Soap opera character
Danielle "Dani" Spencer is a fictional character from the CBS American soap opera, The Bold and the Beautiful, played by Crystal Chappell. She made her first appearance on May 17, 2012. Danielle was introduced as the partner of established character Karen Spencer (Joanna Johnson) and the other mother of Caroline Spencer (Linsey Godfrey) in the soap's first gay storyline. Executive producer Bradley Bell decided to introduce the character in order to explore attitudes towards same-sex marriage. Danielle's initial storyline revolved around her move to Los Angeles and being revealed as Karen's wife, which involves Karen coming out to her family. During the storyline, Johnson herself came out publicly. Chappell had previously portrayed LGBT+ women in two other soap operas and Bell wanted her to play Danielle. Danielle's introduction received good reviews, but Danielle and Karen's lack of storyline and development was criticised.