With a 46-year history it's not surprising that The Young and the Restless — which you can watch on 9Now — has recast characters on the soap from time to time. Sometimes actors are let go, they might be cast in a different show or the writers have a different vision for the character, and sometimes the actor is ready for a change.
Click through to find out which Y&R characters have been played by different actors over the years.
Adam is Victor Newman and Hope Wilson's son and spent his childhood and teen years growing up in Kansas. Since his return to Genoa City as an adult he has been portrayed by four actors. The most memorable have been Michael Muhney (2009–2014), Justin Hartley (2014–2016) and Michael Grossman (2019 to present).
She is part of the Newman dynasty and gone from difficult teenager to powerful businesswoman. Victoria was born on screen in 1982 and has been played by four actresses, but Heather Tom (1990–2003) and Amelia Heinle (2005 to present) are best known for the role.
While Sharon was introduced to Y&R as a love interest for Nick, she has become an iconic character in her own right. She was portrayed by Monica Potter and Heidi Mark in 1994 but in the same year Sharon Case took on the role and has played the part for the past 25 years.
The son of John and Jill Abbott, Billy is one half of a supercouple with Victoria. Since the 1990s Billy has been played by several actors but most notably by Billy Miller (2008–2014), Burgess Jenkins (2014–2016) and Jason Thompson (2016–present).
After being introduced to Y&R as a rock singer's groupie, Phyllis has gone on to reach supercouple status with Jack. The character has been played by three actresses starting with Michelle Stafford (1994–1997), then Sandra Nelson (1997–1999) and Gina Tognoni (2014–2019), who took over the role when Phyllis woke from a 16-year coma. Michelle Stafford returned to the role in 2019.
Jack is a powerful businessman best known for his rivalry with Victor Newman. He was introduced in 1980 and first played by Terry Lester (1980–1989). However, Peter Bergman is best known for the role, which he has played for 30 years after joining in 1989.
Malcolm was Neil Winters' half-brother and introduced to the soap in 1994 by Shemar Moore, who played the character until 2005. In 2009, Darius McCrary, from 1990s sitcom Family Matters, took over the role until 2011. Shemar returned as a guest-star for two episodes in 2014 and again in 2019 for a storyline paying tribute to Neil after his portrayer Kristoff St John passed away from heart disease.
The daughter of Ashley Abbott and Victor Newman, Abby was conceived after her mother stole Victor's sperm sample. She was portrayed by child actors from 2000 until 2008 when the character became a teenager. Since then three actresses have played the role, Hayley Erin (2008–2010), Emme Rylan (2010–2013) and Melissa Ordway (2013–present).
Kyle is the son of Jack Abbott and Diane Jenkins and was played by child actors from 2001 to 2012. After being rapidly aged to an adult, Kyle has been played by four actors. The two most recent performances were by Aussie Lachlan Buchanan (2015 to 2016) and Michael Mealor (2018–present).
Jill is the only remaining original Y&R character and known by soap fans for her iconic feud with Katherine Chancellor. Brenda Dickson originated the part in 1973 when Y&R made its TV debut. Since then Jill has been played by four other actresses but Jess Walton is the most notable, having played the character since 1987 to now.
It's hard to believe that anyone other than Eileen Davidson has played Ashley but the character has also been portrayed by Brenda Epperson (1988–1995) and Shari Shattuck (1996 to 1999). Eileen originated the character in 1982 before leaving in 1988 and returning in 1999. During part of that time she appeared as Ashley on sister soap The Bold and the Beautiful. While Ashley is not currently a regular character, Eileen continues to play her whenever she Ashley visits Genoa City.