Daniel was conceived around the time Phyllis became obsessed with rock star Danny Romalotti, whom she drugged and later told she was carrying his baby after a night of passion. In reality, Brian Hamilton is Daniel's birth father. Even though Danny learned that he wasn't Daniel's dad, he successfully sued for custody of the boy and left Genoa City with him in the late 1990s, leaving behind a devastated Phyllis.

Daniel returned to town a few years ago and connected with Christine Williams, Danny's ex, much to the chagrin of Chris' rival Phyllis. Daniel befriended Colleen Carlton and Mackenize Browning, whom he developed a crush on. Mac gently let a then-16-year-old Daniel down because of their age difference. Daniel took a walk on the wild side when he conspired with bad boy Kevin Fisher to make Kevin look like a hero by rescuing Lily from an attacker. In reality, Daniel and Kevin arranged for Lily to be attacked; their plan backfired when a drugged Lily became ill. Later, Daniel and Lily began dating despite the open antagonism between their mothers.

An underage Daniel got drunk at a party because of his romantic woes with Lily. Fourteen-year-old Cassie Newman, who had a crush on Daniel, tried driving the drunk and passed-out teen home in his car, despite not being a licensed driver. Cassie crashed the car and later died. Daniel went on the run with Lily. Phyllis, Lily's dad Neil Winters and Cassie's father Nicholas Newman tracked the couple down in California. Daniel was convicted of vehicular homicide, but last minute evidence proving that Cassie – and not Daniel -- was the driver prevented him from going to jail. Daniel was placed on probation and expelled from Walnut Grove Academy.

Later, Daniel reunited with Lily after she returned from a stint in boarding school and began helping to coach Noah Newman's basketball team. Daniel was severely disheartened to learn that his mother was having an affair with Nicholas Newman, Noah's dad, a married man. This revelation fueled Daniel's resolve to be with Lily. The young lovers fabricated documents enabling them to get a quickie marriage in Las Vegas. They returned to Genoa City determined to make their marriage work, despite Lily's parents' objections. However, the revelation that Daniel had been complicit in the attack on her prompted a devastated Lily to walk out on her husband. Their love drew them back together, and they are facing the Winters family's crises together.

Soon Amber Moore stepped into the picture. Amber arrived in Genoa City with love and money on her mind. She quickly cozied up to bartender Cane, whom she suspected of being the Chancellor family heir. She befriended Daniel and Kevin, who shared her history of always being on the wrong side of the tracks. It was long before Amber's scheming caused Daniel and Kevin a whole lot of trouble! Not only did she get Daniel hooked on internet porn (she had her own website for his perusal) but she snared Daniel and Kevin into a scheme to hide a dead body and bury a bunch of money. Needless to say, everything blew up in their faces when Lily found out that Daniel was addicted to porn. Lily tried to be supportive and to get Daniel help but he just kept slipping back into his addiction, costing him his job and his marriage. Lily filed for divorce. Cane found out about Amber's lies. Amber, Daniel and Kevin all faced charges. Meanwhile, Daniel's mother stood trial for extortion and was found guilty! Eventually, Phyllis was released and Daniel was cleared.

Daniel addressed his growing attraction to Amber and they moved in together, much to Phyllis' chagrin. When Katherine Chancellor was thought to be dead and left Amber an inheritance, the couple decided to live an artist's life with Amber working on her fashion designs and Daniel working on his painting. Now that Katherine may be alive and well, what will happen to their income?