned her her first Daytime Emmy bid for Best Actress in 2004. Later she joined the cast of “Days of Our Lives” as Ava, winning Best Supporting Actress in 2009. She slingshot back to “GH,” this time taking on the new role of Dr. Kim Nero, for which she won Best Supporting Actress again in 2020. Then back to “Days” as Ava and another Supporting Actress bid in 2021. Now she’s nominated as a leading lady for the first time in two decades, bringing it all full circle. “It’s all such a beautiful recognition,” she told SOD. “It’s a blessing. It’s a gift. It’s a real joy and an accolade wherever you are.”