She was introduced in 1998 by head writer Sally Sussman Morina, and executive producer Ken Corday.
Following her departure, media outlets began to report that Zucker was to reprise the role for a short-term visit in December 2017 after being spotted on-set;[3] Zucker explained her visit, stating that her daughter was included in the annual telling of the Christmas Story at the University Hospital.
In a February 2024 wrongful termination lawsuit filing, accusing producers/production of retaliating against her for a sexual harassment complaint she made against co-executive producer/director Albert Alarr (who was fired in August 2023 following an internal investigation), it was announced Zucker's deal with the soap was not renewed.
During her childhood, Nicole was a victim of child sexual abuse at the hands of her father, Paul, who forced her to do pornography in her adolescence under the name "Misty Circle".
The character came to Salem as a small-town waitress, but almost immediately started getting involved with the major families that the show revolved around.
[9][10] Zucker's performance in the role has been met with favorable reception from audiences and critics, having garnered her two nominations for the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series in 2010 and 2013.
In 2014 and 2020, she received her third and fourth Daytime Emmy nominations in the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series category.
Overworked and underpaid waitress Nicole comes to Salem with dreams of becoming a model and meets Eric Brady (Jensen Ackles).
When Victor Kiriakis (John Aniston) takes the money away from her, Nicole decides to help Sami regain custody of Will.
However, Eric helps Nicole open up about her troubled past and being forced into porn as a teenager by her father, Paul Mendez.
Nicole cozies up to Victor by exposing Kate's plot to kill him and also uses his grandson Brady Black (Kyle Lowder) in her schemes.
Meanwhile, in an effort to keep Brady for herself, Nicole tries to disfigure his presumed-dead first love, Chloe Lane (Nadia Bjorlin), during surgery with help from Stan (Dan Wells) and Tony DiMera (Thaao Penghlis).
Before leaving town, Nicole has a one-night stand with Sami's father, Roman Brady (Josh Taylor).
This was presumably a nod to Zucker's marriage to her former Days of Our Lives costar Kyle Lowder, who played Brady.
[11] Nicole discovers that EJ is still in love with Sami, so she adopts Mia McCormick (Taylor Spreitler)'s baby with help from Dr. Richard Baker (John Callahan) and passes the child off as her own.
On their wedding day, EJ meets Nicole's sister Taylor (Natalia Livingston) and it is love at first sight.
During the election their romantic relationship evolves but Nicole holds back fearing that EJ will end up hurting her again.
In August 2012, an earthquake hits Salem and Nicole goes into preterm labor, but luckily Daniel manages to stop the contractions and keep the pregnancy healthy.
She then starts a rivalry with Jennifer Horton (Melissa Reeves), fearing that Daniel will get back together with Jenn.
A distraught Nicole grieves her second loss but does not tell Daniel fearing that he will get back together with Jenn seeing there is no baby.
Daniel is initially reluctant at first, as Nicole had made up the lie before informing him, but he agrees to play along, blindsiding Eric.
He initially was going to wipe their memories with his drugs, but instead opens a gas line in the basement and leaves Nicole and Eric to die, either by asphyxiation or an eventual explosion.
Nicole names the baby girl Holly and later learns the child belongs to her and the late Daniel Jonas.
When Nicole escapes Xander's hold, she travels to a warehouse to meet with Eric; there, she becomes trapped, and ostensibly dies after an explosion.
The pair briefly split up when it is revealed that Nicole kept the secret of Eric being the father of Sarah's baby, Mackenzie Horton.
[13] Zucker also tied with Annika Noelle (as Hope Logan on The Bold and the Beautiful) as the fourth-top female performer.