‘The Young and the Restless’: Allison Lanier Thinks Phyllis’ Hatred of Diane ‘Completely Blinded’ Her
There’s never any shortage of drama on The Young and the Restless, especially good old-fashioned family drama. The rivalry between Phyllis Summers and Diane Jenkins spans decades, and it seems Diane’s name can’t even be mentioned without Phyllis seeing red.
But there’s just one problem: Diane’s son, Kyle, is in love with Summer, Phyllis’ daughter. Summer and Kyle’s on-again, off-again romance has always been tense thanks in no small part to their warring mothers. But after their beautiful onscreen vow renewal, it’s pretty clear that the couple is solid, at least for awhile.
Recently, Allison Lanier, who plays Summer, sat down with Soap Opera Digest to discuss her character as well as her onscreen mother’s antics and their strained relationship
Allison Lanier dishes on what it’s like to play Summer
Lanier has played the role of Summer Newman since 2022, taking over after actor Hunter King had played Summer for nearly a decade. While she admitted to feeling pressure at first, Lanier told Soap Opera Digest she enjoys playing Summer.
“I love how strong Summer is,” Lanier said. “It has been fun to play her in the beginning of this new phase of her life.” She also gushed about working with Michael Mealor, who plays the role of her husband, Kyle, and the legendary Michelle Stafford (Phyllis).
But, while things between Lanier and Stafford are stellar (Lanier says she learns from her onscreen mother every time she works with her or watches her), their characters’ lives aren’t so harmonious. In fact, Summer recently had to fire Phyllis.
Why Summer fired her own mother
During her Soap Opera Digest interview, Lanier was asked about Summer’s relationship with Phyllis in the wake of her firing her mother. “Their relationship is definitely strained,” Lanier admitted.
“Summer feels like her mom is completely blinded by her hatred for Diane, and isn’t thinking about Summer at all when she’s making all of these crazy decisions, like summoning Stark. I think there is genuine hurt there. Even though Summer is an adult, there’s still a feeling of neglect or abandonment when a parent is putting their own motives ahead of the wellbeing of their child.”
Marriage is never easy, but when the spouses’ mothers despise each other, that definitely adds new challenges. But Lanier is confident in her character’s relationship with her husband, saying that Summer and Kyle’s “foundation is still very strong.”
Will Phyllis’s scheming drive her daughter away?
One thing is for sure: Phyllis is in no way ready to bury the hatchet. Fans have many theories on her plans for Diane, including teaming up with Jeremy to take her down. Phyliss’s recent bender certainly didn’t help matters, especially when she wished Diane dead in public (a dangerous thing to do in Genoa City). But if Phyllis isn’t careful, she’ll let her hatred of her daughter’s mother-in-law force Summer to make some tough decisions to protect her family.
