At the start of this interview, a pregnant Camryn Grimes reveals that she just finished eating an everything bagel topped with capers, red onion, tomato and salmon. She’s quick to clarify that it has nothing to do with her current condition. “Nah, that’s the way I like them,” she says. “People have asked if I’ve experienced any cravings, and my answer is, ‘Not really.’ To begin with, I’m not a picky eater. I like a lot of different foods, so I don’t think I would know if I’m even having a craving [chuckles]. There’s nothing really out of bounds with me when it comes to food.”
The mom-to-be, who’s due in December, is thrilled to be sporting a noticeable baby bump. “I thought that when I was this far along that I would be as big as a house but I’m just not,” Grimes sighs. “In fact, it took a while before I was even showing. The baby is measuring fine — he’s actually two days ahead of schedule in development — and even though my belly is getting bigger, people are telling me that my stomach looks skinnier. Now that I’m in my third trimester, the universe may laugh at me and I’ll suddenly gain 30 pounds, so I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop.”
COURTESY OF CAMRYN GRIMES
Doin’ The Bump: Grimes’s baby boy is due in December.
While she may be expanding, life on the home front with fiancé Brock Powell isn’t. The couple recently moved to another residence but, she shares, “most people assume that we needed a bigger place, but we actually downsized. We moved closer to my family and now we have a nice big yard and a pool, so we traded indoor space for more outdoor space. I was off for a month so the timing was perfect to move, and it seemed all I was doing was packing and unpacking. Now we’re settled in so I’m enjoying the new nest.”
The road to domestic bliss began in 2020 when Grimes met Powell, a voice-over artist for Disney animation, while he was helping her to put together a voice-over demo. There was a spark of mutual interest but Covid suddenly shut down the country, which meant no face-to-face dating. However, that didn’t stop the pair from getting to know each other. “We just started chatting and then it was just sort of like we never stopped talking, so it was endless FaceTime calls,” she relays. “It had been probably since high school where I’d wake up and wanted to talk to that person all day long until it was night. I don’t even like talking on the phone and here I was, gabbing for hours and hours. This went on for a few weeks until I realized, ‘Oh, I’m very drawn to this person.’ I was committed to being single and for the first time, I thought, ‘If I keep going down this path, then he’s the one.’ ”
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Howdy, Partner: Grimes with fiancé Brock Powell.
The fact that they are both dedicated Disney fans helped seal the deal and they officially became a couple. Powell proposed — the theme was Up, her favorite animated movie — then had to repeat it twice more before the offer sank in with Grimes and she accepted. As they planned for a 2024 wedding, she discovered she was pregnant. “We were over-the-moon happy,” she enthuses. “As we shared the news, it was so heartwarming to see people excited for me because becoming a mother is something that I’ve wanted for a long, long time.”
Not surprisingly, wedding plans are currently on hold. “Luckily, we had made a lot of like decisions about what we wanted, but I’m sure those details will change,” she muses. “Having a kid has made me rethink some things financially; plus, I don’t feel any pressure to get married. We’re still looking forward to a wedding but only when it works for us. If our first year of parenthood becomes stressful, then we’ll wait until 2025. There’s no time limit.”
Grimes reports that work at Y&R is just as harmonic as her personal life, with Mariah enjoying a solid marriage to Tessa. “I definitely see us like Michael and Lauren when it comes to the commitment to their marriage,” she reasons. “It’s rare to see strong couples on television and I think they’re just as important as the breakups and the affairs, so you need to have a balance of the wholesome with the drama. Michael and Lauren have provided that stability and Mariah and Tessa can be that, as well. It’s so lovely to watch what Christian [J. LeBlanc, Michael] and Tracey [E. Bregman, Lauren] have built as actors and the relationship of their characters.”
Which is why Grimes is very appreciative of TV wife Cait Fairbanks (Tessa). “I think anybody in a long-term on-screen partnership will tell you about reaching a place of implicit trust,” she declares. “It makes the working environment really relaxing and comfortable. It’s like any relationship: You build on the history and you build on the work that you’ve done and it just kind of becomes less work. I think we really know our characters, and more importantly, we know their relationship. We can let the smaller details in, like those moments of looks, the little jabs and the joking.”
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All Together Now: Grimes is proud of the on-screen relationship she and co-star Cait Fairbanks (Tessa) have created.
The Y&R fan event held this past August for the first time since the pandemic reminded Grimes how much the soap’s audience adores “Teriah”. “The appreciation the fans expressed for Mariah and Tessa was amazing,” she marvels. “They talked about how great their wedding was and they want them to be involved in more story. I think the beauty of these women is that they’re also seen as individuals, so they can have their own stories outside of their relationship but still be a strong couple.”
The LGBTQ+ community has been vocal about the importance of seeing same-sex couples in daytime. “I’ve received messages that are so supportive and enthusiastic,” Grimes smiles. “They’re really excited and that motivates you to do a good job every day. I’ve heard accounts that Tessa and Mariah have helped people come out or helped them realize their sexuality or helped a family member understand their sexuality. It just reinforces time and time again how vital representation is at all levels.”
Grimes is also looking forward to delving deeper into the Aria hearing loss storyline. “They’ve been happy for a while and just coasting along, so it’ll be interesting to watch them navigate this obstacle as a married couple and grapple with what that means for their future and for their child’s future,” she acknowledges. “To see them have to deal with a reality that a lot of parents have to face for many different reasons and challenges, I think is important to show and talk about.”
As she reflects on the past three years, Grimes concludes, “It’s so funny to look at how different my life was pre-pandemic and how different it is now. It’s sometimes hard to wrap my mind around, but in a good way, that all the things I wanted so much, I have now. I feel extremely lucky.”
Just The Facts
Birthday: January 7
Born In: Van Nuys, CA
Then & Now: Grimes originated the role of Cassie at the age of 7 in 1997, playing her until the character’s death in 2005. Grimes returned in 2014 to play Cassie’s twin sister, Mariah.
Twin Wins: Scored Daytime Emmys in 2000 for playing Cassie (Outstanding Younger Actress) and in 2018 for her portrayal of Mariah (Outstanding Supporting Actress).
Engaging News: She has been betrothed to Brock Powell since her birthday in 2022.
Life B.B. (Before Brock): “I had a crush on this person for a minute and during the course of the first date, he mentioned he went to Disneyland once and didn’t see a need to go again. Now, I have had an annual pass for years, so needless to say, there wasn’t a second date.”
Santa Babies: Grimes and Powell voiced Mr. and Mrs. Claus for the 2022 Disney holiday special, MICKEY SAVES CHRISTMAS.
Side Hustle: “I can have anywhere from 10 to 30 [voice-over] auditions in a given week, so at that point, it’s just about choosing which ones I’m going to do versus which ones you have to pass on because of time.”
Pet Set: The Grimes/Powell household has three cats (Daniel, Elphaba and Bagheera) and three dogs (Riley, Burgess and Sterling).
