DAYS Alum Nathan Owens Joins Young And Restless
Deadline broke the news that Nathan Owens, who played Cameron Lewis on Days of Our Lives from 2012-13, has been tapped to join the cast of Young and Restless. His Genoa City debut is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, January 8. Although the show did not reveal the identity of his new Y&R alter ego, it seems rather likely that he will be playing Nate Hastings’s (Sean Dominic) newly discovered half brother, Damian, who is the son of Amy Lewis (Valarie Pettiford) and the late Nathan Hastings, Sr. After all, Telma Hopkins is returning to the show next week as private eye Denise Tolliver, who will help Amy in the quest to track down her missing son.
The Road To Y&R
Owens made his soap debut on DAYS as a recast for Cameron, who had originally been played by Schuyler Yancey. Cameron, who was romantically linked to Abigail Deveraux, also memorably moonlighted as a stripper. A California native, Owens got his on-camera start as a model, booking print and commercial campaigns for prestigious brands such as Abercrombie & Fitch, Gap and Polo, and dipped his toes into the acting waters by appearing in music videos for music superstars Rihanna and Nicki Minaj. He had only newly made the decision to set his serious professional sights on a career as an actor when DAYS hired him; he explained to Soap Opera Digest in 2013, shortly after he began airing as Cameron, that “When [2012] began, I made a New Year’s resolution to pursue acting.”
To land his Salem role, he shared with Digest, “I read for the show’s casting director, Marnie Saitta. Then she had me come back again to work with her, and after that, Marnie submitted me to the producers. I read for them and was really nervous. But Marnie said I was fantastic and gave me a hug.” At his screen test, he shared scenes with Kate Mansi, then DAYS’s Abigail, who now plays Kristina on General Hospital. “It was my first time on a soundstage,” he recalled of the experience. “My grandmother watched DAYS, so I recognized some of the sets, which was really cool. Kate gave me some tips to ease my anxiety. She helped me feel comfortable. I remember her being very professional.”
After the show wrote him out the following year, Owens strongly considered giving up the pursuit of acting to be in closer proximity to his family, he confided to Digest in 2015, saying, “I was within an inch. I was ready to move on and start a whole new chapter in different field, maybe sales. I had a couple of options on the table. I’m thankful for everything that I’ve gotten in this career, but once I get my mind locked into something, I just want to go for it.
Fate had other plans. Owens recounted to Digest, “My manager called and asked if I would mind if he sent an audition [for Devious Maids, the soapy Lifetime series] on tape. It was the one audition I had during that time so I said, ‘Yeah, sure, go ahead and send it.’ ” While he was not expecting much to come of it, Owens soon got word that the series’ producers wanted to meet with him. “It went from meeting the executives to doing a test. After about a month of auditioning, I was cast.” He played the role in question, Jesse Morgan, for two seasons.
More recently, the actor held the recurring role of Julius Vega on 9-1-1: Lone Star and the television movie A Season To Remember, which is streaming on MAX.
Are you excited to have the actor join the Genoa City ranks? Sound off in the comments below!
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