Young & Restless’ Joshua Morrow and Michelle Stafford Share Backstage Secrets, Including Her Biggest Challenge and the Story He Would ‘Refuse to Play’
Find out what made Nick’s portrayer say, “That’s not going to happen!”
While The Young and the Restless’ Nick may be a tech whiz, the same definitely cannot be said of Joshua Morrow, aka the actor who brings him to life. In fact, Morrow had such a tough time figuring out how to access the Instagram account he rarely uses that when it came time for him to join co-star Michelle Stafford (Phyllis) for a live chat, he had to instead jump on his son’s account. Once he arrived, however, it was nothing but laughs and backstage secrets for the pair.
Stafford — no stranger to the forum — quickly took the lead, helping Morrow get into the swing of things… which no doubt became easier once she began reading the seemingly endless compliments being thrown his way. When a fan suggested he was long overdue for an Emmy, Stafford wholeheartedly agreed. “He’s so good, and I don’t think he gets his just desserts, quite honestly.” Her theory as to why that was true? “Sometimes a really handsome, super good-looking, sexy guy” has his talent overlooked, she explained.
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One thing they agreed on was that acting in the age of social distancing is a major challenge. Or, as Morrow said, “It sucks. What we do is tell stories about romance and connecting, and I’m actually telling everybody, this is my hardest acting experience. It’s the most difficult thing [I’ve ever done].”
That’s especially true when it comes to love scenes. “Josh and I laugh about the fact that we have a lot of eye sex,” shared Stafford (which prompted her on-screen beau to give a downright hysterical demonstration of the technique in question). “It’s just weird, you know. It was OK in the beginning, but now I find myself trying too hard, which is never good.”
“It’s not even just about romance, though,” chimed in Morrow. “I’ve had scenes in the past few weeks with [Faith and Summer] and, if my real daughter comes in the room, I literally hug her without question. So you have to tell these stories where my daughter’s on the show, we’re both going through some stuff, and I can’t go and hug them. It drives me crazy. But you know, we make it work.”
Morrow admits he misses being able to hug his TV kids.
Credit: © Howard Wise/jpistudios.com
Looking on the bright side, Stafford added that not only are they able to continue taping, but thanks to the new protocols in place, no one has fallen ill. “We’ve been doing it for about 60 days now, and that’s impressive,” she understated. “Everybody’s being respectful of one another, and that’s cool.”
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When a fan suggested the possibility of a Phyllis/Nick/Victoria triangle, Morrow joked that it might be “the story the world has been clamoring to see, for Nick and Victoria to finally make it happen a la Game of Thrones,” before shutting the notion of the siblings hooking up down. “Not even in daytime!”
And while that suggestion might (hopefully?) have been made in jest, another participant in the chat asked if perhaps Nick and Adam might one day put aside their differences and work together toward a common goal. Nick “will never team up with him,” declared Morrow. “I don’t care what the show says, I will refuse to play that I am going to team up with him and be nice, because he’s done horrible things to me. That’s not going to happen.”
As for Nick and Phyllis’ future, the duo remained tight-lipped as to what it might hold. Do you think there could be another wedding in store for the popular pair, especially now that Sharon seems otherwise occupied? Hit the comments with your thoughts, then visit the gallery below to relive some of the highlights of Nick and Phyllis’ long (and often stormy) romance.
