Young & Restless Comings & Goings: Vivica A. Fox Staying, Teases ‘Bright Future’ (Excl)
Vivica A. Fox is sticking around The Young and the Restless. The actress, who recently returned as Stephanie Simmons for a major family twist revealing Holden (Nathan Owens) as her son with Malcolm (Shemar Moore), tells Soap Opera Digest exclusively that her comeback is far from short-term.
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Last week, Stephanie headed back to New York City last week to see her patient, Malcolm, after Cane (Billy Flynn) was determined to be a compatible bone marrow donor, leading to speculation that Fox had wrapped her run. However, she’s only getting warmed up! “Stephanie definitely has a future here on The Young and the Restless — a bright future!” proclaims the actress.
Fox says that when the powers-that-be at Y&R first approached her about staying, “I was thrilled, to be very honest with you. Most of the time, they’re like, ‘Oh, you did an arc, thank you very much, it’s been great.’ But no, the producer and the writers have all just been so kind and they were like, ‘We so appreciate what you’ve done and we’d love to do some more!’ So, stay tuned for more.”
The actress adds that she’s “having a blast” reprising Stephanie and getting to know her new on-screen son, Nathan Owens. “Oh my gosh, Nathan is just the sweetest, charming young man that I think has an incredible future in front of him,” she enthuses. “We’ve just been having a great time working together and we’ve already bonded as mom and son,” even attending an L.A. Lakers game together. “I adore him and I think it’s perfect casting! He looks like he could be [her and Moore’s] son.”
She’s also hoping for more scratchy scenes with Zuleyka Silver (Audra), noting that it’s an understatement to say that Stephanie has been throwing shade at Audra. “Are you kidding me? I didn’t throw shade at her — I threw a whole tree [laughs]!”
Fox is the first to admit that she didn’t have another stint as Stephanie on her 2026 bingo card. “I never saw this one coming,” she marvels. “It’s been such a surprising shock but so fulfilling, and I am just so happy to be home, I really am — and I want to thank all the fans for the support and welcoming Stephanie back. It’s a lot of work, but I absolutely love it. I love what I do, and I love being here on Young and the Restless.”
The actress is proud to be a part of a show that means so much to so many people, saying that the feedback she got on social media when she first popped back up on the show reminded her that fans “have a lot of wonderful memories of growing up with their mama and their grandmama and sitting there watching Young and the Restless. Young and the Restless is a classic! It will never go out of style.”
As for what fans should expect from Stephanie moving forward, Fox hints that while Nathan wasn’t too pleased with his mom after discovering she had lied to him about the identity of his father, “He’s got some little secrets that are gonna come out, too. We gotta have drama, honey!”
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