Inside Michelle Stafford's Controversial Comeback To The Young And The Restless

Posted by Merlyn Hunt on Wednesday, May 1, 2024

Gina Tognoni didn't join "The Young in the Restless" for a short stint. In fact, she played the role of Phyllis Summers for five years. Her time and commitment to the role make what ultimately occurred all the more astonishing. Tognoni took a much different approach to Phyllis, changing many of the nuances fans loved about the character. Instead of the fiery hothead who wasn't afraid to cross the lines of the law to get what she wanted, Tognoni's Phyllis was much more cerebral. With Tognoni under the helm, Phyllis was now much calmer and more mature in dealing with her enemies and those around her (via Soaps in Depth).

Tognoni's Phyllis was far removed from Stafford's version, including the love interests for her character. Most of her time in the role revolved around her relationship with Billy Abbott (Jason Thompson) following their affair that ended Phyllis and Jack Abbott's marriage. Even though Phyllis was still present and featured in a significant fashion, the magic of Stafford's version was no longer present.

Toward the end of Tognoni's tenure on "Y&R," Phyllis began morphing back into the trainwreck viewers had been accustomed to for decades. She plotted and schemed with Adam Newman (Mark Grossman) and committed various questionable acts alongside him. Ultimately, her time on the show ended with Kevin Fisher (Greg Rikart) kidnapping Phyllis (via Soaps).

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