‘The Young and the Restless’ Star Melody Thomas Scott Once Named the 1 Co-Star That’s Difficult to Work With
For over 40 years, Melody Thomas Scott has ruled the roost as Nikki Reed-Newman on the CBS daytime drama, The Young and the Restless. With that much time on the set, Scott knows the ins and outs of nearly every star that’s been a part of the soap’s legacy. With so many costars through the years, who would Scott consider the most challenging?
Melody Thomas Scott is a part of ‘The Young and the Restless’ legacy
In 1979, Melody Thomas Scott was given the role of Nikki Reed on daytime’s The Young and the Restless. She was just 23 years old at the time, fresh off her stint in The Walton’s, Charlie’s Angels, and more.
For 2,634 episodes, Scott’s character has been through it all. Multiple marriages, alcohol addiction, losses, and all the controversial storylines soaps are made of.
Scott previously told Parade what working on the same show all these years means.
“I am extremely protective of it. I also feel that being lucky enough to become one half of the Victor/Nikki love saga helped to catapult the show to even more recognition and popularity,” she said.
“I’ve been told by many executives that simply a likeness of the two of us is enough for viewers all over the world to recognize that as Y&R. Such a wonderful privilege.”
She added: “We know that we are 100 percent dependent on the writers’ vision and can’t have a bang-up story all the time…Some are more enjoyable than others. I’ve had more than my share of fabulous stories!”
Here’s who Thomas Scott deems hard to work with
As one of the few stars of Y&R who’s been married more than a dozen times, Scott has worked with her share of leading men firsthand.
She’s been the life partner to Jill’s brother, Greg (James Houghton), Victor (Eric Braeden) multiple times, Victor’s nemesis, Jack (Peter Bergman), her campaign manager, David (Vincent Irizarry), the no-good Deacon (Sean Kanan), and more.
Out of all the men, who does Scott say is the hardest to work with? Turns out, it’s the other half of “Niktor,” — Braeden.
“I’m not going to lie and say that being his co-star is easy because it ain’t. But it’s so worth it,” she previously told TV Guide.
“And, hey, I can be pretty ornery, too. After working with the guy for 34 years, I know how to handle him. And, the best part is, he doesn’t even know he’s being handled!”
The actor is notorious for sharing his opinions on social media
As the top-earning star of The Young and the Restless — and one of the longest-running characters — Braeden’s reputation, as Scott said, isn’t all that shocking. The actor often takes to social media to speak on topics he’s passionate about, or to defend other stars he feels to have been wronged.
Such is the case of co-star, Daniel Goddard’s firing. Braeden tweeted, “Two good friends are no longer on the show: Kristoff [St. John], who passed away, and Daniel Goddard, who is a damned good actor and should be with us!”
Goddard responded with a tweet of his own thanking his “dear friend” for the support. Braeden is also not shy about sharing his political opinions, shoutouts about other stars, or call-outs, if necessary. The point is, you want Victor Newman on your side. It sounds like Scott figured that out a long time ago.
The Young and the Restless airs weekdays on CBS.
