Davidson originated the role of
Ashley Abbott on
The Young and the Restless in March 1982, beating out more than 100 candidates. The character of Ashley became a front-burner character, and Davidson became an integral part of the show. In 1987, Davidson had been offered a role on
All My Children playing opposite of
Walt Willey's character, but turned it down as she could not afford to move to
New York with her five dogs. She quit Y&R in December 1988 and the producers took her recommendation of hiring a look-alike actress named
Brenda Epperson, whom Davidson had discovered waiting tables at a charity function. Throughout the 1980s, Davidson starred in two films:
The House on Sorority Row (1983), and
Easy Wheels (1989), playing opposite
Ted Raimi. Davidson then appeared in primetime television, but her show,
Broken Badges (1990–1991), was canceled. She returned to daytime when she assumed the role of
Kelly Capwell on
Santa Barbara from November 1991 until the soap's cancelation in January 1993. Beginning in May 1993, she captured the role of
Kristen Blake on
Days of Our Lives. As originally conceived, Kristen was a heroine, who had an
Achilles' heel in that the show's supervillain,
Stefano, had raised her after the death of her parents.
James E. Reilly, who assumed head writing reins in 1993, began to make Kristen more of a villainess. Reilly eventually developed an outrageous second role for Davidson, having her play
Susan Banks, a Kristen look-alike. Reilly eventually penned three more roles for Davidson (Sister Mary Moira, Thomas, and Penelope). Her character, Kristen, intended to keep her other character, Susan, prisoner on an island, but Susan ultimately prevailed and Kristen remained on the island until she returned to Salem in 2012. All other related characters were last seen in May 1998. Davidson's five roles earned her a
Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in 1998. After a year-long vacation from acting, she returned to
The Young and the Restless in March 1999 to reprise the role of Ashley Abbott. After a successful return, Davidson's was nominated for the
Soap Opera Digest Award for Favorite Return. In November 2006, Davidson was fired from the show. Davidson told
TV Guide the following month that she was fired from the show due to a lack of storyline. Her last airdate as Ashley was January 11, 2007. According to co-star
Melody Thomas Scott, the firing was protested behind the scenes of
The Young and the Restless and was seen as unfair. Scott said: "That was so heartbreaking. We're still upset about that. That was a blow. Terrible. Eileen Davidson was such a part of the core of the show and such a brilliant actress; beautiful and always prepared. It was crazy. I'm not the only one who feels that way." Her
Bold and the Beautiful debut aired on March 9, 2007.
Ken Corday called Davidson about a week before she was fired from
The Young and the Restless to get permission to use a picture of her on
Days of Our Lives. The picture, which featured Davidson as Susan, was shown in December 2006. After she was fired from
The Young and the Restless but before being cast in
The Bold and the Beautiful, her niece Devon Martt, a fashion designer, approached her about designing clothes together. Since 2008, Davidson has written four novels as a part of her Soap Opera Mystery series; following a soap opera actress named Alexis Peterson. The Soap Opera Mystery series includes
Death in Daytime (2008),
Dial Emmy for Murder (2009),
Diva Las Vegas (2010), and
Swinging in the Rain (2011). In July 2008, Davidson was downgraded to recurring status at
The Bold and the Beautiful; leading to her full-time return to
The Young and the Restless on September 26, 2008, and her definitive exit from
The Bold and the Beautiful in November. In May 2012, Davidson announced per her
Twitter account that she had been fired from
The Young and the Restless. In July, journalist Nelson Branco explained that
Sony Pictures Entertainment wanted Davidson on both
The Young and the Restless and
Days of Our Lives, but that
Y&R would not share the actress, resulting in Sony terminating her contract with them. Thus, it was announced that Davidson would reprise her role as Kristen Blake DiMera on
Days of Our Lives.Davidson made a brief appearance on
The Young and the Restless in February 2013 for the soap's 40th anniversary. In July 2013, Davidson made the decision to leave
Days of Our Lives one year after her return. Her intended final on-screen appearance as Kristen aired on November 13, however, Davidson returned for an episode on December 3, 2013. In January 2014,
TV Guide reported Davidson would formally return to
Days in the summer of 2014. On May 1, 2014, Davidson was revealed as a nominee for the Daytime Emmy Award in the category of
Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series for her role as Kristen DiMera. On June 17, 2014,
Soap Opera Digest confirmed Davidson had signed a contract to return to
The Young and the Restless. Subsequently, Davidson revealed that her Y&R contract was for two years and that it included a stipulation that she could continue doing
Days of Our Lives (which she had finished filming for two weeks prior) in the future, as well as having the option of taking a break if work became too hectic. The following month, Davidson was confirmed to be joining the cast of the fifth season of the
Bravo reality television series,
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, her first appearance on reality television. On November 17, 2014, it was announced that Davidson was back on-set of
Days of Our Lives, with a stint set to air in spring 2015. In July, Davidson announced her departure from
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills after three seasons due to work scheduling. She appeared on
Days from November 2–21, portraying the role of Susan, and briefly reprising the roles of Kristen and Sister Mary Moira. In April 2018, Davidson won her second Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series for her role as Ashley Abbott; her first award for her work on
The Young and the Restless. In late June, Davidson announced she would be departing Y&R in September, after wanting more control of her "day-to-day life." Davidson reprised the role of Ashley on Y&R from March 28–29, 2019. In September 2019, she starred as KC in the comedy film
7 Days to Vegas directed by
Eric Balfour, and co-written by her husband,
Vincent Van Patten. The following year, she starred in the
Christmas film Middleton Christmas (2020) as Alana D'Angelo, the dean of a prestigious high school. From 2021 to 2022, she starred in the
Peacock limited series,
Days of Our Lives: Beyond Salem reprising her previous roles of Kristen, Thomas Banks, and Sister Mary Moira Banks. She also starred in the Christmas film
Days of Our Lives: A Very Salem Christmas for the streaming service in 2021. Also in 2021, Davidson starred in the thriller film
Symphoria written and directed by Catherine Dao. In 2023, she starred in the Netflix romantic Christmas drama film
Holiday in the Vineyards. ==Filmography==