Eli Grant is a fictional character from Days of Our Lives, an American soap opera on the NBC network, portrayed by Lamon Archey. The character made his first appearance on February 23, 2017, and was introduced as the son of established character, Valerie Grant (Vanessa Williams) and the long-lost grandson of Julie Olson Williams (Susan Seaforth Hayes). As Valerie's son with Julie's late son David Banning (Gregg Marx), Eli is the product of Daytime's first interracial romance, and the first African-American member of the show's core family, the Hortons. Though he is embraced by Julie and his new family, it puts a strain on his budding romance with Gabi Hernandez (Camila Banus). However, the relationship ultimately falls apart due to Eli's one-night-stand with his co-worker Lani Price (Sal Stowers) which culminates in the birth of their stillborn son. Eli falls for Lani but she struggles fearing the feelings are only due to their shared grief. After interference from Eli's friend Sheila (Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins), the couple finally make it official and start dating. In 2019, their failed wedding leaves Eli devastated when a vengeful Gabi blackmails Lani into dumping him at the altar. The couple reunite in 2020 and are finally married in 2020. They go onto have twins a boy and girl an over year later into their marriage. While the reception to the writing for the character's introduction was less positive, Archey's portrayal quickly won many fans and critics over. Eli and Lani's romance also became quite popular with viewers. The pair go on to make Days of Our Lives history in 2020 when they become the first African-American couple to marry on-screen.